HOUSTON — The U.S. Department of Labor announced a lawsuit against the owner and operator of three Houston-area restaurants, alleging that they used a portion of their employees’ tips to pay for other business expenses. 

What You Need To Know

  • The lawsuit follows an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division

  • The investigation found that Tejas Chocolate LLC and Tejas Dragon Companies LLC violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by using employees’ tips to pay for things like condiments and takeout packaging

  • The lawsuit, which was filed on Friday, asks that a federal court require the owner to pay back wages and damages to all the current and former employees of the restaurants from May 2021 to May 2023 and beyond—if the owner continued to not give employees their rightful tips after the time period investigated

The lawsuit follows an investigation by the department’s Wage and Hour Division that found that Tejas Chocolate LLC and Tejas Dragon Companies LLC violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by using employees’ tips to pay for things like condiments and takeout packaging. 

“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 in a news release. “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 lawsuit, which was filed on Friday, asks that a federal court require the owner to pay back wages and damages to all the current and former employees of the restaurants from May 2021 to May 2023 and beyond—if the owner continued to not give employees their rightful tips after the time period investigated. 

“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,” Regional Solicitor of Labor John Rainwater in Dallas said in the release. “The operator of these businesses directly violated the law, denying employees all the tips left by their customers to recognize their good service.”