Grovehouse Hospitality Wage and Hour Lawsuit

Fitapelli & Schaffer filed a class and collective action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York against Grovehouse Hospitality, LLC (“Grovehouse”). The lawsuit is filed on behalf of all servers, runners, bussers, bartenders, barbacks, and other “Tipped Workers” who work or worked at Misi or Lilia, restaurants owned and/or operated by Grovehouse Hospitality, LLC and related entities.

The lawsuit alleges Grovehouse paid Tipped Workers at or below the tipped minimum wage rate because it failed to provide proper notification of the tipped minimum wage rate or tip credit provisions as required by the FLSA and NYLL. At Lilia, Tipped Workers were also allegedly forced to share tips with ineligible employees, such as expeditors with no customer interaction. Tipped Workers were also required to perform non-tipped side work, including retrieving supplies from an off-site storage unit, cleaning stations, polishing glassware, and other tasks, in excess of 20% of their time during individual workweeks, work that should have been paid at the full minimum wage rate rather than the reduced tip-credit rate. The lawsuit also alleges Grovehouse failed to provide proper annual wage notices and accurate weekly wage statements as required by the NYLL.

You can also view the filed complaint here.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What does the Grovehouse lawsuit allege?

The lawsuit alleges Grovehouse failed to properly notify Tipped Workers of the tip credit before paying them a reduced tipped minimum wage, required excessive non-tipped side work without paying full minimum wage for that time, and, at Lilia, had Tipped Workers share tips with ineligible non-customer-facing staff.

What counts as "side work" in this case?

The lawsuit describes side work as non-tipped tasks like retrieving supplies from off-site storage, cleaning service and expeditor stations, polishing glassware, and restocking supplies, tasks that allegedly took up more than 20% of Tipped Workers' time in some workweeks, which would entitle them to full minimum wage for that portion of their shift rather than the tipped rate.

Do I need to do anything to join this lawsuit?

It depends on how the case is structured. An FLSA collective action generally requires affected workers to opt in, while a class action may include workers automatically. The fastest way to find out where you stand is to contact Fitapelli & Schaffer directly.

What can I recover if this applies to me?

Depending on your circumstances, you may be entitled to recover unpaid wages, overtime, liquidated damages, and other damages tied to the specific violations alleged in this case.

Where can I view the complaint that was filed?

The filed complaint is publicly available as a PDF, linked directly from this page.

CONTACT FITAPELLI & SCHAFFER LLP