Unfortunately in the workplace today, people are discriminated against for all sorts of reasons, whether this is because they are of a certain nationality, religion, weight, gender, etc. places of employment will find whatever reason to choose to not hire or promote a person. While it is never a pleasant experience to go through, any sort of discrimination in the work place is considered to be illegal here in the United States and therefore every individual has the right to take legal action if they have been a victim.
Christiana Going is doing just that after being blatantly discriminated at her Wal-Mart store in Florida. One afternoon she approached her boss to ask what the requirements would be to pursue a higher paying position within the company, and the repose they gave her was far from expected. According to the Palm Beach Post Christian recalls them saying that single mothers similar to herself don’t deserve the opportunity to make a higher wage because she should be in a dual income household anyway.
Going continued to be surprised when she discovered that there was already a group lawsuit taking place for woman within the company who are seeking promotions, she along with ten other woman are taking legal actions against this large corporation. She shares that during her time of employment with the company, 1997-2003, she was always placed second to men. Reposts show that the woman were being denied not only the opportunity to grow within the company but they were also receiving significantly less of an hourly wage for the same services. It wasn’t just a few dollars either, in some cases the yearly salary would range from men and woman at around $25,000 per year.
This group is not the only one who are seeking reform within the Wal-Mart world for woman and compensation for the wages they should have earned, but there have been three other lawsuits filed against the company for discrimination since 2011. High up Wal-Mart officials claim that these claims have no backbone, and the Supreme Court will continue to throw out the claims just like they threw out the class action lawsuit in 2011 filed by 1.5 million women who worked at the store since 1998.
Attorneys claim that this time around it is different, and Wal-Mart sought to ask the California federal judge to rule out one of the lawsuits, and they addressed that they woman deserve a chance to gather the needed evidence to prove their case; time they weren’t given last time. Unfortunately, workplace discrimination comes in all different shapes and sizes, and those who feel as though they are receiving the rights that they deserve ought to have a platform for which they can fight. If you or someone you know is considering suing their workplace for any type of discrimination, contact our office at HKM Employment Attorneys, to receive the help that you deserve!
