Restaurateur Tom Colicchio, Craft Restaurants Violated Federal and State Labor Laws (tips overtime)

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Restaurateur-Tom-Colicchio-Craft-Restaurants/story.aspx?guid={F2020DFA-DC5D-4E09-8B1D-B6B4E2C788F0}

Last update: 7:00 a.m. EST Dec. 12, 2008

NEW YORK, Dec 12, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- A new lawsuit alleges that famed restaurateur and "Top Chef" celebrity judge Tom Colicchio and his nationwide chain of restaurants, Craft, Craftbar, and Craftsteak, violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the New York Labor Law by misappropriating employee tips and withholding proper overtime pay, according to Outten & Golden LLP.

Nessa Rapone, a former Craftbar employee from Brooklyn, N.Y., filed suit Thursday in New York federal court against Mr. Colicchio and Craft Worldwide Holdings, LLC, the company that operates Craft restaurants in Dallas, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Las Vegas, and Ledyard, Conn.

The lawsuit alleges that, in addition to violating the wage and hour laws with respect to Ms. Rapone and her co-workers, the defendants retaliated against Ms. Rapone by terminating her employment in May 2007 after she complained about defendants' unlawful wage and hour policies.

According to the Complaint, the defendants violated the wage and hour laws by denying employees tips they earned; redistributing portions of employees' tips to non-tip eligible employees; failing to pay proper overtime compensation to employees who worked more than 40 hours in a work week; and engaging in other unlawful practices.

Justin M. Swartz, Linda A. Neilan, and Rachel Bien, of Outten & Golden LLP's New York office, represent Ms. Rapone, and will seek to have the lawsuit certified as a class action in order to recover unpaid wages, misappropriated tips, spread of hours pay, attorneys' fees and costs, interest, liquidated damages, and other damages for current and former hourly employees of Craft brand restaurants nationwide.

FULL story at link.

[juno jones]

1. Corporate restaurants have a poor track record.

They are scared as shit of unionization.

Eat local if you can. Or start a moveable feast-style dining club. You really don't want to know where your Olive Garden meal has been.