Waffle House employees file fed complaint over unpaid wages

Waffle House servers filed an unfair labor practice complaint Thursday, alleging the company owes its employees millions of dollars in unpaid wages.

In the complaint filed with the Labor Department, the Union of Southern Service Workers said Waffle House violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by requiring tipped workers to perform untipped labor.

According to the complaint, Waffle House servers spend up to three hours per shift performing untipped labor, eliminating $15 million to $46 million in tipped wages. The union also cited a survey by the Strategic Organizing Center that found that 90% of Waffle House workers reported experiencing wage theft in the past year and over 70% of employees reported not being paid for all hours worked.

BREAKING: Waffle House workers are filing a complaint with the Department of Labor alleging rampant wage theft.

According @RaiseUptheSouth a stunning 90% of these underpaid workers have wages stolen by the restaurant chain.

Now, they’re organizing and fighting back. pic.twitter.com/gS5FDzriw7

— More Perfect Union (@MorePerfectUS) September 19, 2024

The union is asking the Labor Department to investigate allegations of wage theft at Waffle House locations and impose the maximum financial penalty on the Georgia-based eatery.

The Washington Times contacted Waffle House for comment but didn’t hear back.

Waffle House has faced accusations of poor working conditions and wage theft for years. In August, the USSW asked the feds to investigate the restaurant for deducting mandatory meals from employee paychecks.