GENDER DISCRIMINATION

AT WAL-MART
CASE STUDY
By:
Vishv Garg
Yash Tandon

Contents:
Introduction
Background
Scenario
Facts
Case
Unethical Behaviour
COST incurred by Wal-Mart
Possible Actions
Conclusion

Introduction
Walmart is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets,
discount department stores and grocery stores.
Headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, the company was founded by Sam Walton in 1962 and
incorporated on October 31, 1969.
Its the biggest private employer in the world with 2.2 million employees.

Background
Walmart employs 815,000 women 57 percent of its U.S. workforce.
It has a history of unfair treatment of these female employees: they are often underpaid,
underrepresented and given few opportunities for advancement.
Although women make up the majority of Walmart workers, most of them occupy low-wage
positions and few are in management roles.
In 2010, most Walmart managers were men.

1. Many female Walmart employees have been paid less

Scenario

than male coworkers.

2. The company paid to women who had hourly jobs, $1.16
less per hour ($1,100 less per year) than men in the same
position.
3. Female employees who held salaried positions with
average yearly earnings of $50,000 were paid $14,500
less per year than men in the same position.
4.

Despite this gap in wages, female Walmart employees on

average have longer tenure and higher performance
ratings.

Facts

Betty dukes faced gender discrimination on

walmart.
Didnt get the right promotion , she went to
complain about her problem to her district
manager.
Then she was demoted back to cashier and her
salary was decreased.
Decide to go court with 5 more women worker
in walmart.
This court covered all female employees of
walmart.
Despite holding two-third of all hourly jobs ,
women filled only one-third of salaried
managerial positions during 1996-2001.

Case
In Dukes v. Walmart the largest class action gender discrimination lawsuit in U.S. history
1.5 million female employees accused Walmart of discrimination in promotions, pay and job
assignments.
The case included 120 affidavits relating to 235 stores. When the Supreme Court heard the
case in 2011, it ruled that [e]ven if every single one of these accounts is true, that would not
demonstrate that the entire company operate[s] under a general policy of discrimination.

UNETHICA
L
BEHAVIOU
R

Walmart Didnt Give Promotion To

Women Because Of Their Gender in
Time.
Payments Were Less Than Men.
Women Lagged Behind Men.

Cost incurred by Wal-Mart

1. Until Walmart was found not guilty by SUPREME COURT, they tried
to express their selves that they didn act unethical.
2. This could be done by tv, newspaper adv which had high cost.
3. Also during court, there were some strikes not to buy products from
Walmart.
4. All those things caused to Walmart in terms of its financial situation

Possible Actions :
1. Managers should be evaluated in terms of motivation, efficiency,
behaviour by workers.
2. More rules should be added to prevent unethical, biased actions of
managers, employees.
3.

Employees should be made aware of Labour Laws.

4.

Mind set towards women should be changed.

Conclusion
We may not always pay attention to
Walmart, but its continuous trend
of gender discrimination cannot be
ignored.
This retail giant should be setting
higher standards for other
employers, not abusing its power
and exploiting its workers.

Gender discrimination is not

a women's issue .It is a human
issue which affects us all