Wal-Mart faces more legal problems ahead. Today, the New Jersey supreme court has certified a class action lawsuit against the retailer for claims that the retailer denied workers’ meal breaks, forced them to work off the clock, and forced them to work on the breaks.
More from Forbes (NJ Court Certifies Wal-Mart Class-Action) and the Asbury Park Press (Wal-Mart to face New Jersey class-action pay suit).
This is probably not a good thing for Wal-Mart, as they have previously lost similar class action lawsuits in Pennsylvania and California (I talked about the PA verdict last year). These kinds of cases are a reminder to all other retailers that they have to stay on top of labor practices, and more importantly, they are responsible for what their store-level management is doing. I’m sure Wal-Mart is not the retailer that is at fault, but these high profile cases send ripples through the industry.
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A county store in Custer, Washington has come up with one novel way to curb shoplifting - shoplifters who are caught have the choice of getting taken away by the police or working 26 hours in the store, to pay off a $200 fine, while wearing a bright orange t-shirt that reads “I stole from the Custer Country Store” (see: Shoplifters’ choice: public humiliation? Or juvenile detention).
Typically, I don’t think public humilation is an effective deterent to future crimes. But in a town of 300 (like Custer, WA), where I’m sure everyone knows everyone’s business, public humilation may just work here. I guess time will tell.
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I don’t even know what to say about this:
Ronald A. Dotson, 39, was arrested Oct. 9 after police say he smashed a window at a cleaning-supply company in suburban Ferndale to get at a female mannequin dressed in a black and white French maids uniform. A judge ordered him Thursday to undergo a psychiatric examination at the request of his defense attorney, Edward Cohn. Doctors will determine whether Dotson is competent to stand trial on a charge of attempted breaking and entering.
…
Dotson was last arrested in Ferndale in July 2000 and later convicted for breaking and entering at a womens clothing shop to get at a mannequin in a pink dress with bobbed hair. He confessed to officers that he broke the window to pursue the mannequin for a sexual fetish.
More from the Detroit Free Press.
I hope this guy gets the help he needs and stays away from my mannequins!
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This week, a jury in Pennsylvania awarded $78 million to plantiffs in a class-action lawsuit against Wal-Mart. The jury found, after deliberating for two hours, that Wal-Mart was at fault for making employees miss breaks, cut breaks short, and work without pay. Coverage via Bloomberg and The Writing on the Wal.
This is the second multi-million dollar settlement against Wal-Mart for unfair labor practices in the past year. Last December, a California jury awarded a $172 settlement against Wal-Mart, citing Wal-Mart with failure to provide meal breaks for 200,000 employees (see: Wal-Mart Struck with $172M Lunch Tab).
Wal-Mart, in their defense, has posted a statement on their website, Wal-Mart Facts, about the most recent case (see: Statement on Hummel case). They say that these cases, and others in various stages of litigiation across the country, revolve around allegations from several years ago. They’ve upgraded their systems and technology in-store to avoid having this happen again. That’s great, but that still doesn’t make things right for what may have happened within the past few years, prior to installing new systems.
The thing to consider is how a case like this can send echoes throughout the entire retail industry. Wal-Mart is the largest retailer, and one of the largest companies in the world. Any time Wal-Mart has a large lawsuit or verdict in the press, be it about keeping employees off the clock, locking in employees overnight, or discriminating against minorities, I’m sure most other retailers are checking and rechecking their policies to ensure they aren’t open to face similar litigation.
Every one of these lawsuits against Wal-Mart is a wake up call to the rest of retail.
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Tuesday
September 19, 2006
No, not me.
A few months ago, the latest version of Target’s “Assets Protection Directives for 2006″ found it’s way onto several websites and forums. It is still up on one anonymous Blogspot page. The posting of this confidential information caused a bit of a stir within the industry, as the timing of this was shortly after Wal-Mart made news by loosening their shoplifting policy.
Now, Target is fighting back by trying to track down the anonymous poster/blogger:
The Minneapolis-based company is suing the unidentified “John Doe,” who is believed to live in Georgia, in federal court for posting Target’s anti-theft procedures on Web sites and various retail-employee forums on the Internet in July.
The information is used to secure Target’s merchandise from shoplifters and other wrongdoers. Target says in a court filing it is provided to employees on a “need-to-know” basis.
To find out who “John Doe” is, Target is seeking the help of AOL, Yahoo! Inc. and Microsoft Corp. It’s unclear whether these companies will comply, though.
More from MSNBC (see: Suit: Blogger posted Target trade secrets).
This case will be one to watch as there is precendent upholding the right to anonymous blogging. However, this case involves the posting of company-protected trade secrets. This case will be watched closely by many as it will have potential ramifications throughout the blogosphere in regards to the right to anonymity, free speech, and exactly how far that goes.
More discussion at targetunion.org.
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Tuesday
September 5, 2006
First off, I know I haven’t been around much the past week and I apologize for that. Some things had come up that have kept me busy and away from the interweb for the past few days. I’ll be able to explain more later, as some are personal and some are professional. But now I am back, or at least I believe I am.
I am a geek at heart and I am a child of technology. I am really fascinated by technology and, since I am heavily involved in the retail industry, I am very interested in how retailers are using technology to improve or change business. Businessweek has an article about uses of technology in the field of loss prevention (see: Attention, Shoplifters). From RFID to emerging video technologies, this article has a good low down on some of the behind the scenes technology that effects every customer, when they walk in, and out, of the doors.
I came across this link because of a posting on Slashdot, and you can read the comments there for some more discussion. Although, as normal with most articles on Slashdot, there is a high amount of garbage being posted, there are some good nuggets of information buried in there.
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Citing the high cost to clean up toxic chemicals from the site, Wal-Mart has pulled out of a proposed retail development in southern Staten Island. Neighborhood activists say that the proposal was scraped due to local opposition to the project.
Last year, a similar development was shelved in Rego Park, Queens. People are already speaking out against rumors of Wal-Mart in the Bronx. I wonder if Wal-Mart be able to open a store within New York City or if they will only be able to do that after they drastically alter their business model and design. The store design and experience found in the new White Plains store has been talked about. Wal-Mart is going to have to improve on this design and really learn how to work with the community before they will see a store in NYC.
I don’t think Wal-Mart will be able to get approval for a site within NYC within the next three years, at least. Come back to this site in 2009 to see if I am correct.
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Woman is suing JC Penney after she was hit in the head by a mannequin while a sales clerk was removing a blouse for her. She was treated for a bleeding scalp at the scene and later went to the hospital for additional, unspecified treatment and also had a cracked molar which led to a root canal (See Calif. Woman Sues Over Mannequin Attack).
I once walked upon one of my mannequins after a lady had gotten the pants completely off of the body without removing any of the parts of the mannequin. That was pretty impressive, but incredibly rude that she never once asked any employee of the store if they could assist her. She just went ahead and took the item she wanted. I wonder who she would have sued if the mannequin fell on
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Oops:
PALMDALE A 13-year-old Palmdale boy has filed suit against J.C. Penney, claiming he was wrongfully detained for three hours because he was suspected of stealing a pair of pants he had gone to the store to return.
The suit, filed by Marquis Chapman against the store and two employees, claims false imprisonment and infliction of emotional distress. Officials at J.C. Penney’s home office in Dallas said they do not comment on pending litigation.
While the youth was handcuffed and lying face down in a bed in the security office, his mother frantically looked for her son in the store, the Antelope Valley Mall, and by driving her car in the surrounding neighborhood, the boy’s attorney said.
More from the LA Daily News, Teen sues JC Penney.
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From the New York Post:
August 9, 2006 — OLD Navy had better go to battle stations. A Baltimore punk band, Oxes, claims the kitschy clothing chain owned by Gap Inc. ripped off one of its concert fliers to use on a T-shirt sold in Old Navy stores. “This is indefensible,” said lawyer Carmen Giordano, who’s filing a trademark infringement suit in Manhattan federal court today on behalf of Oxes, who have opened for Cheap Trick and the Breeders. “Old Navy has exploited their hard-edged image. The connection is completely contrary to their fiercely anti-establishment philosophy . . . and sullies their image.” Old Navy did not return our call.
Here’s what the t-shirt in question looks like and here’s The Oxes’ Myspace page.
One trend popping up over the past year in fashion is “rocker chic”. From Dolce & Gabbana to, well, Old Navy, you’ve seen rock-inspired apparel. The problem with being a mass market retailer trying to co-opt a rock or punk aesthetic is credibility. There is a fine line between something that is authentic and something that is not. In this case, an Old Navy designer may have gone too far when going for the punk/rock look by lifting directly from a flier or using a band’s name that would give it an authentic feel.
This case was brought up a few months ago on one forum I read. I haven’t seen solid proof, one way or another, whether this design is exactly from a flier that promoted this band’s show or even influenced by an actual show they did play. But that doesn’t stop them from having to protect their brand identity. Bands, at all levels, need to be cognisant of their brand identity. And, at the end of the day, it will garner them some publicity, which is always a good thing.
It remains to be seen whether Old Navy can be directly held responsible for the design. In a rumored past case involving design infringment on an Old Navy t-shirt, it was the designer from a third party company that was held responsible for the offending design. In their contract with Old Navy, Old Navy was cleared of any possible liability for their designs.
More coverage from Punknews.org.
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