The appeal of a controversial class-action sexual harassment and gender discrimination lawsuit brought against Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., will be heard before the U.S. Supreme Court on March 29. The controversy in the case known as Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Betty Dukes, et al, is that the class is so large -- potentially as many as 1.5 million current and former employees drawn from 3,400 stores across the nation.

Since the sexual harassment case was first brought ten years ago, Wal-Mart has fought class-action certification. In August, however, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals en banc affirmed the appropriateness of the class action.

Large class actions have made it easier for groups of plaintiffs to pool their resources to sue big corporations. However, corporate America has fought hard for such limitations, and a spokesperson for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has called the Wal-Mart case "the most important class-action case facing the court in over a decade."

Wal-Mart managers accused of holding company meetings at strip clubs, using gender stereotypes to deny women equal pay and benefits

According to the lawsuit, Wal-Mart managers nationwide engaged in activities that created a hostile work environment for women, such as holding company management meetings at Hooters restaurants and strip clubs. The plaintiffs say the corporate culture at Wal-Mart is rife with demeaning gender-based stereotyping, such as referring to female employees as "girls."

One of the named plaintiffs said that her male manager "told her to 'doll up,' wear some makeup and to dress a little better" in order to get ahead. At the same time, he frequently screamed at her and other female employees but rarely subjected male workers to such treatment.

Although Wal-Mart says that it operates under a policy that prohibits employment discrimination, founder Sam Walton himself said in 1992 that Wal-Mart's old-style management policy that requires managers to relocate frequently "put good, smart women at a disadvantage."

The company says that a giant class of current and former employees, which includes people ranging from hourly workers to salaried managers from stores across the country, is unreasonable. Bundling together such diverse claims makes it impossible for Wal-Mart to defend itself, said a lawyer representing the company.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs say that they have overwhelming evidence that the corporation engaged in sexual harassment, retaliation and sex discrimination nationwide. They also point out that the EEOC initially took the case on, and the full panel of judges for the Ninth Circuit certified the class action.

If Wal-Mart prevails in this case, the affected women could still file individual lawsuits against the company. That could mean more than a million lawsuits that could each be decided differently even though they have similar facts, leading to unjust results.

The Supreme Court's ruling, which is expected in late June, could have far-reaching implications for women dealing with discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace, says women's rights advocate Marcia Greenberger of the National Women's Law Center.

"The ability of women to be treated fairly in the workplace hangs in the balance," she said.

Sources: