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JOCELYN
D. LARKIN (SBN 110817) THE
IMPACT FUND 125
University Avenue Berkeley,
CA 94710 Telephone: (510)
845-3473 Facsimile: (510) 845-3654 |
JOSEPH
SELLERS CHRISTINE
WEBBER COHEN,
MILSTEIN, HAUSFELD & TOLL West
Tower – Suite 500 1100
New York Avenue Washington,
D.C. 20005-3964 Telephone: (202) 408-4600 Facsimile: (202) 408-4699 |
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IRMA
D. HERRERA (SBN 98658) DEBRA
A. SMITH (SBN 147863) EQUAL
RIGHTS ADVOCATES 1663
Mission Street, Suite 250 San
Francisco, CA 94103 Telephone: (415)
621-0672 Facsimile: (415) 621-6744 |
STEPHEN
TINKLER MERIT
BENNETT TINKLER
& BENNETT 309
Johnson Street Santa
Fe, New Mexico 87501 Telephone: (505) 986-0269 Facsimile: (505) 982-6698 |
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SHEILA
Y. THOMAS (SBN 161403) EQUAL
RIGHTS ADVOCATES 5260
Proctor Avenue Oakland,
CA 94618 Telephone: (510) 339-3739 Facsimile: (510) 339-3723 |
DEBRA
GARDNER PUBLIC
JUSTICE CENTER 500
East Lexington Street Baltimore,
MD 21202 Telephone: (410) 625-9409 Facsimile: (410) 625-9423 |
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STEVE
STEMERMAN (SBN 067690) ELIZABETH
LAWRENCE (SBN 111781) DAVIS,
COWELL & BOWE 100
Van Ness Avenue, 20th Floor San
Francisco, CA 94102 Telephone: (415)
626-1880 Facsimile: (415) 626-2860 Attorneys for Plaintiffs |
SHAUNA
MARSHALL (SBN 90641) HASTINGS
COLLEGE OF THE LAW 200
McAllister Street San Francisco, CA 94102 Telephone: (415)
565-4685 Facsimile: (415) 565-4854 |
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
I,
Teresa Hawkins, declare:
1. I am female and a former employee of Wal-Mart. I reside in Nevada.
2. I worked as an Assistant Manager Trainee and Assistant
Manager at a Wal-Mart store in Las Vegas, Nevada, from January 13, 2001, to
September 19, 2001. During my employment
at Wal-Mart, I learned that several men working the same job as me, at the same
store where I worked, were paid more than I was paid. Also, I was passed over for promotion from
Assistant Manager to the salaried position of People Manager in favor of a male
employee with less experience in human resource matters.
3. Prior to working at Wal-Mart, I had about seven years of
management experience working for two different national home improvement
retailers in Nevada and in California.
In 2001, my mother had major surgery and I had to leave my job as an
Assistant Manager at Lowe’s Home Improvement Warehouse in Bakersfield,
California, and return to Las Vegas.
Upon my return to Las Vegas, I sought a position in management with
Wal-Mart.
4. To apply at Wal-Mart, I faxed a cover letter and my resume to
Regional Personnel Manager Debbie Moody at the Wal-Mart Home Office in
Bentonville, Arkansas. (True and correct
copy attached hereto as Hawkins Exhibit A.)
Ms. Moody interviewed me in Las Vegas for a position as a Management
Trainee. During the interview, Ms. Moody
told me that Wal-Mart would soon be adding salaried People Managers to its
Supercenters and other high-volume stores.
Ms. Moody told me the position was a salaried position for large stores
with a lot of employees and/or for stores with “employee morale” problems. I told Ms. Moody that I would be interested
in a People Manager position, especially given my previous experience in human
resources.
5. I then had a second interview, with
District Manager Chuck Salby. Mr. Salby asked
me where I saw myself in four years, and I told him I saw myself in a People
Manager position. Shortly
thereafter, I was offered a position as
a Management Trainee, which I accepted.
6. When I started management training,
Brenda Belmonte, District Manager Salby’s assistant, told me that all Assistant
Manager Trainees at the same store earn the same salary. However, I saw payroll records as part of my
training in the Personnel Office, and learned that four male management
trainees at my store earned substantially higher salaries than I did. Kenneth Narter, Karl Moser, Vincent Santos,
and Ronald Tedesko each earned a monthly base salary of about $2,200, compared
to my $1,900 monthly salary. Mr. Narter,
Mr. Moser, and Mr. Santos all started management training after I did. Mr. Tedesko started management training less
than a month before I did.
7. I used the Open Door to complain about
my lower rate of pay to Co-Manager James Eble and to Store Manager Bob
Knickerbocker, but I never received a satisfactory response. I do not know any legitimate explanation for
the difference in our salaries.
8. While I was a Management Trainee, I
observed that the male trainees, including Bill Mikesell, Mr. Moser, and Mr.
Santos, received more thorough training than I did. Specifically, I was frequently assigned to
work in the Personnel Office or with the Cashiers during my training
period. However, I observed male
Assistant Managers in training sessions with various Assistant Managers or
working through their Assistant Manager training manuals. The male Management Trainees received more training in the merchandising
aspects of managing a store, which are essential skills for a Store Manager. I, however, received more limited
training. I was also given an Assistant
Manager training manual, which had spaces for the Store Manager to initial and
indicate my progress. However, Mr.
Knickerbocker never initialed my training manual. I observed that the training manuals of the
men mentioned above were initialed by Store Manager Knickerbocker. I made several appointments with Mr.
Knickerbocker to review my training manual, but he never kept an appointment
with me to discuss my training.
9. While I was a Management Trainee, I
told Store Manager Knickerbocker that I was interested in the People Manager
position, which I had originally learned about from Ms. Moody. I told him that my career goal was to move
into a human resources management position, and I described to him my previous
experience in human resources. Mr. Knickerbocker
told me he would discuss the promotion with District Manager Salby. Soon thereafter, I saw Mr. Salby at a meeting
and asked him whether Mr. Knickerbocker had conveyed to him my interest in and
qualifications for the People Manager position. Mr. Salby told me to schedule a meeting with
Mr. Knickerbocker to review in detail my qualifications for the People Manager
position, even though Mr. Salby already had my resume, which listed my previous
experience in detail. See Hawkins Exhibit A. Mr. Knickerbocker never responded to my
requests to schedule such a meeting.
During the same period of time, I searched but could not find a written
description of the job on Wal-Mart's internal computer system. I also never saw any open People Manager
positions posted in the store or on the computer.
10. I was promoted to Night Receiving Manager
on about May 5, 2001. Store Manager
Knickerbocker told me I was being assigned to the overnight shift because I had
extensive experience in human resources and because that shift had “morale
problems.” I reminded Mr. Knickerbocker
of my interest in the position of People Manager, and he told me I had to spend
at least six months as a Night Receiving Manager before I could be considered
for a People Manager position. I agreed,
reluctantly, although I could not see the connection between the
responsibilities of a Night Receiving Manager and a People Manager.
11. While I worked as Night Receiving Manager, night shift
employees asked me several times to tell Store Manager Knickerbocker that they
wanted to use the Open Door policy to speak with him regarding concerns with
their working conditions. The Open Door
policy states that employees can make complaints to any manager with the
knowledge that they will be listened to and that they will not be retaliated
against. When I talked to Mr.
Knickerbocker on their behalf, on one occasion he told me to tell them he was
“too busy.” On another occasion, Mr.
Knickerbocker told me he was only willing to talk to the employees as a
group. I also informed Mr. Knickerbocker
after a female employee, Trina Durham, told me that other employees were
sexually harassing her. Mr.
Knickerbocker told me that he was not going to investigate her complaint.
12. I personally complained to Mr. Knickerbocker
while I was Night Receiving Manager because a male stocker named Mo (last name
unknown) had continued to sexually harass me despite having been verbally
coached by management for harassing me.
Mo wrote me sexually explicit notes, followed me around the store,
commented on my mode of dress, and waited for me in the parking lot after my
shift. Mr. Knickerbocker told me that he
would not investigate my complaint and that I should “sit down with him” myself. I also observed that
Mr. Knickerbocker refused to investigate when
several female Cashiers complained of sexual harassment by Mo.
13. In late May or early June 2001, District
Manager Salby announced at an Assistant Managers' meeting that he had selected
Assistant Manager Dennis Talley for promotion to a new People Manager position
at our store. The People Manager
position was not posted, nor was I informed that the position was
available. I was astonished that, even
though three different managers knew of my interest and qualifications, I was
not even given the chance to interview for the People Manager position.
14. The hourly Personnel Manager at our
store, Marilyn Wall, later told me that
Mr. Talley had no personnel experience. He had previously only worked as a Wal-Mart
merchandising manager, whereas I had experience as a human resources manager
from my prior employment. I also learned
that Mr. Talley never worked six months as Night Receiving Manager, which I had
been told was required.
15. I was terminated in September 2001 while
on an approved medical leave of absence.
I used the Open Door to complain in writing about my termination to
District Manager Salby and to Michael Walker in the Bentonville Home Office. I never received a response as to why I had
been terminated, which is a violation of the company's Sundown Rule. The Sundown Rule requires managers to respond
the same day to any complaint by an employee or customer.
16. I filed a charge of discrimination
against Wal-Mart with the State of Nevada Equal Rights Commission in February
2002, charging retaliation and discrimination based on gender and disability.
I was later forced to drop the
charge because I was in the hospital with a serious illness when the statute of
limitations passed.
17. I would consider returning to a
management position at Wal-Mart, if I could be sure that my salary would be
equal to that of male employees with similar experience working the same job
and that my career opportunities would not be limited by gender-based
stereotypes.
18. I have personal knowledge of each and
every fact set forth in the Declaration and, if called to testify as a witness
in this matter, I could and would competently testify to each of these facts.
I
declare under penalty of perjury of the laws of the United States and State of
Nevada that the foregoing is true and correct.
This
Declaration was signed by me on ______________________ (month and day), 2003,
at ______________________________________ (city and state).
______________________________
Teresa Hawkins