Wal-Mart may engage in a systematic, wide spread discrimination in the hiring, pay and promotion of women.

Investigation and pending class action lawsuit against Wal-Mart alleging widespread gender bias at Wal-Mart.

The class action lawsuit claims women employed at Wal-Mart are paid less than men in comparable positions, despite having higher performance ratings and greater seniority, and women employed at Wal-Mart receive fewer promotions to management positions than do men, and those who are promoted must wait longer than their male counterparts to advance.

Over 100 current and former Wal-Mart female employees, from hourly workers to former district managers, provided sworn declarations in support of the class certification motion. In the declarations the women who worked at Wal-Mart stores in 30 states detailed their personal experiences with Wal-Mart's discriminatory practices, including:

1. A female assistant manager in Utah was told by her store manager that retail is "tough" and not "appropriate" for women;

2. Another manager in Texas told a female employee that women have to be "bitches" to survive Wal-Mart management;

3. A Sam's Club manager in California told another woman that she should "doll-up" to get promoted;

4. Managers have repeatedly told women employees that men "need to be paid more than women because they have families to support";

5. A male manager in South Carolina told a female employee that "God made Adam first, so women would always be second to men";

6. A female manager in Arizona was told she got paid less than a less qualified male because she "didn't have the right equipment";

7. A female personnel manager in Florida was told by her manager that men were paid more than women because "men are here to make a career and women aren't. Retail is for housewives who just need to early extra money";

In charging widespread discrimination, the women cite testimony and documents revealing that senior Wal-Mart managers use and endorse the use of demeaning stereotypes of women in the workplace. In addition, the class action lawsuit presented evidence that Wal-Mart cultivates and maintains a strong corporate culture which includes gender stereotyping and uniformity; Wal-Mart managers make pay and promotion decisions in a subjective manner which provides a conduit for gender discrimination; women are unaware of a large proportion of promotional opportunities; decisions as to who will actually be selected for the Management Training Program are based largely on subjective criteria; Wal-Mart does not monitor the promotion decisions made by in-store managers which have been given unfettered authority; and it consistently takes women longer than comparable men to reach higher management levels.