Home About Archives RSS Feed

Wal-Mart Discrimination Suit Plaintiff to Speak in Lenox

Staff reports

LENOX, Mass. — Cynthia Haddad, who won a gender discrimination lawsuit against Walmart, the world's largest retailer, will speak about her experiences Monday, March 1, at the monthly meeting of Berkshire Business and Professional Women.

A unanimous decision by the state Supreme Judical Court on Oct. 5, 2009, awarded Haddad, a former Pittsfield Walmart pharmacist, a judgment of at least $2 million in damages. That decision upheld a June 2007 Berkshire Superior Court ruling that awarded Haddad $1 million for compensatory damages and another $1 million for punitive damages after Haddad claimed she was fired for demanding the same compensation as her male colleagues.

According to a Berkshire Eagle story on Oct. 6, 2009, Haddad was fired in 2004 after working at Walmart for more than 10 years, seven of them at the Pittsfield store. The company claimed she was fired because she left the pharmacy unattended and allowed a technician to use her computer security code to issue prescriptions in her absence. Haddad and her legal team said Haddad was really fired because she demanded to be paid as well as her male counterparts, including a bonus given to pharmacy managers. The company paid the bonus, then fired her two weeks later.

"I think that the Supreme Judicial Court confirmed that outrageous gender discrimination may be punished by a jury," co-counsel David Belfort said in the Eagle story. "More broadly, this is hopefully going to encourage women to have the fortitude to speak out if they are discriminated against based on who they are."

Born and raised in Oswego, N.Y., Haddad was in the baccalaureate program at Oswego High School, attending the State University of New York at Oswego while in high school. After attending SUNY-Oswego for two years, she transferred into the pharmacy program at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Sciences in Boston, graduating in 1984. She also completed a certification program in nuclear medicine.

Other than clinical rotations, Haddad has worked in the retail pharmacy setting her whole career and has belonged to numerous professional organizations, such as the American Pharmacists Association, over the years.

Haddad is married to William Haddad and has four children, ages 14 to 23. Her oldest son has Asperger's Syndrome and she continues to teach him self-advocacy, something she learned as a child from her own mother.

The March 1 meeting will be held at Cranwell Resort in Lenox. Networking begins at 5:30 p.m., followed by dinner and the speakers at 6 p.m. The cost is $28; reservations are required by Friday, Feb. 26. Info: mphillips@greylock.org.

Tags: Wal-Mart, discrimination, Haddad      

Support Local News

We show up at hurricanes, budget meetings, high school games, accidents, fires and community events. We show up at celebrations and tragedies and everything in between. We show up so our readers can learn about pivotal events that affect their communities and their lives.

How important is local news to you? You can support independent, unbiased journalism and help iBerkshires grow for as a little as the cost of a cup of coffee a week.

News Headlines
ACB College Financial Aid Event
The Nutcracker At The Colonial Theater
McCann First Quarter Honor Roll
Pittsfield Looks to Update Zoning for ADUs
63-Year-Old Lost Postcard United With Intended Recipient
Rain Slows Growth of Butternut Fire
North Adams Warns Residents of Lead Pipe Survey Scam
Clarksburg Eyeing Tight Budget; Looking for Grant Funds
Weekend Outlook: Storytimes, Tribute Bands and Nightwood
Letter: Is the Select Board Listening to Dalton Voters?

 


Bill Schmick separates the bull from the bears in his weekly columns on investing and market wrap-ups.



Categories:
advertising (10)
agriculture (1)
arts (7)
automotive (5)
awards (16)
banking (41)
Beacon (1)
broadband (1)
business (52)
chamber (25)
closing (5)
development (23)
dining (5)
domestic animals (2)
energy (6)
entertainment (2)
federal (4)
finances (5)
food (5)
fundraiser (3)
green (2)
grocery (5)
hospitality/hotel (5)
housing (0)
insurance (3)
investment (6)
jobs (35)
labor (17)
laws (4)
Legislature (3)
manufacturing (9)
media (8)
medical (4)
networking (33)
new (22)
pricing (1)
projects (2)
promotion (6)
publishing (13)
radio (2)
real estate (8)
retail (29)
technology (13)
training (5)
transportation (1)
volunteer (1)
website (2)
wholesale (7)
workshops (6)
Archives:
Tags:
Adams Statistics Wall Street Bj's Statistics Expansion Excelsior Auction Baldwin Jobs Unemployment Store Opening Merger Nbt Bank Walmart Williamstown Berkshire Chamber Of Commerce Wmeco Qualprint State Small Business Tricks Of The Trade Unemployment North Adams Sales Tax Great Barrington Breakfast Berkshire Enterprises Crane & Co. Social Media Sabic Talkberkshires Winstanley Currency Pittsfield
Popular Entries:
Chamber Drive Nets Donation for Shelter
Pittsfield Jobless Rate at 7 Percent
State Added 12,700 Jobs in July
State Jobless Holds Steady at 7.6%
Excelsior Brings Greeting Card Co. To North Adams
Cranwell Voted Best For Meetings
Super Duper Wally World
Baldwin Brings Berkshire-style Talk to Florida
Chamber Sets Free Workshop on QR Codes
Quality Printing Buys Marketing Franchise
Recent Entries:
Biz Briefs: Mr. Tire, Tax Holiday, Business Directory
Berkshire Eagle Parent Mulling Newspaper Sales
Digitial First Puts Vermont News Buildings on the Market
Berkshire Chamber, Neal Hosting Facebook for Business Workshop
Winstanley Wins Big at Annual ADDY Awards
Eggs & Issues Event Focuses on Rail Cars, Development
State Unemployement Rate Drops Slightly
New Biotech Firm Setting Up in Pittsfield
Crane Museum Opens Retail Store
License Commission Approves River Street Package Move