Posted on 09/16/2012 4:21:09 AM PDT by dennisw
Celebrity chef Mario Batali has agreed to whip up a $5.25 million payment to the captains, waiters and other workers at his restaurants who claimed they had been stiffed out of tips.
Two-thirds of what may be the biggest settlement of its kind will be shared by 1,100 workers — everybody from the bartenders to the busboys — at swanky Manhattan eateries like Babbo, Bar Jamon, Casa Mono, Del Posto, Esca, Lupa and Otto, and Tarry Lodgein Port Chester, court papers revealed Wednesday.
The rest goes to the lawyers who took on Batali and business partner Joseph Bastianich.
When the workers sued two years ago, Bastianich called it a “shakedown” and made a point of sarcastically thanking some of the staff who took him and Batali to court.
He also discouraged other workers from joining the suit, saying, “Only the lawyers make money on these lawsuits,” the court papers state.
There was no immediate comment from either famous foodie after word of the huge settlement leaked out.
Lawyers for both sides issued a single statement saying, saying, “The matter has been resolved to the satisfaction of all parties.”
Both
Batali and Bastianich have known for several months that a giant tab was heading their way.
The agreement was hammered out after a marathon mediation meeting in October and still needs to be approved by a Manhattan federal judge before any checks are cut.
The settlement covers staff who worked for Batali’s restaurants from July 2004 through February of this year, and the payouts will be proportional — based on the number of hours worked.
The case against Batali and Bastianich was filed by Stephanie Capsolas and Hernan Alvarado, a waitress and a kitchen runner at Babbo.
Capsolas claimed she was harassed after she sued.
(Excerpt) Read more at articles.nydailynews.com ...
Maybe in some metaphorical sense, but that doesn't seem to be a proven fact.
Not if his wife and kids have anything to say about it, I guess.
In any case, how would you know?
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They make a cute couple
I agree completely.. The owners in this case are gluttons, literally stealing from their own struggling employees.. I also fault the unions for their own complicity in allowing the employer to fund the wages out of the tip jar, so they can get the average income higher than the hourly pay..
In the past, we would pay a very fair wage, considering the standard tip at 10%-15%, which varies depending on the quality of the dining experience.. Thus, the higher average check, the greater the tip, the higher the level of experience expected of the staff.. I had table Captains making in excess of $100,000 a year, most of it in cash..
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