Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class action lawsuit on December 19, 2014, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York against the owners of \u201cStars Staffing Services\u201d, \u201cSPS Resources, Inc.\u201d, \u201cHornblower Group Inc.\u201d, \u201cHornblower Yachts, Inc., and \u201cHornblower New York, LLC\u201d on behalf of all servers, bussers, bartenders, barbacks, and other \u201cTipped Workers\u201d who have worked for Star Staffing Services (\u201cStar Staffing\u201d), and all Tipped Workers who have worked for Star Hospitality Group at private events at Hornerblower Cruises and Events (\u201cHornblower Cruises\u201d) in New York.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit alleges that the owners of these companies have instituted widespread policies in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (\u201cFLSA\u201d) and New York Labor Law (\u201cFLSA\u201d). Specifically, the lawsuit claims that Star Staffing regularly shaved large amounts of time from the total number of hours that employees worked and recorded in their time records. Further, they allege that this time shaving was reflected in their compensation, which did not accurately represent their actual number of hours worked. In addition, the class alleges that Star Staffing has a policy which required Plaintiffs to perform additional work off-the-clock without compensation. For instance, Plaintiffs argue that Star Hospitality Group\u2019s Employee Handbook states that employees should arrive and perform work thirty minutes before their scheduled call time, despite Star Staffing\u2019s policy of not permitting employees to sign in until that scheduled call time arrives. The lawsuit further claims that Star Staffing failed to provide overtime wages for hours worked in excess of 40 per workweek. All employees that fall under the job titles included in this class action are required to be paid at a time-and-a-half rate for all hours worked in excess of 40 per workweek. The lawsuit also claims that Star Staffing failed to provide spread-of-hours pay to its 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. Plaintiffs claim that they were required to wear and maintain a uniform consisting of a full tuxedo, which Defendant failed to reimburse them for, in violation of the NYLL. The lawsuit also alleges that Star Staffing further violated New York Labor Law through its failure to provide its employees with proper wage statements.<\/p>\n
The Plaintiff class claims that Defendant Hornblower Cruises had a policy whereby it unlawfully retained mandatory 20% to 25% service charges received from customers purchasing tickets for Hornblower Cruise events. They further claim that Hornblower Cruises failed to disclose to its customers that these mandatory charges were not a gratuity and would be retained by Defendants in its entirety.<\/p>\n
We are seeking to represent all servers, bussers, bartenders, barbacks, and other \u201ctipped workers\u201d who work or have worked for Star Staffing, and all Tipped Workers who work or have worked for Star Hospitality Group at private events at Hornerblower Cruises and Events in New York. 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 www.fslawfirm.com.<\/p>\n