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Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Ind. Decisions - "Walmart, Sam's Club workers from '94 to March of this year are set to share up to $28M"

Erika D. Smith reports in today's Indianapolis Star:

Nearly 300,000 Wal-Mart Stores workers in Indiana and their attorneys could receive up to $28 million under a settlement approved Tuesday in Marion Superior Court.

The settlement is the latest resulting from Wal-Mart's decision in December to resolve 63 class-action lawsuits that had been pending against the company for several years. The company agreed to pay from $352 million to $640 million to resolve all of the suits, including the one in Indiana.
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An attorney for the 290,171 Hoosier plaintiffs didn't return a call for comment.

However, the settlement affects all current and former hourly employees at Walmart and Sam's Club stores in the state from Oct. 17, 1994, through March of this year.

It's unclear how much each employee will get, but the total could range from $14 million to $28 million for the group.

The larger sum includes payments to attorneys as well as the plaintiffs. The attorneys -- including Indianapolis' James A. Knauer -- will receive about $9.7 million, according to court documents.

The initial plaintiffs in the case -- Berdita L. Bailey, Penelope Phillips, Connie Hamm and Roger Mann -- will receive an additional payment of $10,000 each.

Indiana's settlement isn't the largest of those Wal-Mart has announced.

Earlier this year, the retailer agreed to pay $55.53 million or more in Missouri and up to $54.25 million in Minnesota.

All of the class-action lawsuits accused Wal-Mart of forcing employees to work through bathroom and meal breaks, and requiring them to work several hours off the clock. * * *

All plaintiffs involved in the state suit will get settlement notices in the mail. A notice also will appear in 18 Indiana newspapers, including The Indianapolis Star.

For background, see this Oct. 17, 2004 ILB entry.

Here is a link to documents filed in Indiana federal court in 2000.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on September 16, 2009 08:16 AM
Posted to Ind. Trial Ct. Decisions