HOUSTON – A lawsuit has been filed against three popular north Houston-area restaurants that are accused of illegally spending a portion of employees’ tips for business expenses, including condiments and takeout packaging.
The lawsuit, filed by the U.S. Department of Labor, asks a federal court to require the owner and operator of the restaurants in Tomball and Spring to pay back wages and damages to the impacted workers.
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The investigations, launched by the department’s Wage and Hour Division, found that Tejas Chocolate LLC and Tejas Dragon Companies LLC collected the employees’ tips to distribute among them; however, the employer diverted some of the tips for business purposes in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act.
By law, tips are the property of those who earn them and cannot be used to pay business expenses.
The suit is seeking back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages for current and former employees of two locations of Tejas Chocolate & Barbecue, operated by Tejas Chocolate LLC, and Tejas Burger Joint, operated by Tejas Dragon Companies LLC, from May 2021 to May 2023 and beyond if the division finds the employer continued to use employees’ tips improperly, according to the release.
“When it comes to workers’ tips, the law is crystal clear: tips are the property of the workers who earn them,” said Regional Wage and Hour Administrator Betty Campbell in Dallas. “The owner and operator of Tejas Chocolate & Barbecue and Tejas Burger Joint willfully deprived employees of all their hard-earned tips and used their money to illegally benefit their businesses.”
The department filed its lawsuit on July 19, 2024, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division.
“The Department of Labor is determined to protect the rights of all workers when their employers shortchange them for any reason and will use all legal means necessary,” said Regional Solicitor of Labor John Rainwater in Dallas. “The operator of these businesses directly violated the law, denying employees all the tips left by their customers to recognize their good service.”
Tejas Chocolate LLC was founded in 2011 and services the north Houston area. The same employer also founded Tejas Dragon Companies LLC in Tomball in 2019.