Tony’s Steak and Seafood, a downtown Lexington restaurant, has denied allegations that it committed wage and tip theft after the restaurant was sued by former employees in both state and federal court.
The two lawsuits were filed by former bartender John Harley, who filed a lawsuit in Fayette Circuit Court, and former employee Christopher Sullivan, who filed a lawsuit in federal court.
Both lawsuits featured similar accusations against the restaurant. Harley’s lawsuit alleged that the restaurant forced him and other tipped employees to participate in a tip pool that gave portions of their tips to salaried members of management, including the maitre d’, who is not named in the suit.
Harley’s lawsuit alleges that the tip pool violated the Kentucky Wages and Hours Act, which allows restaurants to pay hourly employees less than minimum wage because the tips make up the difference. According to the suit, Harley, who now lives in Nashville, was a bartender at Tony’s Steaks & Seafood from January 2016 through March 2017.
During that time he was paid about $5 an hour, the suit claims. The extra $2.25 an hour to reach Kentucky’s minimum wage and the extra $5.88 and hour for overtime wages was supposed to come from his tips, but Harley’s lawsuit claims by forcing employees to share tips the restaurant forfeited the legal right to claim the tip credit.
But Tony’s filed a reply to Harley’s lawsuit last week denying that they required Harley and other tipped employees to contribute...
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