Seven years ago a judge in California ruled that women suing Wal-Mart for sex discrimination could move forward as a class. That meant the women with various claims wouldn't have to go it alone, each with a separate lawyer and separate expenses. Essentially what the judge said is that the six women who filed the lawsuit can represent a whole group of women who might have similar complaints -- all 1.6 million of them.
Wal-Mart appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. Taking a page from the big bank playbook, the company claims that it is too big to be sued.
The Supreme Court will hear arguments on Tuesday as to whether the class certification stands. If so, Dukes v. Walmart will be the largest class action suit in history. Then if women can prove a "pattern and practice" of discrimination at Wally Mart, back pay and promotions could be due, and the company might have to mend its gender-biased ways. If the Supremes rule against them, it could mean the end to redress for sex discrimination at work.
Well, OK. Gender bias hasn't been proven yet. But look at the numbers: According to walmartclass.com, close to 70% of the employees are women, but less than a third of the managers are female (up from 14.3% when the suit was filed in 2001). The rest are concentrated in the lowest level jobs. Data presented by the plaintiffs showed that 93% of cashier positions were held by women, and they made less than the male cashiers ($13,800 and $14,500 respectively). It doesn't get any better at the higher levels, where the few women who made it to store manager earned average of $89,300, while the guys pulled down $105,700.
Data from the past couple of years are not available -- if Walmart has corrected the problem, it doesn't want the world to know about it. And even if 100% of the wage discrimination has gone away (and cows can do cartwheels), it won't erase the damage to the women with short paychecks over several past decades.
One of the women in the suit, a single mother working as an assistant manager, was told, according to walmartclass.com, that a male in the same position making $10,000 more a year was paid more because he had "a wife and kids to support." When she protested, she was asked to submit a personal household budget -- and got a $40 a week raise. Looks like a duck to me.
Most people don't know that the majority of the working poor, and Wal-Mart is responsible for a bunch of them, are adult women. They're also mostly white (58%) and mostly high school educated or higher (77%).
Wal-Mart is ranked second in the Fortune 500, and is the nation's largest non-government employer. Members of the Walton family hold four of the top ten positions on the Forbes list of the 400 richest Americans, with assets of over $80 billion. If they gave up just a measly nickel on the dollar, they could raise the wages of their approximately 869,000 female workers by over $2.20 per hour -- enough to lift many of those lowest paid women above the poverty line -- and just incidentally keep the company out of the courthouse.
Of course Wal-Mart is entitled to a fair profit, as are all businesses. But the key word is fair. If corporations are entitled to the most profit they can possibly make, we should go ahead and abolish the minimum wage and repeal our employment discrimination laws, or maybe just go back to slavery and forget about paying workers altogether.
In granting the female employees the right to stand together against the largest company in the nation, the lower court has took a small step for womankind. Let's hope the Roberts Corporate Court doesn't knock the feet out from under those same women, and gut over 40 years of precedent in the process.
JAKARTA, Jan. 31 (UPI) -- Indonesia's hottest rock star was sentenced Monday to more than three years in prison under the country's Muslim-influenced, anti-pornography laws.
Nazril "Ariel" Irham is the first person to be sentenced under Indonesia's new anti-pornography laws instituted in 2008 at the behest of the Muslim coalition under President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, The Sydney Morning Herald reported Monday.
Irham's conviction Monday came after personal sex videos went viral after being stolen from his laptop.
Presiding Judge Singgih Budi Prakoso accused Nazril of showing no remorse and providing "an opportunity for others to spread, produce and prepare a pornographic video."
September 27th 2010 02:51
Still waiting on our report on the safests rub and tugs in sydney, also coming soon, how to stop yourself getting ripped off by taxi drivers.
Soon to come, an article outlining whether or not where you might be spending your sexy dollars is safe or not.
Hot stone massage is long known and is administered through the tactical placement of heated stones at key pressure points on the body. It is a traditional massage modality that is performed to reduce muscle adhesions, improve blood circulation and ease tension. By the placement of heated stones at particular points like back and legs, muscles are prepared for deep tissue massage and relaxation.
The Therapist will administer utilizing a heated stones and rubbing your body with these stones to produce a heavenly relaxing and healing experience. The warm heat produced by the hot stones assist in relaxing the muscles. It lets the Therapist apply deep pressure. Deep tissue massage helps in reducing the stiffness of the muscles and relaxes the entire body by enhancing the blood flow. Deep tissue massage and pressure is one of the features that make hot stone therapy so popular. The massage therapy also helps in flushing out the excess of toxins from the body. A hot muscle therapy can help in reducing these ailments:
1. Muscle pains and aches;
2. Effects of anxiety and stress
3. Upper and lower back pain
4. Depression.
5. Insomnia
6. Symptoms of arthritis
7. Fibromyalgia
The hot stone massage makes use of river rocks that are smoothened by the river current with time. These stones are made of basalt and help in providing deep relaxation to the body. These stones have high iron content and are therefore able to retain heat. After storing in water they are heated to a specific temperature. This technique is very famous among those who are undergoing any kind of stress related symptoms and those who are comfortable with lighter massage strokes. The hot stone massage helps in deeper relaxation because the muscles are heated and prepared to gain maximum benefits from this therapy.
The idea of hot stone massage may sound whimsical to many but the effects of this therapy are amazing and it calms the body by redefining the blood flow and rejuvenating the soul.
sam chalmers
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