The Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division recently announced that Akron, Ohio-based Azteca Restaurante Mexicano and its manager and part-owner Salvador B. Alatorre agreed to pay 18 employees more than $45,000 in back wages for alleged Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) violations.
"Some of these employees were paid as little as $350 a week for 60 hours of labor," said George Victory, WHD director of the Columbus Area Office. "We are committed to protecting the many vulnerable workers employed in the restaurant industry and will vigorously pursue violators to ensure compliance with the law."
The restaurant industry is a hot spot for labor violations because some employees are paid on a hourly basis while others are compensated primarily in tips. For example, hosts and dishwashers typically earn wages based directly on their time and attendance and must receive at least minimum wage - $7.25 per hour - for all of their hours worked. Because servers and bartenders receive tips as well, they do not have to earn as much per hour in most states. The FLSA allows employers to pay workers $2.13 per hour if the gratuity is enough to brings their pay rate above minimum wage.
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