Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class action lawsuit on November 12, 2014, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against Mexican Radio Corp., the owners of the \u201cMexican Radio\u201d restaurants located at 19 Cleveland Place, New York, NY 10012 and 537 Warren Street, Hudson, NY 12543 (collectively, the \u201cMexican Radio Restaurants\u201d), on behalf of all servers, bartenders, runners, supervisors, and other \u201ctipped workers\u201d who have worked at either of these locations.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit alleges that the Mexican Radio Restaurants paid its employees a set shift pay independent of the amount of hours they actually worked. Consequently, due to the static nature of this shift pay system, Plaintiffs argue they were never paid an overtime premium for hours worked in excess of 40 per workweek, in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (\u201cFLSA\u201d) and the New York Labor Law (\u201cNYLL\u201d). The FLSA and the NYLL specifically demands that non-exempt employees, such as those who fall within the Plaintiff class here, be paid time-and-a-half for all hours worked in excess of 40 per workweek.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit also alleges that the owners of these restaurants failed to pay employees at or above the minimum wage rate for these shifts, in violation of the FLSA and the NYLL. The lawsuit further alleges that Defendants have not satisfied the requirements necessary in order to lawfully pay employees a reduced wage through use of a \u201ctip credit\u201d. Specifically, the lawsuit claims that the Mexican Radio Restaurants never provided the proper notification required by the FLSA or the NYLL for use of a \u201ctip credit\u201d. Without use of a \u201ctip credit\u201d, all employers are required to pay their employees $7.25 per hour under the FLSA, and $8.00 per hour under the NYLL if the employment is in New York.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit claims that Defendants failed to provide spread-of-hours pay to their employees. Employees who work over 10 hours in a single day, including working time plus time off for meals plus intervals off duty, are required by law to receive an additional hours pay from their employer. This is the case regardless of whether an employee is paid shift pay or paid hourly. The lawsuit also alleges that the owners of these establishments further violated New York Labor Law through their failure to provide their employees with proper wage notices and statements.<\/p>\n
We are seeking to represent all servers, bartenders, runners, supervisors, and other \u201ctipped workers\u201d who work or have worked at the Mexican Radio Restaurants. Eligible employees should contact us in order to join the case. For additional information, please call the employment lawyers at Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP at (212) 300-0375 or visit our website at www.fslawfirm.com.<\/p>\n