Our firm is proud to announce a record breaking settlement amount of $19.1 million for almost 29,000 TGI Friday’s tipped workers. This result was reached in order to resolve several claims alleging federal and state wage violations. TGI Friday’s, the restaurant chain with an international presence, ultimately agreed to settle in order to eliminate the risk, cost, and delay of years of further litigation. The lawsuit affected TGI Friday’s tipped workers in the following nine states: New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Maryland, Florida, Illinois, Connecticut, Colorado, and California.
The class action lawsuit alleged that TGI Friday’s committed numerous violations such as failing to pay them overtime, covering uniform related expenses, misappropriating tips, and taking unlawful deductions for customer walkouts. Additionally, the workers claimed that TGI Friday’s were taking a “tip credit” from their paychecks and paid them a reduced minimum wage rate. If the settlement is approved by the court, the deal would help put money in the hands of the low-wage workers who have worked hard for their pay. Each individual affected worker would get paid on a pro rata basis. Their share of the settlement would be based on the number of weeks they worked during the affected time period.
Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for the restaurant industry to be riddled with wage and hour violations. As a tipped worker, you may be owed wages. Visit the website of Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP to learn more about your rights. You can also contact us for a free consultation with one of our employment lawyers at (212) 300 – 0375.