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Exotic dancer claims a night club did not pay her minimum wage

On Behalf of | May 25, 2015 | Wage & Hour Laws |

It is a common belief that people who work in nightclubs as exotic dancers make good wages. However, that is not always the case, and, behind the scenes, some of these woman in Texas and elsewhere are not being paid minimum wage. A woman in another state claims that is what happened to her, and she has filed a complaint to try to recover her lost wages.

The plaintiff’s regular shift usually began around 8 p.m., and she worked until the club closed, which was usually around 2 a.m. or later. According to her complaint, the company did not keep an accurate account of the days that she worked. There was also a system that forced her to pay out some of her tips to the club. For each of her shifts, she was required to pay $15, which allegedly was split between the bartender and the defendants.

On the weekends, the plaintiff alleges that she would lose even more of her tip money. Her required tip-out increased to $30, which was split between the disc jockey and the defendants. When she did private performances, she paid $15 and then $1 per song. If she was late for work or refused work, she claims that she was still forced to pay the corresponding amount or she would not have been allowed to come back to work for her next shift. In the event that she had to leave early, the plaintiff purportedly was forced to pay $50.

She alleges that because of these deductions, she was not paid at a rate equal to the state’s minimum wage. The suit became class action so that past and present affected workers who were misclassified and paid incorrectly could participate. Texas workers are required to be paid the minimum wage, and those who are not may choose to move forward with claims against their employers in an effort to reclaim their lost wages.

Source: wvrecord.com, “Exotic dancer sues club for labor violations“, Kyla Asbury, May 22, 2015

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