New York Post – 3/5/08
A pregnant worker at a Long Island Wal-Mart is claiming she almost had a miscarriage when she was forced to push heavy shopping carts around to make her bosses look good during a visit from an inspection team.
Sarah Arena, 21, said no one at the store called an ambulance when she began to bleed. She said her mom had to drive her to an emergency room, where doctors ordered her to rest in bed to protect her unborn child.
Now, the single mom said she is not getting paid, has no health insurance and Wal-Mart has refused to pay her medical bills. The company denies her claims.
“I’m just nervous and I hope everything goes OK with my kid,” said Arena. “I don’t know how I’m going to support myself and my baby.”
Arena’s high-powered lawyer, Rosemarie Arnold, called Wal-Mart’s actions “atrocious.”
“She’s still cramping and might lose the baby,” she said.
Arnold said she will file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and will also file a multimillion-dollar lawsuit demanding compensatory and punitive damages.