On Wednesday July 22, 2015, the New York Wage Board, appointed by Governor Andrew Cuomo, approved a proposal for minimum wage to be increased for workers in the fast food industry in New York City to $15 per hour. The increase would occur over a period of three years in New York City, and over a period of six years for the rest of New York.
The first wage increase would occur by December 31, 2015, raising the minimum wage in ...
Continue Reading →The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on July 23, 2015 in Lola v. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom et al that contract attorneys hired to perform document review could be eligible for overtime pay for hours worked over 40 per workweek. Though employers are not required to pay licensed attorneys overtime if their work is considered to be legal work, the 2nd Circuit held that contract attorneys could potentially receive overtime pay if their work is so basic ...
Continue Reading →On July, 22 2015, Fitapellli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against Artisanal Fromagerie & Bistro, LLC (“Artisanal”), Vincent S. Bonfittodrory a/k/a “Sarid Drory,” and Terrance Brennan. The lawsuit is filed on behalf of all servers, bussers, runners, bartenders, and other similarly situated tipped employees (collectively, “Tipped Employees”) who work or have worked at Artisanal, located at 2 Park Avenue South, New York, New York ...
Continue Reading →On July 16, 2015, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District Court for the Southern District of New York against Ricardo LLC d/b/a Ricardo Steak House. The lawsuit is filed on behalf of all servers, busboys, runners, bartenders, cocktail waiters/waitresses, and other similarly situated tipped workers (collectively, “Tipped Workers”) who work or have worked at Ricardo Steak House in New York City.
The lawsuit alleges that the owners and operators ...
Continue Reading →On July 15, 2015 the Department of Labor issued an administrator’s interpretation regarding the widespread issue of employers misclassifying workers as independent contractors instead of employees. It has become a common phenomenon in the United States for employers to willfully misclassify their employees as independent contractors to cut labor costs and avoid paying such workers minimum wage, overtime pay, and other benefits such as unemployment insurance and worker’s compensation. Many workers are being deprived of their rights under the FLSA ...
Continue Reading →On August 22, 2014, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against Louya Corp. d/b/a Jacques Brasserie as well its individual owners and related entities (collectively, “Defendants”). The lawsuit was filed on behalf of seven cooks, waiters, and runners (collectively, “Non-Exempt Employees”) who work or have worked at Jacques Brasserie in New York City.
The lawsuit alleged that the Defendants instituted widespread practices and policies that violated the ...
Continue Reading →On July 7, 2015, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP, along with co-counsel, Nichols Kaster, PLLP, filed a class and collective action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against Assurance Wireless, LLC (“Assurance Wireless”) and Wallace Morgan, Inc. (“Wallace Morgan”). The lawsuit is filed on behalf of all account executives, corporate trainers, or other similarly situated employees whose job was to gather applications for enrollment in the Lifeline Assistance Program through Assurance Wireless and ...
Continue Reading →On June 29, 2015, in the case of Lloyd v. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Judge Dennis Jacobs of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied Defendants’ appeal from an order of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York denying their motion to compel arbitration. Defendants moved to compel arbitration because of an arbitration clause found in the plaintiffs’ employment contracts.
This suit was filed on December 9, 2011 on behalf of ...
Continue Reading →On June 29, 2015, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class and collective action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District Court for the Southern District of New York against 85 Pearl Street Venture LTD. d/b/a Stone Street Tavern (“Stone Street Tavern”). The lawsuit is filed on behalf of all servers, bussers, runners, bartenders, barbacks, and other similarly situated tipped employees (collectively, “Tipped Employees”) who work or have worked at Stone Street Tavern in New York City.
The ...
Continue Reading →The Department of Labor (“DOL”) has announced a proposal to update the regulations which govern overtime compensation for employees. Currently, the only way employees are automatically guaranteed time and a half pay for hours worked over forty per week is when they make less than $23,660 per year, or $455 per week. Moreover, employees today who make more than $23,660 per year can be given limited supervisory duties and can be called a “manager”, making them exempt from overtime pay. ...
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