Employment law attorneys, minimum wage, overtime pay, FMLA, discrimination, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, commission wages, disability rights, and ADA rights. Workplace disputes, Florida and Federal labor laws. Naples, Southwest Florida, including Ft. Myers, Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda, Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, Golden Gate, Marco Island, Sanibel, Sarasota, employment law, employment discrimination, harassment in the workplace, wrongful termination, FLSA, FMLA, disability, unemployment compensation appeals, Wrongful Termination, Fair Labor Standards Act, Family Medical Leave Act, Disability Discrimination, Racial Discrimination, Gender Discrimination, Age Discrimination, National Origin Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, Whistle Blower Retaliation, ADA, Minimum Wage, Overtime, Unemployment Compensation
Business, law, attorney, corporate, corporation, inc, corp, limited, liability, company, llc, pl, pa, llp, contract, contract review, drafting, preparation, S-Corp, C-Corp, collections, litigation, Naples, Southwest Florida, including Ft. Myers, Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda, Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, Golden Gate, Marco Island, Sanibel, Sarasota, Business Planning, Formation of Entity, Contract Review, Contract Preparation, Legal Consulting, Business Financial Planning, Risk Management, Employment Issues, Employee Benefits, Debt Collection, Commercial Litigation, Public Relations, Crisis Management
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
Tip Pooling
FLSA Violations and Tipped Employees
Recently, my brother took a bus tour of Naples, wherein the tour guide proudly declared
that Naples is home to more than one thousand (1,000) restaurants. I do not know
whether that statistic is true or not, but what concerns me, and what I routinely see in
my law practice, is the exploitation of restaurant staff insofar as restaurants are all too
often not compensating employees in compliance with the law. Servers, in particular, are
often short-changed. Over the course of time, the losses to the server can be staggering.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), amongst other things, provides the federal
standards for minimum wage (currently $7.25 per hour) and overtime pay (time and a
half) for most private and public employees, who are not for some reason exempt. The
FLSA contains special rules for tipped employees, like servers, which under some
circumstances allow restaurants to apply the server’s tips against the restaurant’s
minimum wage obligation to reduce (but never eliminate) the tipped employee’s hourly
rate of pay.
Significantly, a server’s tips are the property of the employee – not the employer – and
cannot be used by the employer for any purpose aside from:
(1) potentially counting as a credit against the employer’s minimum wage obligation; and
(2) part of a valid tip pool. Under this framework, the following violations frequently
occur at the tipped employee’s expense:
(a) The employer takes a portion of the employee’s tips for other personal or business
purposes;
(b) The employee does not receive sufficient tips to make up the difference between the
minimum wage and the employee’s hourly rate of pay;
(c) The employee receives no hourly wage (i.e., is compensated in tips only); and
(d) The employee is forced to participate in a tip pool that includes employees who do not
customarily and regularly receive tips.
At Weldon & Rothman, PL, we are committed to helping employees and former
employees remedy FLSA violations in the workplace, including Southwest Florida’s
restaurant employees and servers. In the event of an FLSA violation, the law allows
covered employees in some instances to go back up to three (3) years, and to collect a
penalty against the employer, in addition to the amount of withheld or past due wages.
Further, it is illegal for an employer to retaliate against an employee (i.e., terminate the
employee) for making a FLSA complaint, and such retaliation could subject the employer
to additional liability to the employee. If you have any questions about your pay, or
believe that you are not being paid properly, please call us to arrange for a free
consultation with an attorney to review your situation and to determine whether legal
action may be appropriate. There are no fees or costs, unless we obtain a financial
recovery.
Click Here To Learn About Other Employment Law Issues
Although we accept employment cases throughout Florida, our employment law practice
focuses on the following areas: Southwest Florida, Naples, Ft. Myers, Fort Myers, Bonita
Springs, Estero, Marco Island, Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte, Immokalee, Sanibel, Captiva,
Sarasota, Collier County, Lee County, and Sarasota County.
WELDON & ROTHMAN law offices are located in North Naples and Marco Island Florida
and we serve all of Southwest Florida, including Ft. Myers, Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda,
Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, Golden Gate, Marco Island, Sanibel, and Sarasota, and we can
handle cases statewide.
Think you have a claim? Email Here
Recently, my brother took a bus tour of Naples, wherein the tour guide proudly declared
that Naples is home to more than one thousand (1,000) restaurants. I do not know
whether that statistic is true or not, but what concerns me, and what I routinely see in
my law practice, is the exploitation of restaurant staff insofar as restaurants are all too
often not compensating employees in compliance with the law. Servers, in particular, are
often short-changed. Over the course of time, the losses to the server can be staggering.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), amongst other things, provides the federal
standards for minimum wage (currently $7.25 per hour) and overtime pay (time and a
half) for most private and public employees, who are not for some reason exempt. The
FLSA contains special rules for tipped employees, like servers, which under some
circumstances allow restaurants to apply the server’s tips against the restaurant’s
minimum wage obligation to reduce (but never eliminate) the tipped employee’s hourly
rate of pay.
Significantly, a server’s tips are the property of the employee – not the employer – and
cannot be used by the employer for any purpose aside from:
(1) potentially counting as a credit against the employer’s minimum wage obligation; and
(2) part of a valid tip pool. Under this framework, the following violations frequently
occur at the tipped employee’s expense:
(a) The employer takes a portion of the employee’s tips for other personal or business
purposes;
(b) The employee does not receive sufficient tips to make up the difference between the
minimum wage and the employee’s hourly rate of pay;
(c) The employee receives no hourly wage (i.e., is compensated in tips only); and
(d) The employee is forced to participate in a tip pool that includes employees who do not
customarily and regularly receive tips.
At Weldon & Rothman, PL, we are committed to helping employees and former
employees remedy FLSA violations in the workplace, including Southwest Florida’s
restaurant employees and servers. In the event of an FLSA violation, the law allows
covered employees in some instances to go back up to three (3) years, and to collect a
penalty against the employer, in addition to the amount of withheld or past due wages.
Further, it is illegal for an employer to retaliate against an employee (i.e., terminate the
employee) for making a FLSA complaint, and such retaliation could subject the employer
to additional liability to the employee. If you have any questions about your pay, or
believe that you are not being paid properly, please call us to arrange for a free
consultation with an attorney to review your situation and to determine whether legal
action may be appropriate. There are no fees or costs, unless we obtain a financial
recovery.
Click Here To Learn About Other Employment Law Issues
Although we accept employment cases throughout Florida, our employment law practice
focuses on the following areas: Southwest Florida, Naples, Ft. Myers, Fort Myers, Bonita
Springs, Estero, Marco Island, Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte, Immokalee, Sanibel, Captiva,
Sarasota, Collier County, Lee County, and Sarasota County.
WELDON & ROTHMAN law offices are located in North Naples and Marco Island Florida
and we serve all of Southwest Florida, including Ft. Myers, Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda,
Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, Golden Gate, Marco Island, Sanibel, and Sarasota, and we can
handle cases statewide.
Think you have a claim? Email Here
| Located in Naples, Florida, the attorneys at Weldon & Rothman, PL represent individuals and businesses throughout Southwest Florida. We are committed to representing residents of Naples, Fort Myers, Marco Island, Sanibel, Cape Coral, Lehigh Acres, Ft. Myers, Golden Gate, Estero, Bonita Springs, Pelican Bay, Ave Maria, Punta Gorda, Port Charlotte, Venice, Englewood, Osprey, Sarasota, Arcadia, Bradenton, Lakewood Ranch, Collier County, Lee County, Hendry County, Charlotte County, Sarasota County, and Manatee County, as well as those located in the Florida Keys. |
| represent clients throughout SW Florida, including: Naples, Fort Myers, Marco Island, Bonita Springs, Estero, Cape Coral, Charlotte, and Sarasota. attorney/client relationship or to be case specific legal advice. Please contact an attorney at Weldon & Rothman, PL to discuss your particular employment discrimination case. This website is not intended to solicit clients outside of Florida. |
 | |  | |  |
| Before you decide, ask us to send you free written information about our qualifications and experience. |
- Sexual Harassment
- Wrongful Termination
- Family Medical Leave Act
(FMLA)
- Disability Discrimination
- Racial Discrimination
- Gender Discrimination
- Age Discrimination
- National Origin
Discrimination
- ADA
- Labor Disputes
- Retaliation
- EEOC Charge
- Public Employee
Relations Commission
(PERC) Appeals
- Employment Contracts
- Separation Agreements
| Toll Free: (877) 730-5180 Fax: (239) 262-2342 E-mail: info@weldonrothman.com |
| Naples Tel: (239) 262-2141 7935 Airport-Pulling Rd N., Suite 205 Naples, FL 34109 |
 | |  | |  | |  | |  |
| Naples 7935 Airport-Pulling Rd N, Suite 205 Naples, Florida 34109 (239) 262-2141 |
| Toll Free: (877) 730-5180 |
| Contact Us 24 Hours A Day |
| Naples, Marco Island, Fort Myers, Sarasota |
| Sarasota 1990 Main Street, Suite 750 Sarasota, Florida 34236 (941) 309-5366 |
| Sarasota Tel: (941) 309-5366 1990 Main Street, Suite 750 Sarasota, FL 34236 |