Tag Archives: Lawsuits

by | November 4, 2013 · 6:53 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Texas And New Mexico Hotels Pay $78,000 To Settle Department Of Labor “Wage Violation Lawsuit”; Staff Paid Flat Rate Without Regard To Hours Worked

Investigators found that the MCM Elegante and MCM Grande Hotels paid housekeeping staff a flat rate per room cleaned, without regard to the Hospitality Industry Wage Violation Lawsuitsnumber of hours worked. When these employees worked more than 40 hours in a week, the employers continued to pay only this flat rate, failing to pay overtime at one and one-half times the employees’ regular rates of pay, as required by the FLSA. A housekeeper paid $3 per room, cleaning three rooms per hour, would earn $450 for a 50-hour week at the piece rate, without overtime. The employee would legally be due $495, a shortage of $45.

MCM Elegante and MCM Grande Hotels in New Mexico and Texas have paid $78,876 in overtime back wages to 200 dishwashers, bartenders, wait staff, bellmen, housekeeping, and maintenance workers following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD).

The investigation allegedly found overtime, minimum wage, and recordkeeping violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Employees in Albuquerque, New Mexico and several cities in Texas, were not properly paid wages they were due. The hotels are owned by HTL Operating LLC, based in Odessa, Texas.

As a result of the investigation, the employer has agreed to comply with the FLSA at all of its locations. It will pay the back wages found due in full.

For more:  http://compensation.blr.com/Compensation-news/Compensation/FLSA-Fair-Labor-Standards-Act/Hotel-employees-owed-79000-in-back-wages/#

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by | October 31, 2013 · 8:02 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: New Jersey Hotel Settles “Price Gouging” Lawsuit For $75,000; Raised Prices 70 Percent During Hurricane Sandy

New Jersey’s price gouging law prohibits excessive price increases during a declared state of emergency or for 30 days after the termination of Hotel Price Gougingthe state of emergency. Excessive price increases are defined as more than 10 percent higher than the price at which merchandise was sold during the normal course of business prior to the state of emergency.  If a merchant incurs additional costs during the state of emergency, prices may not exceed 10 percent above the normal markup from cost.

A Hazlet Hotel has agreed to pay penalties for allegedly price gouging in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, Acting Attorney General John Hoffman said Wednesday in a press release. The Riya Hazlet Hotel, a Holiday Inn at 2870 Rt. 35, Hazlet, will pay $75,000 to settle the suit, which includes $2,951 in consumer restitution.  The state will receive $52,121 in civil penalties and $19,926 in attorneys’ fees and investigative costs, Hoffman said.

In December 2012, a N.J. state lawsuit alleged that the Hazlet Holiday Inn raised its prices more than 70 percent, from under $135 to almost $230 a night, between Oct. 27 and Nov. 5 during a declared state of emergency.

The Office of the Attorney General and its Divisions of Consumer Affairs and Law have reached settlements with another eight companies alleged to have price gouged customers following Superstorm Sandy, Hoffman said.  Under terms of these settlements, the State will obtain more than $437,000 in penalties, fees and consumer restitution.

For more:  http://www.nj.com/monmouth/index.ssf/2013/10/monmouth_county_hotel_will_pay_75k_for_alleged_price_gouging_during_sandy.html

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by | October 30, 2013 · 6:01 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: New York Restaurant Found Guilty Of “Anti-Semitic Harassment”; Ordered To Pay $900,000 To Former Deliveryman

A New York restaurant deliveryman was awarded a $900,000 jury verdict for  enduring 16 years of anti-Semitic harassment by three Hospitality Industry Harassment Lawsuitssupervisors…(who) called him a “dirty Jew” and threw pennies at him while making  anti-Semitic comments; they also docked his tips.

A deliveryman for New York’s Manhattan  restaurant Mangia 57 has won a $900,000 jury verdict for the anti-Semitic  harassment he endured while working at the establishment. According to the lawsuit, night shift manager Artur Zbozien often “passed  gas” in front of Adam Wiercinski and said it was Zyklon B, the poison German  Nazis used to exterminate Jews during the Holocaust, the New York Post reported.

Mr. Wiercinski endured the abuse for  16 years because “he was 50 years old,” his lawyer said. “He said, ‘Who else is  going to hire a 50-year-old delivery man?’ He was afraid.”

The jury reached a verdict in just four hours after hearing much of the  testimony in Polish — used by many of the restaurant’s employees, the Post  reported.

Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/oct/28/jewish-man-awarded-900k-employers-anti-semitism/#ixzz2jDH9AcJ0

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by | October 19, 2013 · 6:12 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Louisiana Hotel Sued For “Negligence” By Woman Who Tripped On “Elevated Transom” In Bathroom; Seeks Damages For Surgeries For Fractures To Leg, Physical Therapy, Loss Of Consortium

“…(the plaintiff) allegedly made her way to the bathroom and “literally stumbled upon a hidden trap in the form of an unexpected change in Hospitality Industry Injury Lawsuitselevation between the bathroom and the bedroom, causing her to stumble and suffer severe injuries to her left leg, including a fracture”…The defendant is accused of failing to warn, failing to fix the change of elevation, failing to properly design the floor, failing to act as a reasonable or prudent person would under the same or similar circumstances and being otherwise negligent…(the lawsuit) seeks an unspecified amount of damages for severe and permanent injuries to her body and mind, multiple surgeries fracture necessitated, the implementation of hardware and many doctors and physical therapy visits…”

A woman who broke her leg after allegedly tripping and falling on an elevated transom is suing a local hotel where the incident occurred. Rebecca Bofinger, husband and William, filed suit against Hotel Provincial LLC, Provincial Motels Inc. and Zurich American Insurance Company in the Orleans Parish Civil District Court on August 8.

The suit states that on Aug. 9, 2012, the plaintiffs, both Baton Rouge residents, traveled to New Orleans, where they stayed at the Hotel Provincial.

Additionally, as a consequence of the accident, plaintiff William Bofinger has suffered a loss of his wife’s services, including but not limited to loss of society, loss of services, loss of consortium, and loss of love and affection.

For more:  http://louisianarecord.com/news/256016-hotel-provincial-sued-on-claims-that-hidden-trap-caused-guest-to-fracture-leg

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by | October 18, 2013 · 6:26 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Employers Unaware Of A Co-Worker’s Harassment Are Still “Vicariously Liable” If Done By A “Supervisor”; Defined As Power To Take “Tangible Employment Actions” In “Hiring, Firing, Decisions On Benefits”

“…The enforcement guidance issued by the EEOC interprets broadly which employees should be considered “supervisors” under Title VII. Hospitality Industry Sexual Harassment LawsuitsAccording to the guidance, any individual with the ability to exercise significant direction over another’s daily work is a supervisor, and the employer would be liable for their acts…The U.S. Supreme Court rejected the EEOC’s stance with the 2013 case of Vance v. Ball State University. If the employer is unaware of a co-worker’s harassment, the Supreme Court decided that employers should only be vicariously liable under Title VII for a co-employee’s harassing behavior if the employer granted them the power to take “tangible employment actions,” such as hiring, firing, failing to promote, significant reassignment, or decisions causing significant changes in the employee’s benefits…”

Employers are not automatically liable for harassment committed by all employees. If the employer is aware of harassment occurring and does not take steps to address and stop it, then the employer has some exposure. If the employer is not aware of the harassment, the employer may be liable if the harasser is considered under the law to be a “supervisor.”

Some harassment lawsuits turn on whether the person who was doing the harassing should be treated as a supervisor. A recent Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals decision (which applies to Oklahoma employers), sets some guidelines for what employees are considered supervisors, for purposes of imposing potential harassment liability on employers.

Priess Enterprises operated a McDonald’s restaurant in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Megan McCafferty began working as a crew member on February  15, 2007. Her shift leader was Jacob Peterson. Peterson participated in the restaurant’s “Manager-in-Training” program. He was also responsible for directing day-to-day activities of shift workers like McCafferty. His responsibilities included assigning duties, scheduling breaks, authorizing crew members to leave early or stay late, and writing up employees for misconduct. Everyone agreed that Peterson did not have the authority to hire, fire, promote, demote or transfer other employees.

McCafferty, a high school student, agreed to cover another employee’s shift, but explained to Peterson she would need a ride from school. As promised, Peterson picked up McCafferty from school and checked her out of class early. Peterson told McCafferty that she had been excused from her shift, and asked her if she wanted to “hang out.”

When she accepted his invitation, Peterson offered McCafferty marijuana. Peterson and McCafferty spent the next two days together, which involved alcohol, methamphetamines and sex. Eventually, McCafferty’s sister spotted her, pulled McCafferty from Peterson’s car, and called the police. When McCafferty did not contact anyone at McDonald’s, the restaurant treated McCafferty as having resigned.

McCafferty filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and later filed a lawsuit against the restaurant and Peterson. McCafferty claimed Peterson was a supervisor under Title VII, and that she had been sexually harassed. McCafferty also included a state law claim, accusing the restaurant of being negligent in hiring, supervising and retaining Peterson.

For more:  http://hr.blr.com/HR-news/Discrimination/Sexual-Harassment/Sexual-harassment-Is-employer-liable-for-shift-lea

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by | October 11, 2013 · 5:27 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Connecticut Hotel Owners Settle “Negligence Lawsuit” For $1 Million; Woman Tripped Over “Bunched, Wrinkled Carpet” Which Required “Elbow Replacement Surgeries”

“…(the plaintiff) was walking from the restaurant to the front lobby when she tripped on a bunched and wrinkled carpet, catching her toe on it Hospitality Industry Injury Lawsuitsand landing on her elbow…(she) had five surgeries, and when the elbow would not heal right, underwent a total elbow replacement…her medical bills totaled $240,000, which will be repaid with proceeds from the settlement, he said…as early as 2009, Holiday Inn, which was threatnening to pull the hotel’s license because of various maintenance issues, had inspected the hotel and reported that the carpet in the restaurant was loose…(attorneys) discovered that members of the hotel staff had tripped on the rug and complained to the management…”

The owners of the former Holiday Inn on North Frontage Road agreed this week to pay $1 million to a 77-year-old St. Louis woman who fractured her elbow after tripping over a loose carpet and falling as she exited the hotel’s restaurant. Heritage New London LLC, the corporation that owns the property and managed the hotel agreed to the settlement after five days of jury selection in New London Superior Court.

Norma Minke was part of a visiting tour group that stayed at the hotel on October 3, 2010, according to her attorney, Joseph M. Barnes of the Reardon Law Firm.

During the discovery process, Barnes said he deposed the corporation owner, Sunil Nayak of Princeton, NJ. Barnes said he learned that as early as 2009, Holiday Inn, which was threatnening to pull the hotel’s license because of various maintenance issues, had inspected the hotel and reported that the carpet in the restaurant was loose. The report specifically identified the location of the incident, Barnes said. He also discovered that members of the hotel staff had tripped on the rug and complained to the management.

For more:  http://www.theday.com/article/20131010/NWS02/131019970/1047

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by | October 4, 2013 · 5:43 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Illinois Hotel Sued For Violating “Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)” By Firing Employee In Need Of Small Oxygen Tank; Obligation To Work With, Accomodate Her Disability

“… the 51-year-old (woman) filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the Paddle Wheel Inn violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by dismissing Hospitality Industry ADA Lawsuitsher without attempting to accommodate her need for a small oxygen tank…The lawsuit also alleged that earlier this year the inn fired Colvin’s daughter, who also worked at the hotel as a desk clerk, just one day after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission substantiated Colvin’s claim of discrimination…Barry Taylor, Colvin’s attorney, said that under federal law the inn had an obligation to work with Colvin on a reasonable accommodation for her disability and should not have jumped to any conclusions about whether she would be able to perform her duties…”

Donna Colvin loved her job as the overnight desk clerk at the Paddle Wheel Inn, especially the quiet hours spent tidying the lobby and laying out the morning’s continental breakfast while guests were still fast asleep.

Even when respiratory ailments briefly sidelined her two years ago, Colvin was determined to keep working at the charming inn, situated on the banks of the Rock River about 90 miles west of Chicago. Heeding her doctor’s advice, Colvin informed the inn’s manager that she would have to be on oxygen while she worked. The next day, she learned by letter that she had been fired.

The suit contended the inn lied in its dismissal letter by telling Colvin she was being let go because she had failed to cover her shifts during several brief stints in the hospital.

“To assume that someone, just because they’re using oxygen, would be bad for business is really a knee-jerk reaction that is unwarranted,” said Taylor, an attorney for Equip for Equality, a disability rights legal advocacy organization based in Chicago.

For more:  http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-disabilities-lawsuit-20131004,0,2456004.story

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by | October 3, 2013 · 5:30 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Risks: Texas Hotel Faces “Wrongful Death & Gross Negligence Lawsuit” After Electrocution Of Young Boy; Pool Light System Did Not Have GFCI, Meet Electrical Codes

“…An investigation after the electrocution death found that the pool “did not meet applicable city, state and national electrical codes” Hospitality Industry Wrongful Death Lawsuitsand did not have Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCI) on the pool light system which are normal installations in pool construction to prevent electrical surges…Brown Electric Inc., had been hired by Hilton to bring the pool into compliance but, according to a city of Houston inspector, had performed work without obtaining the proper permits. After the death Hilton and Brown were cited for “use of electrical system which constitutes a hazard to safety, health and public welfare.”…”

In a lawsuit filed Wednesday, a Missouri City family alleges “gross negligence of epic proportions” for the swimming pool electrocution death of a young man at a Hilton Hotel swimming pool. Raul Hernandez Martinez, 27, and his family spent the Labor Day weekend at the Hilton Houston Westchase hotel at 9999 Westheimer in West Houston.

They were at the swimming pool at dusk when the lights came on automatically. Eyewitness accounts, and now a civil lawsuit, detail how an electrical current immediately surged through the water. David Duran, 11, “suddenly cried out as his body convulsed and he began to float helplessly near the pool light in the deep end,” according to the lawsuit the family filed against Hilton Hotels and the Houston-area electrical contractor Brown Electric Inc., which had performed recent upgrades to the pool’s electrical system.

The boy’s mom Isabel Duran reached for her son and was shocked as well and knocked unconscious. She was revived via CPR and suffered several broken ribs when family members and bystanders dragged her from the pool. The boy’s brother, Raul Hernandez Martinez then fought through the electrical current to retrieve his little brother and push him to the edge of the pool where others helped pull him out.

For more:  http://www.khou.com/news/local/Family-files-lawsuit-in-hotel-pool-electrocution-death-226219641.html

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by | September 28, 2013 · 5:56 am

Hospitality Industry Employment Risks: New York Restaurant Settles “Sexual Harassment” Lawsuit For $35,000; Seven Female Workers Subjected To Groping, Explicit Propositions And Lewd Remarks

“…The EEOC’s lawsuit charged that Angelo’s owners subjected seven female employees to sexual harassment from January 2005 through September 2012.  Angelo’s Pizza was purchased by Kefalas in September 2012…in January 2013, Kefalas was added to the lawsuit as a successor EEOCemployer…According to the seven harassment victims, Angelo’s owners, Kostantinos Raptis, Nikolaos Raptis and Andrew Xenos, groped their breasts and buttocks and made sexually explicit propositions and comments, including requests for sexual acts and other lewd remarks…The EEOC further alleged that Kefalas fired two of the women in retaliation for complaining about the sexual harassment…”

Angelo’s Pizza and Grill, Inc. and Kefalas Enterprises, Inc., the former and current owners of Angelo’s Pizza and Grill, a full-service family restaurant located in upstate New York, will pay seven women $35,000.00 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

For example, one of the owners would hold a cucumber or orange traffic cone between his legs and simulate sex.  Another forced a female employee into a back storage room, where he shut the door, turned off the lights, touched her breasts and fondled her.  Angelo’s owners also routinely made comments about oral sex and body parts.

Sexual harassment and retaliation for complaining about it violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  The EEOC filed suit, EEOC v. Angelo’s Pizza & Grill, Inc., and Kefalas Enterprises, Inc., 8:11-cv-01043 (NAM) (RFT), in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York in August 2011 after first attempting to reach a voluntary pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

Although Kostantinos and Nikolaos Raptis and Andrew Xenos, the original owners of Angelo’s Pizza, are no longer involved in the restaurant, both Angelo’s and Kefalas will be bound by a three-year consent decree settling the suit.  The decree, in addition to the $35,000 monetary relief, enjoins Angelo’s, its principals and any future businesses it may purchase or operate and Kefalas from engaging in future sexual harassment or retaliation.   Kefalas must also put mechanisms in place to protect any future employees from sexual harassment and retaliation.  The decree has been approved by Federal District Court Judge Norman A. Mordue.

“These women were subjected to especially crude and unacceptable conduct,” said EEOC New York District Director Kevin Berry.  “The EEOC will not stop aggressively pursuing remedies for victims of sexual harassment in the workplace.”

EEOC Senior Trial Attorney Judith Biltekoff added, “The victims in this case have shown great strength in standing up to right the wrongs perpetrated against them by their former employer.  They live and work in a small town in upstate New York where jobs are at a premium.  It took courage to come forward at the risk of losing their jobs.  We are pleased that they will be compensated and that future harassment will be prevented.”

EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination.  Further information about the commission is available on its website at www.eeoc.gov.  The Buffalo Local Office is part of EEOC’s New York District Office which oversees New York, New England and portions of New Jersey.

For more:  http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/9-27-13a.cfm

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by | September 23, 2013 · 5:47 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: North Carolina Restaurant Operator Sued By EEOC For “Religious Discrimination”; Fired Woman For Wearing Skirts As Part Of Her Pentecostal Church Beliefs

“…(the employee, Sheila Silver, was) a member of the Pentecostal church (and believed) women should wear skirts in accordance with this EEOCreligious belief…Silver worked for various Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants since 1992.  Scottish Food Systems and Laurinburg KFC Take Home purchased the KFC restaurant where Silver worked in April 2013.  At that time, they informed Silver she must wear pants to work because of their dress code policy.  Silver told Scottish Food Systems and Laurinburg KFC Take Home she could not wear pants because of her religious beliefs.  The companies ultimately fired her for refusing to wear pants to work…”

Scottish Food Systems, Inc. and Laurinburg KFC Take Home, Inc., two North Carolina corporations that operate a chain of Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants in eastern North Carolina, violated federal law by failing to accommodate an employee’s religious beliefs and firing her because of her religion, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in an employment discrimination lawsuit filed today.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which requires employers to reasonably accommodate an employees’ due to their religious beliefs as long as doing so does not pose an undue hardship.  The EEOC filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina (EEOC v. Scottish Food Systems, Inc. d/b/a Kentucky Fried Chicken and Laurinburg KFC Take Home, Inc. d/b/a Kentucky Fried Chicken, Civil Action No. 1:13-CV-00796) after first attempting to reach a voluntary settlement through its conciliation process.  The EEOC seeks back pay, compensatory damages and punitive damages, as well as injunctive relief.

“Employers must respect employees’ sincerely held religious beliefs and carefully consider requests made by employees based on those beliefs,” said Lynette A. Barnes, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Charlotte District Office, which includes the EEOC’s Raleigh Area Office, where the charge of discrimination was filed. “This case demonstrates the EEOC’s continued commitment to fighting religious discrimination in the workplace.”

The EEOC is responsible for enforcing federal laws prohibiting discrimination in employment.  Further information about the EEOC is available on its web site at www.eeoc.gov.

For more:  http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/9-19-13c.cfm

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