Carnegie Deli Settles Worker Lawsuit for 2.65 Million Dollars

A 2.65 million dollar settlement between the world famous Carnegie Deli and restaurant in midtown Manhattan and its workers has been preliminarily approved by a New York federal court judge. The class action lawsuit filed by workers in 2012, alleged that Carnegie Deli failed to pay its waiters, bussers, runners, cashiers, and kitchen workers minimum and overtime wages and spread of hours pay.  In particular, attorneys for the restaurant workers alleged that the delicatessen and restaurant paid its employees at a rate below the minimum wage and paid straight-time for all hours, including those over forty, made unlawful deductions, such as deducting from a workers’ wages any money lost from undercharging a customer and engaged in other violations of the restaurant workers’ rights under the Fair Labor Standards Act and the New York Labor Law. The settlement which covers over one hundred current and former employees of the Carnegie Deli, was preliminarily approved by Judge Katherine Polk Failla on April 11, 2014, and still requires final approval after the class members have the opportunity to object or opt-out of the settlement.  A final fairness hearing is scheduled for July 1, 2014.