Walmart Gets Final Approval in $2.5 Million Wage Settlement

Walmart Inc. will pay roughly $2.5 million to a class of nearly 80,000 workers after a federal judge signed off on a settlement reached in a wage-and-hour lawsuit over compensation related to Covid-19 screenings.

Judge Susan M. Brnovich granted the parties final approval on their settlement agreement on Monday, bringing an end to the more than three-year-old litigation. The class members, led by Kathy Arrison and Tristan Smith, will release their claims that Walmart violated labor laws when it failed to pay wages for time spent doing pandemic-related health screenings and failed to keep accurate records of related work.

“Plaintiffs entered settlement negotiations from a strong position, and were able to negotiate a fair and adequate settlement for the class,” Brnovich said in her order.

The class alleged Walmart failed to pay workers for time spent on their screenings before they clocked in for their shifts. The class includes workers employed at a Walmart retail store in Arizona from April 2020 through February 2022.

Brnovich gave preliminary approval to the settlement in US District Court for the District of Arizona in February. She said the settlement had gone through good faith negotiations, had no obvious deficiencies, and doesn’t provide preferential treatment to class representatives.

The settlement is appropriate because of the strength of the plaintiffs’ case, the risks and complexities associated with further litigation, and the risk of maintaining class status for over 80,000 people at trial, the order said.

The settlement agreement also provides $625,000 for attorneys’ fees and over $118,000 in counsel reimbursements, Brnovich wrote. Arrison and Smith will each be granted $5,000 service awards. The settlement administrator, Simpluris, will be paid roughly $207,000.

Lear Werts LLP represents Arrison, Smith and the class members. Dentons US LLP and Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer, & Feld represents Walmart.

The case is Arrison v. Walmart Inc., D. Ariz., 2:21-cv-00481, 7/15/24.