Tip credit workers are payed a lower wage than $7.25 and hour, because the restaurant owner is expecting the rest of their salary to come from the tips they collect. These employees, cannot do too much extra work that is not tip related. This extra work, or side work, is anything from dish washing to replacing the napkins, and if an employee does more than a set amount of time on these tasks, their pay has to be switched to the original minimum wage. The rules pertaining to this extra work are different in every state, and some places like New York are stricter than others. It is important that you know what your specific state requires and you need to be diligent about keeping up with these rules for your tip credit employees. When a restaurant fails to pay attention to these payment laws, they can get into a serious law suit.
A Ruby Tuesdays in Hixson Tennessee is facing one of those lawsuits now, and when asked to speak the restaurant chain simply said they were ready to defend their restaurant at the appropriate place and time. Ruby Tuesday employee Charlene Craig claims that she spent too much time slicing lemons and folding napkins to not be payed $7.25 an hour. The rough thing about these kinds of cases is that it ends up being a sort of “he said she said” situation, where the court has no evidence, and simply has to make a choice. This can leave both employees and restaurants in some serious trouble.
If you would like more information on either the Ruby Tuesday case, or on the extra time payment, you can check this article from Nation’s Restaurant News. More…
