WASHINGTON - April 26 - The following statement was released today by Wake Up Walmart:

"Today, the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that Walmart's women workers can vindicate their rights together in a class action case, instead of facing the company one case at a time. Today's ruling holds the nation's largest private employer accountable to a class-action claim that could cost the company billions of dollars in lost wages and benefits owed to female employees who have lost opportunities as a result of Walmart's discriminatory actions.

With more than 1.4 million associates nationwide, Walmart has single-handedly transformed the American economy by setting workplace standards by which all other retailers and employers are forced to compete. Walmart argued against the class-action status by claiming the class was too big. But as the banks were too big to fail, Walmart's employment practices are too influential to let them remain unexamined and unchallenged in court. We congratulate the brave women who initiated this complaint and who seek to create a Walmart workplace that treats all associates equally."