A recent verdict shook up the human resources industry after one jury severely punished a business found guilty of sex and pregnancy discrimination.

A California jury awarded Rosario Juarez $185 million in punitive damages in her sex and pregnancy discrimination lawsuit against a large retailer.  Juarez worked for AutoZone in National City as a store manager.  Her lawsuit claimed that after she informed her district manager of her pregnancy, her work conditions took a drastic change. 

In one verbal exchange, her manager even said, “I feel sorry for you.”  After the exchange her work responsibilities nearly doubled.  Additionally, even though Juarez met all of her sales goals she reported being constantly berated by her manager.

Juarez was eventually demoted.  At that point, she filed a complaint with the state and was fired shortly after.  She then filed a civil suit claiming gender and pregnancy discrimination.

HR experts believe that while Juarez will receive money, the $185 million award probably won’t stick, as punitive damages must bear some sort of relationship to the compensatory award.  Typically, these can’t exceed a 9:1 ratio.

Unfortunately for AutoZone, the case did make national headlines and while the $185 million payout might not stay, they still have to deal with public opinion.