Waffle House is facing harsh accusations from the workers’ union

Although each US state has its own pre- and post-tipping minimum wage laws, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) states that the federal minimum wage for tipped employees for their work must be $2.13 per hour .

Additionally, that minimum wage combined with tips should add up to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour unless the state requires otherwise.

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However, waiters often fall into a gray area because they often work outside of what most people typically associate with serving.

According to the definition of the US Department of Labor (DOL) dual employment rules, non-tipped employment refers to:

“Any work that (1) does not provide services to customers for which tipped employees receive tips and (2) does not directly support the tip-producing work. The employer cannot receive a tip credit for time spent performing work that is not part of the tipped occupation”.

This means that all other employees performing non-tipped jobs must be paid at least the full minimum wage.

If a tipped employee happens to be performing duties that fall under the category of non-tipped occupations, then that employee must be paid at least the full minimum wage for their work by law.

Waffle House chefs prepare food at a Waffle House restaurant on September 13, 2018 in Conway, South Carolina.

ALEX EDELMAN/Getty Images

Waffle House is being overthrown by its unionized employees

In June, Waffle House announced it would raise server wages after a year of strikes and petitions by union-led workers.

Employees at the restaurant chain unionized to demand that Waffle House provide better working conditions, higher wages and an end to mandatory meal deductions, which were taken out of employees’ paychecks regardless of whether or not they ate the food at the restaurant.

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The campaign ended after Waffle House CEO Joe Rogers III announced in a video that the company promised to immediately raise the wages of all its employees to at least $3 an hour and gradually increase it to $5.25 per hour until June 2026.

The release of wage increases would depend on individual state minimum wages, individual worker shifts and years of service at the restaurant.

“This is the largest additional investment in our workforce in the entire 68-year history of Waffle House,” Rogers said in the video announcement.

However, Waffle House’s promise was not fast enough to meet the needs of its employees.

Union Reveals Waffle House’s Alleged Labor Violations

On Thursday, the Union of Southern Service Workers (USSW) filed a wage and hour complaint against Waffle House with the US Department of Labor.

The USSW alleges that Waffle House is illegally paying its workers and is justifying this by using tip earnings as an excuse.

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The union interviewed more than 20 current and former Waffle House workers at various locations who confirmed the company’s alleged wage theft activities.

According to the workers interviewed, because the restaurant chain operates 24/7, there are not enough workers to cover other duties that would otherwise be performed by porters, dishwashers and cooks.

Because the company does not prioritize hiring employees only for these roles, servers are responsible for completing these tasks while still receiving the minimum wage offered.

For some Waffle House employees who were originally hired as servers, performing these tipless jobs takes up most of their hourly shifts, but the duties they perform do not count toward the full minimum wage.

If the US Department of Labor proceeds with the case, it would launch a formal investigation against Waffle House, which could penalize the company for its alleged actions and compensate workers for lost wages.

Waffle House did not respond to The Street’s request for comment.

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