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Betty Dukes, Who Led Largest-Ever Gender Bias Lawsuit, Dies at 67

HeadlineJul 20, 2017

And Betty Dukes, a former Wal-Mart greeter who led the largest gender bias class-action lawsuit in U.S. history, has died at the age of 67. Dukes was the lead plaintiff in Dukes v. Wal-Mart, a case involving 1.6 million female employees of Wal-Mart who said they were paid less—and promoted less often—than their male counterparts. The lawsuit was dismissed by the Supreme Court in 2011 in a 5-4 ruling. This is Betty Dukes, speaking in 2011 outside the Supreme Court.

Betty Dukes: “I brought this case because I believe that there was a pattern of discrimination at Wal-Mart, not just in my store, but I believe it is across the country. Since we have filed our lawsuits in 2001, I have heard from numerous women, telling me basically the same story as mine of disparate treatment in lack of promotion, as well in lack of pay.”

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