Although federal overtime laws might say one thing about how much those in the service industry should be paid, there are certain exceptions to those laws. This is the case in Buffalo where William K's Restaurant at the Erie Basin Marina is being sued by six employees who say the restaurant withheld wages. The lawsuit was filed by the six employees who are having lawyers from University at Buffalo School of Law's Community Justice Clinic.
The six employees who worked at the restaurant in Buffalo said they were only being paid $7.50 per hour, plus tips. Now, you might be asking why that isn't a fair salary. This is a typical hourly wage for the service industry. Except there is one caveat here that the restaurant owners didn't want the employees to know. The city of Buffalo had invested in the restaurant under the condition that it would meet higher labor standards.
According to the lawsuit, the city of Buffalo had invested over $900,000 into William K's Restaurant. In return, the restaurant was supposed to pay servers and other employees a starting wage of $13.06 per hour. The employees were obviously shocked when they learned how their employers had cheated them out of the unpaid wages. They are now suing for the unpaid overtime pay and for violating federal and state laws.
No matter what industry you are in, there are federal overtime laws that are supposed to protect the employees from unscrupulous acts by employers. If you feel that you are being taken advantage of in any way, it is up to you to contact an overtime pay lawyer to determine whether or not you have a case.