EVANSVILLE, IN – An injunction has been issued by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana against Bardhyl Shabani, owner of Friendship Diner LLC in Evansville. The court order requires Shabani to inform his employees about their rights to cooperate with federal wage investigators and that he is under a department lawsuit for retaliation against workers and failure to pay required wages.
The court action on May 13, 2024, follows a request from the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division for a restraining order and injunction on March 6, 2024. The division alleges that Shabani violated the Fair Labor Standards Act’s anti-retaliation provisions by intimidating employees into providing false statements about Friendship Diner’s tip pool during investigations.
“The Department of Labor will not tolerate an employer’s attempt to obstruct a federal investigation by retaliating or threatening to retaliate against employees,” said Regional Solicitor Christine Heri in Chicago. "We will use every available legal resource to protect workers, end such illegal actions and hold employers like Bardhyl Shabani accountable, including seeking punitive damages for those harassed.”
Under the agreed order, Shabani is prohibited from discussing the ongoing investigation with employees without court approval, discriminating against cooperating employees by reducing hours or placing servers in lower-tip positions, and retaliating against workers in any manner.
On February 28, 2024, the department filed a complaint seeking back wages and liquidated damages for 44 people employed by Friendship Diner LLC. The complaint alleges that Friendship Diner and Shabani owe $450,140 in back wages and equal amount in liquidated damages.
The investigation examined pay records from February 22, 2021 through February 19, 2023. It identified multiple violations including operating an illegal tip-sharing pool; failing to pay minimum wage; not paying overtime at time-and-a-half for hours over 40 in a workweek; paying kitchen staff half their wages by payroll check and half in cash without proper overtime calculation; and failing to keep accurate payroll records.
The department continues to litigate other minimum wage, overtime, and recordkeeping violations alleged in the complaint. The infractions identified are similar to violations cited at another restaurant operated by Shabani in Wisconsin in 2013.
“Federal wage laws include detailed criteria for a tip pool’s use and define who can participate in such pools legally,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Aaron Loomis in Indianapolis. “The U.S. Department of Labor will continue to protect workers and ensure they receive their due wages by enforcing strong workplace protections.”
Attorney Haley R. Jenkins from the department’s Regional Office of the Solicitor in Chicago is litigating the case.
