The tip wars between hospitality employers and employees continue unabated. Numerous lawsuits contend that restaurants and other employers wrongfully retain or require sharing of customer gratuities, as well as violate Fair...more
Some restaurants in Atlanta, Charlotte, and other cities have begun adding a service charge to diners’ bills. The trend has grown enough in the District of Columbia, for example, that its attorney general recently warned...more
In the current battle to hire and retain good workers, employers have developed creative ways to balance employees’ increased compensation expectations against the costs of running a business. In addition, restaurants using...more
Hospitality employers who utilize the “tip credit” under federal wage and hour law may feel as if they operate with a bullseye on their backs given the multi-prong assault underway against the practice. Not only are you in...more
Ohio- Substantially compliant acknowledgment clause WWSD, LLC v. Woods, 10th Dist. Franklin No. 20AP-403, 2022-Ohio-952- In this appeal, the Tenth Appellate District affirmed the trial court’s decision, agreeing that...more
On March 18, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit upheld a district court’s decision that an 18% service fee charged at the upscale Miami steakhouse of celebrity chef Nusret Gökçe was not a “tip” and was...more
On March 18, 2022, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Compere v. Nusret Miami, LLC, a collective action under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), that Nusr-et Steakhouse properly used automatically charged fees...more
A Miami restaurant’s mandatory 18% service charge did not constitute a “tip” under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and therefore was properly applied toward satisfying the FLSA’s employee wage requirements, the U.S. Court...more
Agreeing with the district court, the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has concluded that the mandatory service charges imposed by a restaurant on dining parties of six or more were not “tips” under the FLSA. However,...more
The IRS will begin enforcing a new rule concerning the taxation of automatic gratuities on January 1, 2014. Specifically, employers must start treating automatic gratuities – that is, charges that are compulsory to customers...more
- IRS Will Begin Taxing a Restaurant's Automatic Gratuities as Service Charges Many restaurants include automatic gratuities on the checks of guests with large parties to ensure that servers get fair tips. This method...more