Mazzone Hospitality Group is facing a proposed class action lawsuit by a former employee who alleges the business violated federal and state wage laws. The complaint, filed on April 29, 2016 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, alleges the restaurant group illegally required its employees to pay a portion of their tips to their managers and retained gratuity charges paid by catering customers which should have been given to employees. The former employee is co-represented by Attorney Joseph T. Moen of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The lawsuit alleges violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the New York Labor Law, including failure to pay the required minimum wage, failure to pay overtime wages, and misappropriation of tips. The complaint requests class action certification for employees of both its restaurant business and its catering operations employed at Mazzone Hospitality in the last six years. Mazzone Hospitality, led by Chief Executive Officer Angelo Mazzone, allegedly unlawfully required its food service employees to pay 1% of their sales of wines by the glass and 3% of their sales of wines by the bottle to Mazzone. The complaint also alleges that Mazzone charged its catering clients for gratuities that were not provided to the employees who earned them.