On Monday, March 13, 2017, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class action lawsuit against Nick’s Pizzabar for unpaid wages. Nick’s Pizzabar, which is under the same management as other well known NYC restaurants such as Harry’s Café and Steak, Pier A Harbor House, Harry’s Italian, Adrienne’s Pizzabar, Ulysses’ Folk House, Bathtub Gin, The Dead Rabbit, Le District, The Growler, and Vintry Wine & Whiskey, has failed to properly compensate its former and current delivery workers. This lawsuit seeks to recover minimum wages, uniform maintenance pay, unlawful deductions and other damages for delivery workers who work or have worked at Nick’s Pizzabar located at 365 3rd Avenue, New York, New York 10016.
The lawsuit alleges that the company was paying its delivery workers at the“tipped” minimum wage rate, despite being unable to satisfy the strict requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and/or the New York Labor Law (“NYLL”) that could allow it to take a tip credit towards the hourly rates paid to delivery workers. Nick’s Pizzabar failed to provide delivery workers with notification of the tipped minimum wage rate or tip credit provisions of the FLSA or the NYLL, or of their intent to apply a tip credit delivery workers’ wages. Additionally, the restaurant also required that delivery workers spend a substantial amount of time, 2 hours or more than 20% of their work time, performing non-tip producing side work. Some of this side work included, but was not limited to, general cleaning of the kitchen, sweeping the floors, washing dishes, making to-go condiment and utensil bags, filling to-go parmesan cheese containers, removing garbage to the street, making pizza boxes, bringing food supplies up and down between the basement and the kitchen, rearranging items in the basement, and making pizza dough in the basement. Nick’s Pizzabar also failed to provide uniform maintenance pay to delivery workers as required by the NYLL and required delivery workers to pay for their own equipment including, but not limited to, bicycles, tires, chains, brakes, helmets and other bicycle maintenance costs.
If you or anyone you know has worked for Nick’s Pizzabar as a delivery worker or has faced similar violations while working at another restaurant, feel free to contact an employment attorney at Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP. Unfortunately, the restaurant industry is notorious for failing to pay its workers properly, so you may have a wage claim for unpaid wages and not even realize it. You can schedule a free phone consultation with one of our experienced attorneys by calling (212) 300 – 0375 or by visiting our website at fslawfirm.com.