Mario Batali has settled a putative class and collective action lawsuit covering his restaurants in New York. The lawsuit covers tipped employees who worked for the restaurants over the past six years. The bulk of the settlement deals with tip misappropriation under New York State Law. The lawsuit alleged that Batali’s restaurants deducted the equivalent of 4-5% of each shift’s wine and beverage sales from the tip pool. In essence, the deduction amounted to stealing tips from the tipped employees such as waiters, bussers and runners. The $5 million settlement appears to be the largest unpaid wages settlement against a group of restaurants. Tip misappropriation is common in New York City restaurants, as tipped employees routinely have to tip-out managers and other non-tip eligible employees such as silver polishers, expediters, cooks and dishwashers. If you are a restaurant worker who has not been paid properly, please call our firm for a free consultation.