Mon, 11/02/2020
The District of Columbia requires private employers to provide tipped workers with clear and extensive notice of their rights under the District’s labor and anti-discrimination laws, as well as information on how to report violations of the law.
The District of Columbia’s Tipped Wage Workers’ Fairness Clarification Amendment Act of 2020 (the “Act”) amends the District’s labor law universal notice requirements, D.C. Code § 32-161. In addition to mandating that the District maintain a website clearly setting forth employee rights and benefits under various labor and anti-discrimination laws in the District of Columbia, along with information on how to report violations, the new law requires private employers to comply with enhanced notice and posting requirements to inform employees of their rights. These rights include the rights to be paid at least the minimum wage, to be paid on time, to accrue and use paid sick and safe leave, to remain free from discrimination and retaliation, and to file a complaint for violations of workplace rights. The posters must be placed in a conspicuous location accessible to all employees, including in all break rooms and by all time clocks. The poster must also include the address for the District’s informational website.
The Act also requires employers to print copies of all information posted in the District’s website and compile it into a single source, such as a binder, and place it at each location that the law requires a poster to be placed, including in break rooms and by time clocks. Employers must update the binders on at least a monthly basis to ensure that the information included is identical to that provided on the District’s website.
MSE proudly enforces the workplace rights of tipped workers, including restaurant servers and bartenders. MSE has successfully litigated on behalf of hundreds of such workers in the District of Columbia and elsewhere to recover the minimum and overtime wages and paid sick leave to which they are entitled under the law. As recently as June 2019, a federal court approved a settlement agreement with Farmers Restaurant Group in response to a complaint alleging that the restaurants unlawfully required servers to purchase tools of the trade and uniforms, paid the lower tipped wage for substantial non-tipped side work, maintained an unlawful tip pool, and failed to provide paid sick leave under D.C. law. See https://www.mselaborlaw.com/news/restaurant-group-settles-wage-hour-lawsuit-servers.
For more information on the labor and employment rights of tipped workers, please see the “Tipped Workers” section of our “Common Violations” page. If you are a tipped restaurant worker and you believe your rights have been violated, please contact us by submitting a Potential Case Form or by sending us an email at info@mselaborlaw.com.
