Wal-Mart execs face penalties for not achieving diversity targets

U.S retailer Wal-Mart (owner of the U.K Asda chain) has told regulators that it will start penalising managers that fail to meet diversity targets. According to the filing, the company has "set diversity goals to motivate officers to achieve [its] diversity initiatives, while adhering to the company's commitment to select the most qualified individual for each position."

Incentive payments for executives who participate in the plan but fail to achieve the targets could be reduced by up to 15%, the company indicated.

Wal-Mart is currently facing an $11 billion gender-discrimination lawsuit that was certified for class-action status by a federal district court in 2004. That certification is now under appeal. At various times, the company has settled claims relating to the hiring (or not hiring) of people with disabilities, pregnant women and illegal workers.

Last week, the company apologised after its website randomly linked a Planet of the Apes DVD to films about prominent African-Americans. Wal-Mart shut down the automated system and said it was "heartsick that this happened."