Former Employees File Wage and Hour Suit Against New York Eatery Obao

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Five former employees of New York restaurant Obao claim they were deprived of appropriate wages in a proposed collective action citing several potential labor law violations.

The lawsuit, which names as defendants 22 Noodle Market Corp. and three individuals with control of the business, claims the plaintiffs were inappropriately classified as “tipped” employees. The five plaintiffs – who worked as food preparers, dishwashers, and delivery workers at the restaurant – say they spent over 20 percent of each workday performing non-tipped duties, meaning the plaintiffs were entitled to at least the full minimum wage instead of a sub-minimum tip-credit rate. Moreover, the case alleges that employees were also deprived of time-and-a-half overtime pay and spread-of-hours wages.

Adding to the suit’s allegations of wage abuses, the plaintiffs allege the defendants unlawfully misappropriated a portion of their tips by pocketing 15 percent of gratuities earned from delivery orders placed online and five percent of gratuities received on credit card transactions.

The case further claims the defendants failed to issue proper wage notices to the plaintiffs upon being hired, maintain accurate recordkeeping practices, pay wages on a timely basis or reimburse delivery workers for “tools of the trade” they were required to purchase to perform their jobs.