ANN ARBOR, MI -- The U.S. Department of Labor recently filed a lawsuit alleging two popular Ann Arbor restaurants have failed to pay their workers in overtime wages.

The U.S. Department of Labor filed the lawsuit on Sept. 18 against Cascabel Ventures LLC which is behind the operations of Isalita and Mani Osteria & Bar in Ann Arbor.

The lawsuit is seeking $242,534 which includes $121,767 in back wages and an equal amount in “liquidated damages” for 20 employees, according to a news release.

However, Adam Baru, who owns both restaurants, said he has always treated and paid his employees fairly. He said the issue at hand seems to be “more of a technical violation” than anything else.

Baru said he can’t share more details about that at this time, but he is actively trying to resolve the issue through conversations with the U.S. Department of Labor.

“We have always paid our employees fairly and we have always paid them overtime including during COVID,” Baru said. “This has really been a really frustrating and disappointing development that we are going to continue to protest.”

Investigators with the department’s Wage and Hour Division have alleged Fair Labor Standards Act violations have been made by the two restaurants and Baru, according to a news release.

The release stated investigators specifically found the employer failed to pay employees time and one-half their hourly rate of pay for overtime hours from July 6, 2020 through July 3, 2022.

“Complying with federal...

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