Judge: Wal-Mart Must Pay Transsexual $2M

July 19, 2000 -- A judge in New Brunswick, N.J., has ordered Wal-Mart to pay morethan $2 million to a former cashier who said he was harassed andfired after a boss learned he was undergoing a male-to-female sexchange.

Ricky Bourdouvales, 27, sued the retailing giant in May,alleging it violated New Jersey’s anti-discrimination laws byfiring him in January. The default judgment was issued Monday afterthe company failed to respond to the lawsuit.

Bourdouvales, who dresses as a woman, claimed no one at thePiscataway Wal-Mart had a problem with his work while they thoughthe was a woman; he said they even asked him to train otheremployees.

Discovery on Application

But when a store manager reviewed his job application andnoticed the box “male” was checked, he questioned Bourdouvales,who confided he was undergoing a sex change. It was then thatharassment and discrimination started, he claimed.

“New Jersey’s law against discrimination is a very strong one,and it definitely covers what happened here,” said Bourdouvales’lawyer, Mark Stanton. “We feel this was a firing based on anemployee’s sexual preference.”

Wal-Mart: Was Fired for ‘Misconduct’

Bourdouvales said he was told he was fired because ofdiscrepancies with his cash register count. A Wal-Mart spokesmansaid Bourdouvales was fired for “misconduct,” but would notelaborate.

Bourdouvales filed suit in May, but Wal-Mart never responded tothe complaint, Stanton said. He said he sent the company a noticein June that Bourdouvales was going to seek a default judgment. Thecompany still did not respond, he said.

As a result, Superior Court Judge Douglas Hague awardedBourdouvales $2 million in punitive damages, and another $100,000in compensatory damages and legal fees.

Tom Williams, a spokesman for Wal-Mart’s corporate headquartersin Bentonville, Ark., said the company will ask the judge to vacatethe award. He said the store was aware that a document was servedin May but did not realize what it was.

“We were totally unaware of the lawsuit, and we want to havethe opportunity to defend ourselves,” he said. “We’d like to haveour day in court.”