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A former Denny’s waitress who won her lawsuit against the restaurant chain after alleging she was paid $2.83 for untipped work should not be able to represent a Class of other employees, Denny’s argued to a judge.
In a brief opposing class certification filed Tuesday, June 22, in a Pennsylvania federal court, Denny’s said Plaintiff Juli Wintjen lacked credibility to represent a Class “due to the false allegations contained in her complaint,” Law360 reported.
The restaurant chain argued that Wintjen had originally claimed she worked 40 to 50 hours per week, but pay stubs later showed she rarely worked more than 40 hours.
However, in February, U.S. District Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand sided with Wintjen on her claims filed against Denny’s in 2019.
Wintjen had claimed the Denny’s she worked at in western Pennsylvania paid her $2.83 an hour as a tipped employee when a third of her time was spent doing untipped work such as dishwashing and cleaning.
Wiegand found Denny’s broke the law by paying Wintjen and others $2.83 for untipped labor. She also found that the chain wasn’t tracking how much time staff spent on tipped and untipped work.
Despite winning her case, Denny’s argued Wintjen should not be allowed to represent a Class.
Because Wintjen won her individual claim under the Fair Labor Standards Act, she wasn’t able to recover additional compensation under Pennsylvania statutory law. That means she wouldn’t truly represent the Class members who were vying for a payout, Denny’s reportedly said.
The restaurant chain added that Wintjen “has little incentive to vigorously pursue her Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act claim at this point” because there is no financial reward available.
Meanwhile, a Denny’s server who was paid $3.75 an hour working at a diner in Massachusetts alleges she and other servers were underpaid by the chain, according to another recent class action lawsuit. The diner is accused of violating the Fair Labor Standards Act.
What do you think of Denny’s alleged business practices? Let us know in the comments!
The plaintiff is represented by Gary F. Lynch, Edward W. Ciolko and Matthew D. Brady of Carlson Lynch LLP, and Gerald D. Wells III and Robert J. Gray of Connolly Wells & Gray LLP.
The Denny’s Pennsylvania FLSA Class Action Lawsuit is Wintjen v. Denny’s et al., Case No. 2:19-cv-00069, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
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2 thoughts onDenny’s Doesn’t Want Case-Winning Waitress to Represent Class of ‘Underpaid’ Workers
I worked at dennys in fall river mass and also in lewiston maine. I did a lot of work while not receiving tips but reviewing the 3.75 while doing the work witch sometimes took a few hours depending on the night. Iv also been the only waitress on the floor while pregnant on a crazy busy Friday night. Someone pulled some alarm I couldn’t get ahold of management I couldn’t shut the alarm off or get people out… worst night ever. Not to mention one of the managers was a pervert
Add me please