Wal-Mart wants women's pay class-action suit thrown out

 Wal-Mart (WMT) asked the Supreme Court Wednesday to throw out a class-action lawsuit against it that the retailer says is the largest employment suit ever.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in April that Wal-Mart should face charges in court that it pays women less than men for the same jobs. The lawsuit, which covers all female workers at Wal-Mart since 1998, could cost the company billions if it loses.

"It's an extremely significant case," says former Equal Employment Opportunity Commission general counsel Eric Dreiband, who is not involved in the lawsuit. "The rights of millions of women are at stake."

Wal-Mart, the world's largest private employer, says the case raises serious issues about procedures governing class-action lawsuits.

"The class is larger than the active-duty personnel in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard combined — making it the largest employment class action in history by several orders of magnitude," Wal-Mart argued in its petition to the Supreme Court.

The company also insists there is no disparity in pay based on gender.

"Wal-Mart is an excellent place for women to work and has been recognized as a leader in fostering the advancement and success of women in the workplace," the company said in a statement.

Seven female Wal-Mart employees filed the lawsuit in 2001. In addition to contesting women's pay, they allege that female workers are promoted less and wait longer for those promotions.

The court is likely to decide this fall whether to hear the case. Legal experts say its decision could have a sweeping impact on if and how future employment lawsuits get certified as class actions.

The women aren't seeking compensatory damages for pain and suffering, only punitive damages and back pay.

Dreiband, now a labor lawyer with the firm Jones Day, says the case threatens the rights of individual employees. Any female Wal-Mart employee with a case of her own would lose her right to present her own argument and her right to seek compensatory damages, he says.

Richard Seymour, a Washington, D.C.-based plaintiff lawyer who specializes in employment class actions, says Wal-Mart's appeal could be good news for plaintiffs because almost any outcome could improve their difficult chances of getting future employment cases certified as class actions.

"It's a no-win proposition for employers," he says.

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