Jury awards California truckers $54M in Wal-Mart wage suit
SAN FRANCISCO — Wal-Mart intentionally failed to pay hundreds of truck drivers in California the minimum wage for duties such as inspecting and washing their vehicles, a federal jury decided Wednesday, awarding the workers more than $54 million in damages and opening up the retail giant to additional penalties.
Seven jurors returned the verdict in a lawsuit that also accused the company of not properly paying drivers for layovers. Wal-Mart argued that truckers are paid for activities that include maintenance tasks and that they are not working during layovers.
Scott Edelman, an attorney for the retailer, said he was pleased to win a majority of the claims.
“The findings on the other claims were dictated, we believe, by juror instructions that the court gave that were wrong and will be the subject of post-trial motions and, if necessary, an appeal,” he said.