Bob Evans Lawsuit

Bob Evans Restaurant Files Motion to Dismiss – Back Wages and an Additional statutory Payment

Have you heard of the Bob Evans Lawsuit? A former employee of Bob Evans Restaurants filed this lawsuit against the franchisor when he was employed at Bob Evans restaurants in the past three years. The plaintiff is requesting compensatory and punitive damages on behalf of himself and other employees who were subjected to wage theft by the Bob Evans Restaurant Management Company.

If you were employed at Bob Evans restaurants in the past three years, you can also join this lawsuit. If you were paid less than the minimum wage, or the national minimum wage, you can join the lawsuit.

Bob Evans Lawsuit

The main claim of the lawsuit is a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). According to the FLSA, an employer cannot discriminate against an employee on the basis of race, color, gender, national origin, age, or any other protected status.

Bob Evans Restaurant Management Company did not follow this law in paying their restaurant employees less than the national minimum wage or offering tipped employment. This is what led to the Federal Court lawsuit.

Bob Evans Restaurant was sued because they offered their tipped employees, as well as their non-tipped workers, the same employment benefits as their tipped employees.

However, they failed to make any accommodations for employees who were not paid the federal minimum wage or the tipped wage that would have been entitled to them had they been paid according to these standards.

It is not uncommon for tipped employees to be paid less in a restaurant environment. But tipped employees, as well as those that are not eligible for tipped status, should not have to work under conditions that do not allow them to receive the wages and benefits they are entitled to, such as the one’s employer refusing to acknowledge their right to receive tipped wages or a sub-standard work environment.

The complaint in this Bob Evans lawsuit brought by the United States Department of Labor, as part of the complaint filed by the Bob Evans Restaurant Management Company, alleged discrimination based on gender, race, national origin, age, disability, and illness.

In essence, the complaint was that a black employee should not be allowed to become a white chef because he could not earn as much as a white chef who had no black skin or a black skin color. The United States Department of Labor claimed that this was a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act and was also in violation of Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The complaint further alleged that the employer in its attempt to maintain an employment level that complied with the Fair Labor Standards Act, failed to make any accommodation for employees who were not properly compensated for their work.

On October 9th, after an extensive discovery process in which Bob Evans Restaurant had been forced to admit that it had engaged in conduct amounting to discrimination in its hiring practices, the United States Department of Labor filed a lawsuit against Bob Evans.

The complaint sought back wages and damages for all employees of Bob Evans Restaurant who had participated in the Bob Evans Employee Discharge Policy, which had been designed to comply with the guidelines required by the Fair Labor Standards Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.

The United States Department of Labor also claimed that Bob Evans Restaurant had created and maintained a second, separate employment manual, which failed to comply with the regulations contained in the federal law and Title VII. On a list of exhibits to be served to the parties involved in this lawsuit, the United States Department of Labor asked for back wages and an additional statutory payment of $1 million per victim.

On December 3rd, after a hearing by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, Bob Evans Restaurant agreed to pay back wages and an additional statutory payment to over one hundred and seventy-five employees.

This settlement is subject to approval by the United States District Court and will be final. On January 6th, the United States Federal Labor Department announced that it would file a Notice of Intent to classify the Bob Evans Restaurant as a facility that required periodic certification and would now need to get such certification.

In an attempt to avoid such certification, the restaurant has filed a motion to dismiss. On February 3rd, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California issued its Order Concerning the Bob Evans Restaurant Employee Discharge Policy and Certification. As expected, the court has reserved the ruling on the matter for a later date.