Restaurant workers and many other workers collectively lose every year billions of dollars of lost wages due to deliberate wage theft by their employers. There are many rules under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) that cover workers throughout the country, including minimum wages, overtime and maximum weekly hours.
There are serious consequences for employers if they violate the Wages and Hours Division laws of the FLSA.
How Does Wage Theft Occur in Restaurants?
There are several forms of wage theft typical to restaurant workers, such as tip skimming, underpayment, and illegal deductions. Restaurant workers aren’t covered by the minimum wage laws as much as other workers because some of their pay is made up of tips.
However, employers see the loophole and often withhold tips legally earned by their workers. This is called tip skimming, which is illegal under federal law, but there are some other laws depending on the state.
As it is only frontline employees who receive tips, sometimes employers take the tips and distribute them among other workers, which is illegal as well.
Another common example of restaurant worker wage theft is not paying the minimum wage. This sometimes occurs when the employer doesn’t make up the tips with extra money to cover the minimum wage rule.
Federal law guarantees that the full minimum wage per hour is paid, which can include tips which are called tip credits.
Deductions are commonly taken out of employees’ wages to cover the different array of taxes but Illegal deductions are sometimes made to like charging the worker for breaking a dish.
If the employees wage ends up at below the minimum then the deduction is considered illegal.
Unpaid overtime sometimes happens because the employer has calculated the overtime amount based on the amount the employee has received with tips instead of calculating the time and a half based on the worker’s minimum wage.
Restaurant workers who have not been paid the correct amount for overtime can sue for back wages and damages.
Unpaid hours are common amongst restaurant workers as employers try not to pay for preparation time like preparing tables and washing vegetables before the worker is due to begin the working day. Every minute spent in the workplace must be paid for.
Unpaid meal breaks are commonplace amongst restaurant workers but sometimes employers ask their workers to carry out extra duties while they are supposed to be savoring the time off work. This is illegal as all time must be paid for.
Preventing Wage Theft in Restaurants
The problem with wage theft while working in a restaurant is finding the time to prevent it from happening. Your best defense is to ensure your employer knows you are monitoring events in the restaurant such as:
- watching you record the time you have spent at work;
- keeping a track on any tips and additional money offered;
- keeping time stamp cards, etc.
What to Do If You Experienced Wage Theft in a Restaurant
You may be able to file a claim against your employer for wage theft as long as you have sufficient evidence and time to do this. Your first course of action is to file a complaint with the Wages and Hours Division of the Department of Labor in your state.
If they think you have a valid wage theft claim they will take up the matter with your employer and try to arrange mediation to agree on a solution. If this fails then you should contact an employment lawyer who should help you file an unpaid wages claim in court so you can get your unpaid wages paid.
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