Famous restaurateurs are usually credited with their success, but their front of house workers are usually the backbone of their great dining experiences.

Despite the role they play, servers, runners, busboys, and bartenders would typically “pool” their tips at the end of each night. Essentially, their tips would be thrown into one big pot, and then a percentage would be taken away, and given to dishwashers, chefs, and administrative professionals in the restaurant’s back of house.   

This was a longstanding practice in the New York restaurant industry. The only problem? It was clearly against the law. 

That’s because front of house workers typically get paid a fraction of the minimum wage, and tips are what make them financially whole. And in New York, one of the most expensive cities to live in the world, every dollar counts.

Most restaurant workers knew the practice was illegal, but they kept their heads down. One reason was the culture in high-end restaurants, which often were tight-knit communities where workers supported each other, no matter what their role was. Many felt strongly that everyone in a restaurant should be paid a living wage, and if they had to accept fewer tips to do that, they would.

Occasionally, workers would speak up about the practice. For the few that did, a typical refrain emerged from management – you should be honored to work here and you shouldn’t be nit-picking your wages. 

But in the early 2000s, high-end restaurant workers began to feel otherwise. They knew their employers needed talented front of house to appease their demanding clientele, and without them, the entire “luxury” experience would dissolve.

Restaurant workers with stories began trickling into Outten & Golden’s Justin Swartz. Quickly, the stories turned into a full-fledged movement, with Outten & Golden leading the way. 

Working closely with hundreds of restaurant workers across the city, Swartz uncovered widespread allegations of wage theft. 

• At a well-known seafood restaurant, servers, runners, bussers, and bartenders claimed their tips were being redistributed to restaurant managers, or taken to pay the credit card fees that were charged to the restaurant. The case settled for $3,265,000 across 1,323 class members.
• Another major restaurant chain was accused of spreading servers’ hard-earned tips with ineligible workers (while telling them to personally pay to launder their own uniforms). The case settled for $300,000 across approximately 115 class members.
• Across town, workers at two major event locations alleged “time-shaving” – or underreporting the number of hours a worker was actually working. The settlement terms were confidential.
• In two other major restaurant empires, workers alleged that tips were regularly “shaved,” and overtime wasn’t properly paid.

Outten & Golden stepped in to help the workers, filing a flurry of class action lawsuits. The media also jumped into the issue, with Grub Street, Eater, The New York Times and other publications routinely running stories about the legal saga.

Like in most class actions, the restaurants used a wide range of tactics to defend themselves. But in the end, the workers’ movement won. 

Collectively, Outten & Golden secured more than $8 million for New York City restaurant workers. But beyond the settlements, the culture in high-end restaurants was forever changed.

“I’m proud that we were able to get an entire industry to change its ways. Looking back, what’s remarkable is it all started with one restaurant worker willing to stand up,” said Swartz