Referring to Attorney Andy Biller, “the Court also finds that the attorneys were highly skilled. * * * The litigation of the issue of Rule 23 certification for Ohio minimum wage claims was, in particular, an area that required skillful wage-and-hour attorneys.”
– Chief Judge Algenon Marbley, a federal judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio (Castillo v. Morales, Inc. a case that resulted in a multi-million dollar settlement on behalf of Columbus-area restaurant workers)
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We love our service industry clients. Why? First, they are awesome people. Second, we get to show them how much legal power they have to get paid a fair wage.
When it comes to tipped minimum wage, it is a “with great power comes great responsibility” situation. Employers can pay the Ohio minimum wage for tipped workers of $2.13 per hour; however, employers also have to follow the rules that allow for the lower wage. When they don’t, we come in.
You can learn some of the basic rules on this page. The key thing to keep in mind is that when an employer breaks the tipped wage or “tip credit” rules, they typically owe the workers the difference between full minimum wage and the tipped wage they paid. And tips do not reduce this amount owed.
If you need more information or want help filing a claim for unpaid wages or a wage violation, please call us today at (513) 202-0710. We are happy to talk to you and evaluate your case for free.
If you are worried about being able to afford our services, don’t be. For almost all of our clients—especially the employees we usually represent—we only get paid when we recover money for them. This “contingent fee” arrangement lets us represent individuals who could not ordinarily afford top-notch lawyers. It also puts our financial interests in line with your own.
It is also important to know that most of the laws we work with, including the Fair Labor Standards Act, allow us to recover our fees and costs from your employer. Because of this, we can take on both the big and small cases.
At Biller & Kimble, we have represented hundreds of folks in the service industry like bartenders, waiters, waitresses, and bussers. We enjoy serving those who serve others.
We have secured many victories on behalf of restaurant workers. Obviously, every case is different, and we cannot guarantee any particular result.
We also handle smaller cases against single restaurants or even on behalf of individual restaurant workers. So please reach out if you think you have a case or if you just have some questions. The call is free and there is no pressure to pursue anything beyond that phone call.
Yes. You are still entitled to minimum wage and overtime under our laws, even if you are not a lawful resident of the U.S.
We have dealt with several employers who specifically hire illegal immigrants because the employers think that those workers are less likely to stand up for themselves when it comes to working conditions and wages.
If you are in this situation – you do not have work authorization and are being unlawfully underpaid – please contact us. We would be happy to confidentially talk with you at no charge and go over your options. Call us at (513) 202-0710 to discuss your case.
If you want to learn some of the legal details of the rules that apply to tipped workers, tipped minimum wage, and the “tip credit,” you’ve come to the right place. Below, we have some of the specifics.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), 29 U.S.C. 206, requires companies to pay employees at least minimum wage.
The FLSA, 29 U.S.C. 203(m), allows companies to pay workers a “tipped minimum wage” for time spent earning tips (time spent serving customers).
FLSA Regulation 29 C.F.R. 531.56(e) requires employers to pay full minimum wage, rather than tipped minimum wage, for time spent in a non-tipped occupation. This refers to extensive side-work not related to serving customers.
The FLSA, 29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)(ii), requires employers to meet the following requirements to pay a tipped wage:
The employee must be “informed by the employer of the provisions of” the FLSA’s tip credit section. The Code of Federal Regulations, 29 C.F.R. 531.59, states that employers must inform employees of the following:
The employee must be allowed to keep their tips except that “pooling of tips among employees who customarily and regularly receive tips” is permitted.
The employer “may not keep tips received by its employees for any purposes, including allowing managers or supervisors to keep any portion of the employees’ tips, regardless of whether or not the employer takes a tip credit.” This comes from 29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(B).
If you are a tipped restaurant worker, and you think you might have a claim or even just have a question, please contact us at (513) 202-0710. We would be happy to discuss your options and rights. The call is free and there is no obligation.
Your employer must inform you of the legal provisions related to paying tipped minimum wage.
The first rule is that your employer must tell you about the Fair Labor Standards Act’s provisions related to paying tipped minimum wage.
The FLSA’s regulations go on to say this must include informing you as to the wage rate you will be paid, the amount of the tip credit the employer will claim (in other words, what is the difference between full minimum wage and your actual wage rate), that the employer will make up the difference between what you receive and minimum wage if the tips are not sufficient, and that you will be permitted to retain all of your tips, except if the company maintains a valid tip pool.
At first, this may seem like an odd requirement. But when you think about it, it makes sense. Employees need to know the requirements for taking a tip credit to know if their employer is applying it correctly.
Because employers choose to place their employees in this precarious position (being paid below minimum wage), the employers are strictly held to the requirements for claiming a “tip credit.” A properly informed tipped employee can recognize a tip credit violation and call it out. Thus, employers must make sure their employees are properly informed.
You must be allowed to keep your tips. The only exception is for tip pools that include ONLY other tipped employees.
Your employer can only pay you a tipped wage when you are doing tipped work.
Almost every tipped worker deals with “side work.” If you are a tipped employee, you know the drill—clean some glasses, wipe down the bar, roll some silverware.
Employers are permitted to pay a tipped wage for non-tipped work that is “related” to the employee’s tipped duties. In other words, making coffee is normally okay, but if you are cleaning bathrooms and re-arranging furniture, at a tipped wage, your employer is likely violating the tip rules.
Your employer cannot make you pay for things like uniforms, tools, customer walk-outs, or drawer shortages.
Tipped employees are paid a form of minimum wage. Because of that, any deduction from wages or expense the employee incurs will drop them below minimum wage. When this happens, the employer breaks the rules.
For example, if an employer requires employees to pay for uniforms, customer walkouts, cash register shortages, broken dishes, pens/corkscrews/other equipment, this cuts into the employee’s wage.
This is true even if the employee earns enough in tips to cover the expenses. Remember, the employer’s obligation to pay a wage is separate and apart from the tips an employee earns.
What happens when your employer doesn’t follow the tip credit rules?
If an employer breaks these rules, then they are not permitted to pay you tipped minimum wage. They should have paid you full minimum wage instead. But, because they didn’t, they can owe you back pay equal to the difference between full minimum wage and the wage that the employer paid.
Here is an example.
Let’s say that you start working for a restaurant, and your boss never properly informs you of the FLSA’s tip credit provisions. Despite that, the restaurant pays you $2.13 per hour. Your employer didn’t follow the rules, so they aren’t allowed to pay you this amount.
Instead, your employer should have paid you the full minimum wage amount of $7.25 per hour. The amount you are owed in backwages is $7.25 (full minimum wage) minus the $2.13 you were paid or $5.12 for every hour you worked. As you can guess, this adds up quickly.
But there’s more. The Fair Labor Standard Act allows you to recover the unpaid wages and an equal amount in “liquidated damages.” Thus, that $5.12 becomes $10.24 per hour.
Some state laws are even more generous. For example, Ohio law allows you to recover three times your unpaid wages. So the $5.12 becomes $15.36 per hour.
Also, if your employer illegally keeps your tips, a recent change to the Fair Labor Standards Act allows you to recover the illegally retained tips too, and liquidated damages. This is in addition to the amount that the employer underpaid you.
So, is it worth your time to call a lawyer on these issues regarding tipped employees’ rights? Absolutely! The amount you may be owed could surprise you.