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BRAD SELIGMAN (SBN 083838)
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
CHARLES TOMPKINS
JULIE GOLDSMITH
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
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
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
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
SHAUNA MARSHALL (SBN 90641)
HASTINGS COLLEGE OF THE LAW
200 McAllister Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
Telephone:
(415) 565-4685
Facsimile:
(415) 565-4854
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Attorneys for Plaintiffs
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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BETTY DUKES, PATRICIA SURGESON,
Case No. C-01-2252 MJJ
CLEO PAGE, CHRISTINE KWAPNOSKI,
DEBORAH GUNTER, KAREN WILLIAMSON
AND EDITH ARANA, on behalf of themselves DECLARATION OF FRANCES JACKSON
and all others similarly situated,
IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION
FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION
Plaintiff,
vs.
WAL-MART STORES, INC.,
Defendant
DECLARATION OF FRANCES JACKSON IN SUPPORT OF
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION
Case No. C-01-2252 MJJ
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I, Frances Jackson, declare:
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1. I make this statement on the basis of my personal knowledge, and, if called as a witness,
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could and would testify competently to the facts herein.
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2. I am female. I have been employed at a Wal-Mart store in Aberdeen, North Carolina for
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fifteen years, from July 1987 through the present.
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3. Wal-Mart hired me as a stock clerk and soon after transferred me to the
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Electronics Department as a Sales Associate. In 1989, I was promoted to Department Manager of
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Electronics. Since then, I have also worked in the following departments as a Department Manager:
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Sporting Goods, Photo, Pets, and Furniture.
4. In 1992, Wal-Mart established the position of Zone Manager in my store. The
Zone Manager position was an hourly position that took the place of the existing Department
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Manager positions. I signed up to interview for this position. Instead of formally interviewing me,
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Assistant Manager Leroy Townsend spoke with me briefly on the floor about the position. Mr.
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Townsend questioned my ability to do the job because of my husband’s health, since he had recently
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had a heart attack. Although I was already a Department Manager, I was not selected for the Zone
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Manager position. I learned from Roberta Helin, a Personnel Manager, that Mr. Townsend refused
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to promote me because of my husband’s health. A man named Roger (last name unknown) received
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the position of Zone Manager for Electronics. Because of the restructuring of positions, I was
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demoted to a stock clerk until additional Zone Manager openings became available.
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5. In 1998, I learned that Julius Ford, a male Sporting Goods Department Manager who I
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had trained, had received a $3.00 an hour merit increase. I learned this from Tonya Spencer, who
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had been working in the cash office at the time and had access to payroll information. I spoke with
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Store Manager Jay Gomez to find out if this was true, and he neither confirmed nor denied it. I then
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spoke with District Manager David Norman and he told me he would investigate the matter. The
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DECLARATION OF FRANCES JACKSON IN SUPPORT OF
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION
Case No. C-01-2252 MJJ
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next day when I returned to work, I was given a $1.00 an hour merit increase. All of my other merit
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increases, before and after this occurrence, were increases of $0.50 - $0.75 an hour.
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6. In approximately 1996, I began talking to management about my interest in the
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Management Training program. I expressed my interest to Store Manager Gomez, who told me there
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were no openings. Two weeks after my conversation with Mr. Gomez, a man who worked in store
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security named Al (last name unknown) was selected for the program. Mr. Gomez did not tell me
any additional information regarding the Management Training Program.
7. In approximately 1998, I learned that Jamie Jenkins, a male employee who had worked
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for Wal-Mart as a cart pusher and lay-away runner for one year, had been promoted to Assistant
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Manager. The Assistant Manager position was not posted and I had no opportunity to apply for the
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position. Jamie was promoted over the weekend. I asked my Store Manager, John Furner, why a cart
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pusher and lay-away runner was made Assistant Manager ahead of more qualified associates. He
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responded by telling me that Mr. Jenkins was the only one qualified for the job and that he needed an
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Assistant Manager that same day.
8. In 1999, I spoke with my Assistant Manager, Portia Conway, about the Management
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Training Program. She encouraged me pursue this goal. I later asked Store Manager Brian Barnett
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about the possibility of entering the Management Training program and staying in the Aberdeen
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store. Mr. Barnett told me that the option for staying in the store while undergoing training no
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longer existed as it had for Jamie Jenkins and Al (last name unknown).
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9. In 2000, I spoke with my District Manager, Terry Branton (male), about my interest in
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entering the Management Training Program. Mr. Branton informed me that in order to participate, I
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would have to relocate to Cheraw, South Carolina. The relocation policy for Management Training
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and other management positions has hindered my ability to advance within the Company. Because
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I am raising my grandchildren and caring for my husband, it is extremely difficult for me to relocate.
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DECLARATION OF FRANCES JACKSON IN SUPPORT OF
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION
Case No. C-01-2252 MJJ
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I am interested in management opportunities but am unable to pursue those that require relocation
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due to my family situation. I believe the policy is discriminatory toward women because men in my
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store were allowed to train for management without having to relocate.
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10. At my store, the male managers are in a clique. They golf together and socialize in the
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store during breaks. In contrast, when I began having lunch with Co-Manager Gloria Williams,
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District Manager Branton told me I was not allowed to socialize with her because it violates the
Company’s fraternization policy.
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11. Within the past year I observed Josh (last name unknown), a male sales associate who
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only worked for Wal-Mart for one year, get promoted to first to Department Manager and then to
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Support Manager. Josh was pre-selected for the Support Manager position: he was asked to perform
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the duties of a Support Manager even before anyone was interviewed. I have worked for Wal-Mart
for 15 years and have been unable to advance at this rate because of my managers’ discriminatory
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bias against women.
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I declare under penalty of perjury of the laws of the United States and of North Carolina that the
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foregoing is true and correct. I signed this on the ____ of April, 2003 in North Carolina.
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_________________________________
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Frances Jackson
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DECLARATION OF FRANCES JACKSON IN SUPPORT OF
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION
Case No. C-01-2252 MJJ