Wal-Mart Class Action Status Granted
in Labor Dispute
On Wednesday, November 22, a judge in northeastern Kentucky granted
class action status to a labor dispute against Wal-Mart corporation.
The action by Boyd County Circuit Judge Marc Rosen is the latest
in a string of class action
lawsuits against the nation's largest retailer for allegedly
failing to pay employees who worked during their breaks and off-the-clock.
Other similar class actions have been brought
for similar reasons in Pennsylvania, Colorado and California.
The Kentucky class action lawsuit was started in 2001 by
former cashier Michael Nagy.
Mr. Nagy brought the lawsuit forward after he had been
working at a Lexington-area bakery for two years. During
that time Nagy has stated that he was forced to clock
out and continue working or work through his break periods
without pay.
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The class action lawsuit in Kentucky may potentially affect up
to 140,000 current hourly employees plus an unknown number of
former employees as well. Current and former hourly employees
who worked for Wal-Mart in Kentucky can join the lawsuit if they
were employed from August 20, 1996 to the present.
Attorney Barbara Bonar represents Nagy and more than 100 other
current or former employees who will join the class action lawsuit.
According to Bonar, the next step is to send out notices to all
of the other potential plaintiffs in the case.
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