Local restaurant being sued by former employee
LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) – Carson’s Food and Drink is being sued by a former employee for allegedly violating wage laws and tip pooling regulations.
On Monday (04/21) Laken Pinkerman, a former employee of Carson’s Food and Drink, filed a lawsuit against the restaurant.
Pinkerman says she worked at the restaurant’s Main Street location from May 2017 to September 2024.
Attorney Dave Garrison, who is representing Pinkerman, says Carson’s allegedly made employees work before and after their shift without paying minimum wage.
“The law allows employers, like Carson’s, to pay service employees under what’s called a tip credit practice or policy if certain conditions are met,” said Garrison. “So, the tip credit allows employers to pay employees less than the minimum wage.”
He says that any work that is done where tips are not given, does not fall under the tip credit policy and workers must be paid minimum wage.
Garrison says Carson’s has changed this policy recently, but did not compensate employees who worked under the former policy.
In a statement sent to ABC 36, Palate Restaurant Group, which owns Carson’s, says they found out about the lawsuit on Tuesday.
They say lawsuits like this have become a frequent trend over the past few years.
Their statement says, in part… “We are actively working with our legal counsel and our leadership team to ensure that Carson’s, and its parent company Palate Restaurant Group are always compliant with the latest laws and statutes.””
Garrison says that during her time at Carson’s, Pinkerman worked in several different roles. From a hostess, to a server, a manager and more.
Pinkerman is suing for compensation not only for herself, but for all others who also worked under the same condition.
Garrison says more than a dozen people have joined the lawsuit.
“We hope all servers and bartenders over the time period covered by this case, which goes back three years, will participate in the case,” said Garrison. “And for every hour they worked, they should have been paid the minimum wage instead of that lower hourly wage.”
Garrison also adds he hopes to reach a settlement that resolves the case.
