Julie Su Acting United States Secretary of Labor | Official Website
A federal jury in Kansas has awarded $957,324 in back wages to 168 workers at three Wichita-area restaurants. The verdict, rendered on August 30, 2024, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas, came after a U.S. Department of Labor lawsuit against Los Cocos Mexican Restaurant. The department’s Wage and Hour Division alleged that from May 2017 to December 2022, owners Sergio Delgado, Luis Alfaro, and Jose Alvaro de Leon violated provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
The violations included using tips earned by servers to pay hosts and bussers and denying workers minimum and overtime wages. This case covers restaurant locations in Andover, Derby, and Wichita, Kansas. Previously, Los Cocos was found in violation of the FLSA in 2009.
Following a five-day trial, the judge will issue a payment order for the employers to pay the wages and resolve the suit filed in January 2022. The department is also seeking recovery of an equal amount in liquidated damages for affected workers.
“A jury of their peers found the owners of these three Los Cocos restaurants willfully took wages from servers to pay co-workers who bussed tables and greeted diners and did not pay workers overtime or paid some less than the required minimum wage for their hard work,” said Regional Solicitor Christine Heri in Chicago. “The Department of Labor will take all necessary actions to ensure workers receive their rightfully earned wages.”
Investigators discovered that Los Cocos’ owners misused tips to pay hosts and bussers while failing to pay servers and cooks overtime when required. They also did not maintain complete and accurate time records as mandated by law. Specifically, $567,291 was awarded for loss of tip credit minimum wages; $276,115 for overtime pay; $88,590 for withheld tips; and $25,328 for other minimum wage violations.
In November 2023, the same court ordered the restaurant owners to pay $16,734 back overtime wages to 43 servers following a summary judgment motion by the department. These unpaid wages bring total restitution owed employees to $974,057.
“Food service industry investigations find employers frequently operating invalid tip pools and violating federal overtime, minimum wage and recordkeeping regulations,” said Wage and Hour Division District Director Reed Trone in Kansas City.
Traci Martin, Jeffrey Mendoza, and Elaine Smith litigated this case on behalf of the department’s Office of the Solicitor.
In fiscal year 2023 alone, more than $29 million was recovered by the division in back wages for nearly 26,000 food service industry workers nationwide.
For more information about wage laws or assistance with potential claims related to back wages collected by the division or filing an online complaint can be accessed through various resources provided by the Wage and Hour Division including its helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243) available confidentially regardless of location.
U.S. Department of Labor v. Los Cocos Mexican Restaurant et al.
Civil Action No. 22-1004-JWB
