Tag Archives: Restaurant Employees

by | November 28, 2012 · 7:24 am

Hospitality Industry Health Risks: Illinois Restaurant Connected To "Salmonella Contamination Through Human Transmission" Closed Down; Employees Must Be Cleared To Work

“…the (restaurant) was found to have a suspected connection to the salmonella cases…the health department discussed the situation with the franchise ownership, at which time they chose to voluntarily close in an abundance of caution…the link does not seem to be a certain food, but rather human transmission…”

A McDonald’s eatery in Bloomington, Ill. in McLean County was shuttered before the Thanksgiving weekend as investigators look into a suspected case of salmonella contamination. It remains closed.

Pantagraph.com writes that a range of confirmed salmonella cases were reported at several different restaurants in Central Illinois between October 18 and November 11, and “substantial information connecting the [McDonald’s] to the cluster of salmonella cases was discovered last week.” Investigators believe the sickenings were a result of human transmission rather than a specific food item.

Every employee at the McDonald’s is being tested and the restaurant will not reopen until enough staff have been cleared to work.

“People that are sick, they know they’re sick,” Simon said. “They’ve been sick for a period of time.” For about a week, these individuals have been suffering from particularly nasty cases of Salmonella Stanley, a rare strain that Food Safety News writes is rare outside of Southeast Asia and usually appears only in people who have traveled there.

For more:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/27/mcdonalds-bloomington-salmonella_n_2197920.html

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by | November 26, 2012 · 7:16 am

Hospitality Industry Health Risks: Tennessee Restaurant Employees Offered "Free Vaccines" By Non-Profit Group; Lack Of Health Insurance And Risks Of Contracting Flu Cited

“… healthcare professionals with The Shot Nurse have been visiting hundreds of Memphis area restaurants offering free vaccines for employees made possible with funding from Serving Memphis. Restaurant workers were chosen for the campaign for a number of reasons. They frequently lack health insurance, or work multiple jobs making it difficult to find time to get vaccinated. Also, their work with the general public puts restaurant employees at greater risk to contract the flu…”

Getting sick hurts restaurant workers in another place: Their pocketbook. “In this industry, you live off each day of work,” Hafford said.

So far this year, Pietri estimates she’s surprised more than 200 restaurants and injected 430 workers with the flu vaccine. The registered nurse works for The Shot Nurse, which would charge $25 per injection. But that expense is being born by three people who either own restaurants or have had family in the business: Michael Uiberall, Wight Boggs and Sandy Robertson.

They are paying for the shots through their new nonprofit, Serving Memphis.

“We’re trying to target people who are in minimum-wage positions,” said Boggs, an owner of Huey’s restaurants. They’re often young adults, she said, adding, “We’re trying to get them to start thinking about a healthy lifestyle early on.”

The goal is to provide 500 flu shots this year. “Next year, we hope to do 800 shots,” said Uiberall, a partner in the CPA firm Watkins Uiberall.

For more:  http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/nov/21/new-group-aims-to-keep-memphis-restaurant/?CID=happeningnow

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by | November 22, 2012 · 7:19 am

Hospitality Industry Workers' Compensation Insurance Risks: Tennessee Supreme Court Awards Restaurant Manager Benefits At "Six Times His Medical Impairment" From Electrocution Injuries

“…The Tennessee Supreme Court held that a manager was entitled to benefits at the statutory maximum of six times his medical impairment…the manager was denied a meaningful return to work when he was terminated in retaliation for filing his claim. The manager’s age, education, training, work experience, and limitations warranted the six-times multiplier…”

A co-manager for a fast food restaurant was repairing a heating element used to keep food warm. Someone plugged the heating element into an electrical outlet. An electrical shock caused the manager to lose consciousness. He suffered from burns on his hands, chest pains, headaches, and memory loss. He repeatedly asked his supervisor to pay his medical expenses and authorize medical care for his symptoms. The district manager said he would “take care of it,” but the bills remained unpaid. The manager filed a workers’ compensation claim, and the restaurant was fined for failing to timely report the incident. Days after the claim was filed, his supervisor “vulgarly expressed his anger” about the claim. Within weeks, the manager, who had never received a reprimand, received two reprimands and was later terminated.

A neurologist diagnosed the manager with a migraine condition and epilepsy and opined that the conditions were caused by the electrical shock. The neurologist found that he reached maximum medical improvement with a 10 percent impairment to the body as a whole. A vocational expert opined that the manager suffered a 65 percent vocational disability based on his age, limitations, work history, and the local labor market. The manager was unable to find gainful employment other than occasional “odd jobs.” The Tennessee Supreme Court held that he was entitled to benefits at the statutory maximum of six times his medical impairment.

The court rejected the restaurant’s argument that the maximum multiplier possible was meant to punish it for mishandling the claim rather than an assessment of disability.

For more:  http://www.riskandinsurance.com/story.jsp?storyId=533352818

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by | November 20, 2012 · 7:22 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Colorado-Based Restaurant Group Will Defend Itself Against Class-Action Lawsuit Alleging Overtime Violations; Company Maintains That Managerial Salaried Employees Are "Apprentices"

“…The class-action complaint…says Chipotle misclassified its “apprentices” as managerial salaried employees who don’t qualify for overtime pay. The suit contends apprentices earn salaries of $40,000 but frequently work more than 40 hours a week and often perform the duties of hourly workers, including cooking and filling orders…”

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. says a lawsuit alleging the Colorado- based company has failed to pay overtime to hundreds of employees is frivolous.

Chipotle spokesman Chris Arnold said the restaurant chain carefully defines the roles in its restaurants and that the apprentice position is “clearly” a managerial role ineligible for overtime, under state and federal laws.

The lawsuit seeks back pay and damages. Chipotle has about 1,350 restaurants.

For more:  http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/west/2012/11/19/271081.htm

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by | November 5, 2012 · 7:10 am

Hospitality Industry Employment Risks: Hotels And Restaurant Groups Begin Limiting Employee Hours To Below 30 Hours Per Week To Avoid Health-Care Law Requirements

Several restaurants, hotels and retailers have started or are preparing to limit schedules of hourly workers to below 30 hours a week. That is the threshold at which large employers in 2014 would have to offer workers a minimum level of insurance or pay a penalty starting at $2,000 for each worker.

The shift is one of the first significant steps by employers to avoid requirements under the health-care law, and whether the trend continues hinges on Tuesday’s election results. Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney has pledged to overturn the Affordable Care Act, although he would face obstacles doing so.

Pillar Hotels & Resorts this summer began to focus more on hiring part-time workers among its 5,500 employees, after the Supreme Court upheld the health-care overhaul, said Chief Executive Chris Russell. The company has 210 franchise hotels, under the Sheraton, Fairfield Inns, Hampton Inns and Holiday Inns brands.

“The tendency is to say, ‘Let me fill this position with a 40-hour-a-week employee.’ “Mr. Russell said. “I think we have to think differently.”

Pillar offers health insurance to employees who work 32 hours a week or more, but only half take it, and Mr. Russell wants to limit his exposure to rising health-care costs. He said he planned to pursue new segments of the population, such as senior citizens, to find workers willing to accept part-time employment.

He described the shift as a “cultural change” toward hiring more part-timers and not a prohibition against hiring full-timers.

CKE Restaurants Inc., parent of the Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s burger chains, began two months ago to hire part-time workers to replace full-time employees who left, said Andy Puzder, CEO of the Carpinteria, Calif., company. CKE, which is owned by private-equity firm Apollo Management LP,  offers limited-benefit plans to all restaurant employees, but the federal government won’t allow those policies to be sold starting in 2014 because of low caps on payouts. Mr. Puzder said he has advised Mr. Romney’s campaign on economic issues in an unpaid capacity.

For more:  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204707104578094941709047834.html

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by | November 3, 2012 · 7:30 am

Hospitality Industry Employment Risks: Hawaiian Restaurant Group Sued By EEOC For "Rampant Sexual Harassment Of Female Employees"

In its lawsuit, the EEOC asserts that a class of at least nine female servers and bartenders were repeatedly bombarded with sexual propositions, explicit sexual remarks, groping, grabbing, and exposure of genital areas by male managers, and even ordered to perform sexual favors for high-level Señor Frog officials. 

Señor Frog’s, a popular chain of Mexican-themed restaurants and bars, violated federal law by allowing the rampant sexual harassment of its female employees in Honolulu by high-level officials including the company owner, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it filed today against both Señor Frog’s and Altres, Inc.  Altres, a Hawaiian staffing company, was contracted by Señor Frog’s to provide human resources services and oversee the company’s non-management staff at the Señor Frog’s restaurant & bar in Honolulu.

The widespread sexual harassment was out of control, stemming from Señor Frog’s owner himself, who permitted other Honolulu restaurant managers and supervisors to do the same, according to the EEOC.  Women were also treated differently with respect to being passed over for promotions, obtaining less favorable shifts and earning less than their male counterparts.

The EEOC contends that at least one of the victims was compelled to quit as a result, while others were disciplined or had their hours cut in retaliation for complaining of the harassment and discrimination.  As the joint employer, the EEOC claims that Altres is also liable for the hostile work environment endured by the Señor Frog’s staff, many of whom were employed by Altres on paper, according to company records.

Such alleged conduct violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. La Rana Hawaii, LLC dba Señor Frog’s & Altres, Inc., Case No. CV-11-00799 LEK BMK) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.  The EEOC’s suit seeks all available relief, including lost wages, front pay and compensatory and punitive damages for the class of women.  Substantial remedies, including policy changes and staff training, are also being sought by the EEOC in order to prevent and appropriately address future instances of sexual harassment, discrimination and retaliation.

For more:  http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/11-2-12.cfm

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by | October 22, 2012 · 6:17 am

Hospitality Industry Insurance Risks: Restaurant Operators Face "Financial Hit" From New Health Insurance Benefit Programs That Take Effect In 2014

Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, companies with 50 or more full-time eligible workers must either provide basic coverage by Jan. 1, 2014, or face fines of $2,000 per employee. A full-time employee is defined as one averaging 30 or more hours per week over a 60-day period.

“We will have a financial hit,” said CEO Victor Ansara. “We first thought it was going to be $300,000, but maybe only $100,000 to $200,000. We just don’t know how many of our employees in their 20s, who are pretty healthy, will want coverage.”

Farmington Hills-based Ansara Restaurant Group, which operates 22 Red Robin outlets and five other restaurants in Michigan and northern Ohio, is bracing financially to expand its health insurance benefit program by as many as 665 full-time workers to accommodate expected federal health care reform.

The first 30 employees are excluded from the penalty. For example, an employer with 75 employees would pay the penalty for 45 workers, or $90,000.

Eligible employees that reject insurance coverage by their employer would have to pay a $95 tax, or 1 percent of income, whichever is greater, in 2014. The tax rises to $325 in 2015 and to a maximum of $695, or 2 percent of income, in 2016. Family coverage taxes would be about three times higher in those years. The penalty is estimated to raise $6.9 billion in 2016, said the Congressional Budget Office.

Ansara said his company covers about 130 management staff with various plans from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network. Only about 35 of its estimated 350 eligible hourly workers have opted for the coverage, he said.

“It is very difficult to plan when we don’t know what our health care costs are going to be in 2014,” he said. “To comply with the regulation, we have to offer coverage to all full-time eligible employees.”

Of Ansara’s 2,300 employees, up to 700 hourly workers could become eligible for health insurance coverage, he said.

For more: http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20121021/SUB01/310219956/red-robin-group-among-restaurants-bracing-for-health-insurance-reform#

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by | October 19, 2012 · 6:46 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Florida-Based Restaurant Group Faces Five Separate "Federal Labor Law Class-Action Lawsuits"; Employees Required To Work "Off The Clock" And Skip Required Breaks

“…Lawsuits filed by the Mexican-American Legal and Education Fund accuse Darden Restaurants—which owns the Capital Grille, Red Lobster and Olive Garden chains—of violating state and federal labor laws…the suits claim the restaurants regularly ask employees to work off the clock, skip legally required breaks and report to work when sick…”

The world’s largest full-service restaurant ownership company faces five separate class-action lawsuits filed by a group that works to protect restaurant workers’ rights.

The litigation began as a single class-action lawsuit filed in federal court in Chicago, with state class-action claims covering workers in Illinois, as well as California, Florida, Maryland and New York. Eventually, the lawsuit was severed into five jurisdictions due to the large size of the classes and the complexity of the various state claims. Five regional U.S. District Courts will hear the cases.

The lawsuits were initiated by the Restaurant Opportunities Cen­­ters United, which seeks to improve wages and working conditions for low-wage restaurant workers.

For more:  http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/33010/worker-advocates-cook-up-five-suits-against-restaurant-group

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by | September 30, 2012 · 7:06 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Texas Restaurant Chain Sued By EEOC For Firing "Pregnant Employees Under A Discriminatory Written Policy"

“…According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Maryann Castillo and other female workers were laid off after the third month of their pregnancies under a written policy, set out in Bayou City Wings’ employee handbook…”

JC Wings Enterprises, LLC, doing business as Bayou City Wings, a Baytown-based restaurant chain, violated federal law when its managers laid off pregnant employees under a discriminatory policy, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it filed today.

  Bayou City Wings owns and operates restaurants in Baytown, Houston and surrounding areas.  The company’s district manager laid off Castillo pursuant to the policy even though she had provided a doctor’s note that indicated she could work up to the 36th week of her pregnancy and that her doctor had not placed any restrictions on her ability to work.

During the EEOC’s investigation of a discrimination charge brought by Castillo, Bayou City Wings named eight female employees who were laid off from work because of their pregnancies.  According to a Bayou City Wings general store manager, for a manager to keep a pregnant employee at work any longer would “be irresponsible in respect to her child’s safety” and would jeopardize his position with the company “for not following procedures.”

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended by the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, prohibits employers from discriminating against employees on the basis of sex or pregnancy.  The EEOC filed suit (Civil Action No. 4:12-cv-02885) in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.   The EEOC seeks an injunction, back pay with pre-judgment interest, reinstatement or front pay, compensatory damages and punitive damages, in amounts to be determined at trial.

For more:  http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/9-12-26d.cfm

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by | September 24, 2012 · 6:30 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: "Tip Pool Skimming" Class-Action Lawsuit Filed Against New York Restaurant; Over 100 Former Waitstaff Claim Managers Took 26% Of Tips

“…The suit, filed by more than 100 people who’ve worked there for the last six years, also claims that Les Halles paid waitstaff less than the $5 minimum wage for food service employees…”

Anthony Bourdain’s Les Halles is the latest restaurant to be hit with a lawsuit from waitstaff alleging that management skimmed from their tipping pool. Both of the restaurants’ locations are named in the suit, which according to the Post alleges that floor managers took 26% of the pool.

“In my experiences at Les Halles, management was, if anything, unusually scrupulous about these things,” Bourdain, the chef-at-large, said, referring to the group of people who almost certainly do not raid the bar after-hours while blasting a Kool & The Gang Pandora station through the restaurant’s speakers.

We always preferred pooling as opposed to the vicious, territorial struggle of solo-sectioning, but this could be Bourdain’s biggest stumbling block since he ate a bunch of flesh in front of starving rich people.

For more:  http://gothamist.com/2012/09/23/anthony_bourdains_les_halles_sued_f.php

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