A class action lawsuit has been filed against discount retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on behalf of persons of African American descent who applied and were rejected for truck driving positions based out of Wal-Mart distribution centers in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, Missouri, Alabama and Kentucky. The action also seeks to represent persons of African American descent who would have applied for driving positions, but were deterred from doing so by their perception that Wal-Mart was biased against applicants of African American descent. The action seeks to enjoin Wal-Mart from continuing the alleged discriminatory practices and seeks financial damages for the rejected job applicants.

The case alleges that in the areas where the distribution centers are located, African Americans represent only two percent of Wal-Mart's truck driver population, although they represent a far greater percentage of the population at large. The action further claims that Wal-Mart engages in tactics that discourage applications from truck drivers of African American descent.

According to the complaint, the named plaintiff in the action, Daryal T. Nelson, met all Wal-Mart's stated qualifications for the position of over-the road truck driver and had driven 700,000 miles without an accident. He applied numerous times for open truck driving positions at the company and was not hired, at times when white applicants were hired. Eventually Nelson was offered an interview, given a road test, and told that he would be hired for the position of over the road truck driver. However, when Nelson met with an HR representative to complete the hiring process, he was asked to accept a position as a laborer instead, allegedly based on the HR manager's "gut feeling" that Nelson had falsified his clean driving record and perfect credit scores.