Walmart’s civil violations span opioid dispensing, foreign bribery, environmental dumping, wage and overtime failures, deceptive marketing, money transfer fraud, product safety reporting, employment discrimination, and healthcare billing. The company has paid billions of dollars in penalties and settlements to federal agencies, state attorneys general, and regulators, with a single $3.1 billion opioid framework covering all 50 states.
Opioid Dispensing: $3.1 Billion
In November 2022, Walmart agreed to a $3.1 billion nationwide settlement framework to resolve opioid-related claims brought by state, local, and tribal governments.1Walmart. Walmart Announces Nationwide Opioid Settlement Framework By December, agreements were in place with all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and three additional U.S. territories.2Walmart. Walmart Reaches Opioid Settlement Agreements With All 50 States
The claims centered on Walmart’s pharmacy operations. State attorneys general and local governments alleged that the company dispensed opioids without adequate safeguards, contributing to the broader opioid epidemic. In announcing the resolution, Walmart pointed to compliance measures already in place, including pharmacist training programs, company-wide limits on the strength and duration of acute opioid prescriptions, and data analytics tools built to flag problematic prescribing patterns.
The dollar figure dwarfs every other civil enforcement action against the company combined.
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: $282 Million
In 2019, Walmart paid more than $282 million to resolve charges that it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which prohibits American companies from bribing foreign government officials. The SEC portion of the settlement exceeded $144 million, and the company paid approximately $138 million to resolve parallel criminal charges brought by the Department of Justice.3U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Walmart Charged With FCPA Violations
The investigation found that Walmart subsidiaries in Brazil, China, India, and Mexico had used third-party intermediaries who made payments to foreign government officials without adequate safeguards. The SEC concluded that the company violated the books and records and internal accounting controls provisions of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, meaning Walmart’s financial records didn’t accurately reflect these payments and the company lacked sufficient internal controls to prevent or catch them.3U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Walmart Charged With FCPA Violations
Environmental Dumping and Pesticide Violations
Environmental enforcement has focused on how Walmart stores handled and disposed of regulated materials: leftover pesticides, cleaning chemicals, and damaged consumer products that become hazardous waste once discarded.
Federal Settlement: $81.6 Million
In May 2013, Walmart paid approximately $81.6 million in a coordinated federal enforcement action resolving both criminal and civil environmental violations.4Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Transportation. Walmart Agrees to Pay More Than $81 Million to Settle Federal Environmental Crimes The criminal component included a $40 million fine and $20 million directed toward community service projects, including a Retail Compliance Assistance Center and an Advanced Environmental Crimes Training Program. Walmart pleaded guilty to six counts of violating the Clean Water Act in cases filed in Los Angeles and San Francisco, plus a violation of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act in Kansas City.
On the civil side, the EPA and Walmart reached a Consent Agreement with a $7.6 million civil penalty resolving violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and FIFRA.5U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. Settlement The underlying conduct was straightforward. Store employees were tossing pesticides, bleach, and certain paints into regular trash bins or pouring chemicals down drains connected to local sewer systems. Damaged and returned goods qualifying as hazardous waste were also mishandled, with the company failing to make required hazardous waste determinations and failing to prepare proper shipping manifests.
California Hazardous and Medical Waste: $7.5 Million
The California Attorney General secured a separate $7.5 million settlement resolving allegations that Walmart unlawfully disposed of hazardous waste and medical waste from its California stores by sending the materials to municipal landfills not equipped to handle them.6Office of the Attorney General. Attorney General Bonta Announces $7.5 Million Settlement with Walmart for Illegal Disposal of Hazardous Waste and Medical Waste The settlement covered civil penalties and costs, plus injunctive terms requiring the company to change its disposal practices statewide.
Wage, Overtime, and Workplace Safety
Overtime Misclassification
A Department of Labor investigation found that Walmart misclassified more than 4,500 employees as exempt from overtime when their actual job duties didn’t qualify for an exemption. The affected workers, vision center managers and asset protection coordinators at Walmart stores, Supercenters, Neighborhood Markets, and Sam’s Club warehouses, were not paid overtime for hours beyond 40 per week. The company agreed to pay $4,828,442 in back wages and damages, plus $463,815 in civil penalties.7U.S. Department of Labor. US Department of Labor Recovers $4.83 Million in Back Wages for More Than 4,500 Walmart Employees Nationwide The elevated civil penalty reflected the repeat nature of the violations.
Child Labor Violations
Federal law prohibits workers under 18 from operating balers, trash compactors, forklifts, and other power-driven hoisting equipment.8U.S. Department of Labor. What Jobs Are Off-Limits for Kids Walmart has been cited for allowing minors to operate cardboard balers, with settlements requiring both monetary penalties and posted notices on baler equipment reminding employees that minors are prohibited from using them.
OSHA Corporate-Wide Settlement
In August 2013, Walmart entered a corporate-wide settlement with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration covering citations related to trash compactors, cleaning chemicals, and hazard communication deficiencies at every Walmart and Sam’s Club store under federal jurisdiction. The company paid $190,000 in civil penalties. Citations included serious violations tied to personal protective equipment and hazard communication, along with repeat violations for electrical hazards, lockout/tagout failures, and platform fall hazards.9U.S. Department of Labor. Wal-Mart Signs Corporate-Wide Settlement With US Labor Department A corporate-wide resolution applies at every location rather than fixing a single facility.
Consumer Protection and Product Safety
Deceptive Bamboo Marketing: $3 Million
In 2022, the FTC used its penalty offense authority to impose a $3 million civil penalty on Walmart for marketing dozens of rayon textile products as “bamboo.” The products were actually rayon derived from bamboo, a distinction that matters because converting bamboo into rayon involves toxic chemicals and produces hazardous pollutants. The court order required Walmart to stop making deceptive environmental claims and cease other misleading advertising.10Federal Trade Commission. FTC Uses Penalty Offense Authority to Seek Largest-Ever Civil Penalty for Bogus Bamboo Marketing From Kohls and Walmart
Money Transfer Fraud: $10 Million
In June 2025, Walmart agreed to pay $10 million to settle FTC charges that it allowed scammers to exploit its in-store money transfer services between 2013 and 2018. The FTC alleged that Walmart, acting as an agent for MoneyGram, Western Union, and Ria, failed to put effective anti-fraud policies in place, properly train employees, or warn customers about fraud risks. Scammers used the services to steal hundreds of millions of dollars from consumers.11Federal Trade Commission. Walmart to Pay $10 Million to Settle FTC Allegations it Allowed Scammers to Obtain Millions From Consumers Using Company Wire Transfer Services The settlement order prohibits Walmart from providing money transfer services without taking timely action to detect and prevent fraud-induced transfers, and bars the company from knowingly facilitating any telemarketer who solicits prepayment for loans or credit.
Delayed Product Safety Reporting: $750,000
Walmart paid a $750,000 civil penalty to the Consumer Product Safety Commission after the government charged that the company delayed reporting safety hazards with Weider and Weslo brand exercise gliders, despite knowing of at least 29 consumers who were injured trying out the equipment in stores.12U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Wal-Mart Agrees to Pay $750,000 Civil Penalty for Delay in Reporting Exercise Equipment Hazard Federal law requires retailers who learn of a defect that could create a substantial risk of injury to report it to the CPSC promptly.
Disability Discrimination and Medi-Cal Billing
Walmart paid $175,000 to settle three EEOC disability discrimination lawsuits involving employees fired for attendance violations caused by documented medical conditions, including epilepsy and gastrointestinal disorders. In each case, the company failed to provide intermittent leave as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act.13U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Walmart to Pay $175,000 to Settle Three EEOC Disability Discrimination Suits
On the healthcare fraud side, Walmart paid $1.65 million in 2017 to resolve False Claims Act allegations that it knowingly submitted reimbursement claims to California’s Medi-Cal program that weren’t supported by proper diagnosis and documentation requirements.14Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Wal-Mart Pays $1.65M to Settle False Claims Act Allegations of Improper Medi-Cal Billings
What These Settlements Actually Require
Nearly all of these enforcement actions end in negotiated settlements rather than trials. A settlement generally has two parts: a monetary payment and a legally binding agreement dictating how the company must operate going forward. When formalized through a court, that agreement is called a consent decree, and violating its terms can bring contempt-of-court sanctions on top of any new penalties.
Consent decrees require specific, measurable reforms: overhauling an environmental management system, retraining pharmacists, posting notices on restricted equipment, building new internal auditing structures. The EPA’s consent agreement in the environmental case required Walmart to take defined steps to ensure future RCRA and FIFRA compliance at every store location.5U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. Settlement
In some cases, the government appoints an independent monitor to verify compliance. The Department of Justice has described independent monitors as “an effective resource in assessing a company’s compliance” with enforcement agreements.15United States Department of Justice. Monitor Selection for Corporate Criminal Enforcement Monitoring periods vary, but multi-year oversight of three years or more is common for large corporate resolutions.