Are you a current or former female employee of Costco who sought advancement to management?

• Have you been denied promotion to assistant manager or general manager positions?
• Have you hit the "glass ceiling"?
• Have you been denied merchandising assignments?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, now you can do something about it. You may have legal claims in a class action sex discrimination suit against Costco.

About the Costco Lawsuit

Three female current and former Costco managers have filed a nationwide employment discrimination class action lawsuit Costco Wholesale Corporation. The suit charges that Costco operates a "glass ceiling" at the store-management level which precludes women from obtaining promotion to assistant manager and general manager positions. On January 11, 2007, U.S. federal Judge Marilyn H. Patel certified the class finding that the women may represent all women employed by Costco in the United States denied promotion to assistant and/or general manager positions since January 3, 2002.

To learn more about the lawsuit, click here or visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.

NEWS FLASH!

On January 11, 2007, the Court granted Plaintiffs' Motion for Class Certification and certified a class consisting of all current and former female Costco employees nationwide who have been denied promotion to General Manager or Assistant Manager or denied promotions to Senior Staff positions since January 3, 2002.

Costco appealed that decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The parties appeared for a hearing in April 2008 before a three-judge panel. After hearing the Plaintiffs' and Costco's respective arguments, the judges decided to put Costco's appeal on hold until Wal-Mart's appeal in the Wal-Mart gender discrimination class action is concluded. We do not expect a decision until some time in 2009.

Judge Patel has issued a Stipulation and order regarding declarations signed by a number of class members at Costco's request. The order states that the declarations may not be used against the class members to limit their remedies in this case and that statements in the declarations to the effect that Costco did not engage in gender discrimination are withdrawn.

Media Resources

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