Dive Brief:

• The U.S. Supreme Court continues to lean towards employees and class-action lawsuits, as the court earlier this week denied appeals in a class-action case brought against Wal-Mart Stores Inc. over the way it treated workers in Pennsylvania, according to Reuters.
• In a related ruling, but one not connected to employment law, Wells Fargo & Co also lost an appeal over class-action status. Wal-Mart looked to shed a $187 million judgment and Wells Fargo & Co a $203 million judgment related to excessive overdraft fees.
• Those two decisions, plus a late March decision involving Tyson Foods in an employment issue, have signaled a change in the court's view of class-action cases, with some experts pointing to the death of Justice Antonin Scalia as perhaps one reason why.

Dive Insight:

In January, the court ruled against advertising firm Campbell-Ewald and in March ruled against Tyson Foods. The court's decision this week to turn down Wal-Mart's appeal cemented a 2014 ruling by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, which affects nearly 200,000 Pennsylvania-based employees between 1998 and 2006.

At issue in the Wal-Mart case: workers claimed the retailer didn't pay them for all hours worked and also blocked their opportunity to have full meal and rest breaks.

"We are disappointed the Supreme Court decided not to review our case. While we continue to believe these claims should not be bundled together in a class-action lawsuit, we respect the court's decision," a Wal-Mart spokesperson told Reuters.

Large employers expecting to find a friendly ear at the U.S. Supreme Court no doubt have taken notice of these past few decisions.