Wal-Mart Ordered To Pay Over 1 Million In Damages

On October 10, 2012, a jury awarded a former Wal-Mart employee over $1.4 million dollars in damages. The jury found that the employee was constructively dismissed due to an abusive work environment at the Windsor Wal-Mart store. This is the largest such award in Canadian history and, as expected, will be appealed by Wal-Mart.

Summary of the Claim

Although the case is not publicly available, we can glean some facts from media reports and the Statement of Claim.

Meredith Boucher was an assistant manager at a Wal-Mart in Windsor, Ontario with nine years service. She alleged abuse by the store manager, including being forced to count skids in front of other employees to prove she could count; being punched in her arm twice by a fellow assistant manager; and being called a "(expletive) idiot."