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Oregon restaurant fined in scheme to use tips as wages

Labor Department recovers $86K in probe of Bao Bao House parent in Eugene

Ron Ruggless, Senior Editor

August 1, 2022

1 Min Read
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The Labor Department recovers $86,000 in Oregon restaurant’s tip scheme.Creatas/Creatas/Thinkstock

The U.S. Department of Labor has recovered $86,000 for five employees and fined the parent of Bao Bao House in Eugene, Ore, in a scheme to use tips as wages, the agency said late last week.

The agency’s Portland, Ore., Wage and Hour Division, in a press release, said LI&YU Restaurant LLC, operating as Bao Bao House, of Eugene, “kept all tips workers earned.”

The Labor Department said the company “kept all the tips workers received from customers and used the money to pay employees’ wages. Li also failed to keep accurate records. Both are violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.”

The department recovered $43,013 in back wages for five employees and $43,013 in liquidated damages. The agency also assessed a civil penalty of $1,725.

 “The U.S. Department of Labor is determined to protect workers’ rights to keep all their earnings, including tips, and prevent employers from gaining a competitive advantage by reducing their labor costs,” said Carrie Aguilar, director of the Wage and Hour Division’s Portland district, in a statement.

“Customers’ tips to restaurant staff belong to the workers that received them,” Aguilar continued. “Any attempt by employers to keep those earnings is a direct violation of tipped workers’ wage rights.”

The Wage and Hour Division added that in 2021 it recovered more than $31.7 million in back wages for workers in the foodservice industry.

Related:Labor department sets limits on use of tip credit for server side work

Contact Ron Ruggless at [email protected]

Follow him on Twitter: @RonRuggless

About the Author

Ron Ruggless

Senior Editor, Nation’s Restaurant News / Restaurant Hospitality

Ron Ruggless serves as a senior editor for Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News (NRN.com) and Restaurant Hospitality (Restaurant-Hospitality.com) online and print platforms. He joined NRN in 1992 after working 10 years in various roles at the Dallas Times Herald newspaper, including restaurant critic, assistant business editor, food editor and lifestyle editor. He also edited several printings of the Zagat Dining Guide for Dallas-Fort Worth, and his articles and photographs have appeared in Food & Wine, Food Network and Self magazines. 

Ron Ruggless’ areas of expertise include foodservice mergers, acquisitions, operations, supply chain, research and development and marketing. 

Ron Ruggless is a frequent moderator and panelist at industry events ranging from the Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators (MUFSO) conference to RestaurantSpaces, the Council of Hospitality and Restaurant Trainers, the National Restaurant Association’s Marketing Executives Group, local restaurant associations and the Horeca Professional Expo in Madrid, Spain.

Ron Ruggless’ experience:

Regional and Senior Editor, Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality (1992 to present)

Features Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1989-1991)

Restaurant Critic and Food Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1987-1988)

Editing Roles – Dallas Times Herald (1982-1987)

Editing Roles – Charlotte (N.C.) Observer (1980-1982)

Editing Roles – Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald (1978-1980)

Email: [email protected]

Social media:

Twitter@RonRuggless

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ronruggless

Instagram: @RonRuggless

TikTok: @RonRuggless

 

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