Employee rights: Judge enforces 2016 judgment for wage theft

Students nationwide, including in California, take on jobs as servers in restaurants to increase their incomes. Sadly, many establishments violate the employee rights of the students by withholding overtime money and tips. A workers’ rights group in another state recently reported the outcome of a 2015 lawsuit involving such violations.

Six students who worked at one of about 70 World of Beer sports bars that are scattered around college towns across the country filed a federal lawsuit against their employer in the summer 2015. According to the students’ complaint, the owners of the sports bar frequently ordered the workers to take out the trash, wash windows, mop the floors and clean the bathrooms. The plaintiffs contend that these tasks were not part of their responsibilities, and they were never paid for doing them.

The lawsuit further alleges that their paychecks did not include all their tips and that the mandatory training they received was unpaid hours. One student claimed he never received overtime payment, despite frequently working more than 60 hours per week. The lawsuit was pursued until June 2016 when the defendants agreed to compensate the unpaid wages of the plaintiffs. However, when this was still not accomplished by June 2017, a federal judge enforced the settlement by entering another judgment.

Lawsuits such as this one often continue for years before all the issues are resolved. Students in California who believe that their employee rights are being violated can consult with an experienced employment law attorney to learn how to pursue recovery of lost wages, overtime money or other benefits. A lawyer can assess the circumstances of the case, suggest the best way forward and provide the necessary guidance and support throughout the ensuing legal proceedings.

Source: tapinto.net, “New Jersey sports bar to pay $57K to former employees, following wage theft suit“, Daniel J. Munoz, Nov. 30, 2017