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, \u201cDefendants\u201d).\u00a0 The lawsuit was filed on behalf of seven cooks, waiters, and runners (collectively, \u201cNon-Exempt Employees\u201d) who work or have worked at Jacques Brasserie in New York City.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit alleged that the Defendants instituted widespread practices and policies that violated the Non-Exempt Employee\u2019s rights under the Fair Labor Standards Act (\u201cFLSA\u201d) and New York Labor Law (\u201cNYLL\u201d).\u00a0 The lawsuit alleged that Defendants failed to compensate its employees at a rate of time-and-a-half for all hours worked in excess of 40 per workweek, as required under the FLSA and the NYLL.\u00a0 Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that Defendants failed to pay front of house employees the minimum hourly wages to which they were entitled. \u00a0Specifically, Defendants failed to properly utilize the \u201ctip credit\u201d provision that allows them to pay an hourly rate below the regular minimum wage (currently $8.75 in New York).\u00a0 The lawsuit claimed that Defendants failed to properly notify their employees of the \u201ctip credit\u201d provision as required by the FLSA and the NYLL. \u00a0Further, it alleged that Defendants required front of house employees to share a portion of their tips with \u201cnon-tipped\u201d employees such as managers.<\/p>\n
Further, the lawsuit alleged that Defendants failed to provide spread-of-hours pay to their employees. \u00a0Employees 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.\u00a0 The lawsuit also alleges that the owners of these establishments further violated the NYLL through its failure to provide its employees with proper wage notices and statements.<\/p>\n