Schaefer v. Walker Bros. Enters., Inc., No. 15-1058 (7th Cir. 2016)
Annotate this CaseSchaefer, a server at Walker’s Illinois Original® Pancake House restaurants, alleged violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. 201–19, and the Illinois Minimum Wage Law, 820 ILCS 105/1 to 105/15. Those laws provide that tips count toward the minimum wage. In Illinois, employers must pay at least 60% of the normal minimum wage (the tip-credit rate). Because the Illinois tip-credit rate is higher than the federal minimum, the restaurants paid servers the Illinois rate. Schaefer contends that, until May 2011, the restaurants failed to give servers information that federal law requires as a condition of paying a tip-credit wage and that servers spent some of their time doing non-tipped duties such as slicing mushrooms and tidying up, so that the restaurants had to pay the full minimum wage for that time. The district court certified the suit as a class action on behalf of approximately 500 servers, then granted summary judgment to the restaurants. The Seventh CIrcuit affirmed, citing a Department of Labor regulation, 29 C.F.R. 531.56(e), that describes “related duties” that may be performed by a tipped employee without requiring the employer to pay the full cash wage. The restaurants adequately informed servers about the tip-credit law.
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