Does Walmart treat women unfairly?

Recently The Supreme Court tried to address that question.

Scores of female Walmart employees were suing the chain store giant for discriminatory work practices.

Unfortunately for them, the case was thrown out.

But not because Walmart was guiltless of these charges. Instead the Court objected to the “class action” part of the case.

This close 5-4 vote centered on the merit of the large number of women banning together to seek justice for their believed grievances.

Views are divided across the board disappointed or praising the notable decision.

Some believe that is fair confirmation of employer protection from excessive monetary settlements.

Others see it as a loss for the working class, those who can’t afford to make these grievances individually.

“Class Action” suits are one way to challenge big corporations.This is particularly useful at this time when union rights are under seige (which Walmart continually opposes).

Women in the workforce are particularly affected.

Workers of both sexes pay the price, but women, who constitute more than 70 percent of hourly employees, pay more…Wal-Mart insists that almost all workers promoted to the managerial ranks move to a new store, often hundreds of miles away. For young men in a hurry, that’s an inconvenience; for middle-aged women caring for families, this corporate reassignment policy amounts to sex discrimination.

Maybe this is just a call for corporate change.

As Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg expressed:

Managers, like all humankind, may be prey to biases of which they are unaware… The risk of discrimination is heightened when those managers are predominately of one sex, and are steeped in a corporate culture that perpetuates gender stereotypes.

The argument has also been made that insufficient evidence was brought to this case.

However a recent court ruling in Pennsylvania on work conditions at Walmart resulted in a $187.6 million fine for denying workers meal and rest breaks.

Was the Supreme Court ruling  justified?

How else can individuals take on big corporations when they exploit their workers?