Lawsuit Claims Sabel’s Gaslight Pub Robbed Exotic Dancers of Lawful Wages

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The operators of Philadelphia adult entertainment venue Sabel’s Gaslight Pub have been hit with a lawsuit filed by a former employee who alleges she and other exotic dancers were misclassified as independent contractors and deprived of lawful wages.

According to the case, the plaintiff and similarly situated dancers should have been designated as true employees rather than contractors because the defendants had significant control over working conditions, including their wages, appearance, and behavior. For example, the defendants’ alleged behavioral policies permitted dancers to consume up to three drinks with customers in a workday and prohibited them from chewing gum or using cell phones.

As for dancers’ wages, the suit accuses the defendants of maintaining pay practices that robbed the women of the minimum wage and overtime pay. In fact, the case claims dancers were required to pay their employers numerous fees in order to work at the club, which sometimes left them with a negative balance by the end of their shifts. More specifically, the plaintiff alleges she was required to pay a $30 house fee to work a weekday shift, which increased by $10 for every hour worked after 6 p.m., as well as a flat $80 fee for weekend shifts. The complaint says dancers were also charged for rule violations - for instance, a $100 fine for chewing gum during performances. Further, the suit claims workers’ earnings were subject to discretionary fees if the club manager felt that a dancer had a “bad attitude.” The plaintiff says she and other dancers were required to pay these fees every shift regardless of the amount of tips they made that day, even if that meant borrowing money from one another or making an ATM withdrawal.

In order to further cut labor costs, the defendants, the case continues, retained a portion of dancers’ tips to pay other non-tipped employees. Specifically, the suit says the women had to pay at least $10 to DJs and $5 to club security each shift. “If the DJ does not feel adequately tipped, the Dancers will be subject to bad music during their performances,” the case notes.

“As a result of the mandatory house fees, required tip-outs, and assessed fines,” the complaint summarizes, “Dancers sometimes receive little to no actual compensation despite hours of work.”