Two Mexican restaurants in Florida shorted workers $50,000 in pay from tips, feds say

Fiesta Grande Mexican Grill restaurants in Mount Dora and Orange City paid $58,074 in back pay to servers after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation, the agency announced Wednesday.

That money went to 45 employees — $1,290.53 per worker.

Labor said a Wage and Hour Division investigation found that both restaurants included cooks with waiters and waitresses in the tip pool. That’s a Fair Labor Standards Act violation.

“When an employer takes credit for workers’ tips toward its minimum wage obligation to those workers, non-tipped employees, like cooks, cannot participate in a tip-sharing agreement,” Labor’s announcement explained.

A Herald reporter calling the Mount Dora restaurant to discuss this was told registered agent and president Jesse Reyes was in, then was put on hold for over 10 minutes.

“Restaurant servers worked hard to keep their employers’ businesses open amid pandemic risks,” Wage and Hour Division District Director Wildalí De Jesús said. “By misusing its tip pool, Fiesta Grande’s operator shortchanged its tipped workers who depend on tips for good service and hard work to provide for themselves and their families.

The Wage and Hour complaint section of the Department of Labor website contains information on how to file a complaint. Miami’s Wage and Hour Division office can be reached at 305-598-6607.

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