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Update:
- Plaintiffs Paul Craig Worrall, Emily Longmire, Jazmin Witherspoon, Collin Ginebaugh and Kessyn Alan voluntarily dismissed their COVID-19 sick pay class action lawsuit with prejudice.
- Court documents reveal the plaintiffs settled the case via alternative dispute resolution.
- No other information about the settlement and dismissal was available.
- The class action lawsuit had alleged the owners of Tim Love restaurants, including Lonesome Dove Western Bistro and Woodshed Smokehouse, falsely claimed to pay workers for COVID-19 sick leave so they could receive a tax credit.
Covid-19 sick pay class action lawsuit overview:
- Who: Workers served a class action lawsuit to the owners of Tim Love restaurants, including Lonesome Dove Western Bistro and Woodshed Smokehouse.
- Why: Plaintiffs allege the Texas-based restaurateur falsely claimed to pay workers for COVID-19 sick leave.
- Where: The class action lawsuit was lodged in Texas federal court.
(Oct. 26, 2021)
Covid-19 sick pay was falsely reported to the Internal Revenue Service by the Woodshed Smokehouse and Lonesome Dove Western Bistro owner Tim Love, alleges a class action filed by workers.
The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) helped the United States combat the workplace effects of Covid-19 by reimbursing American private employers with fewer than 500 employees when their employees needed sick leave, the lawsuit states. The reimbursement was a dollar-for-dollar tax credit for the cost of providing employees with mandatory paid leave taken for specified reasons related to Covid-19.
“The law enabled employers to keep their workers on their payrolls, while at the same time ensuring that workers are not forced to choose between their paychecks and the public health measures needed to combat the virus,” say a handful of Tim Love restaurant workers who filed the complaint on October 20.
Tim Love and his affiliates allegedly received the tax credit for these nonexistent payments; however, the restaurant workers never saw these benefits. In addition, the plaintiff and other employees paid the IRS taxes above what they earned, claims the class action.
Covid-19 sick pay misreported by Tim Love restaurants in 2020, says class action
The plaintiffs were employed at Lonesome Dove and the Woodshed Smokehouse restaurants at the time of the IRS reporting.
Tim Love, founder and chief executive officer of the Texas restaurants, reported he paid workers for Covid-19 sick leave. None of them received any payment for Covid-19 sick leave, as they were not eligible and did not take the leave. Now the plaintiffs are responsible for paying taxes on these false payments, claims the class action.
“Upon information and belief, Melinda Morgan, human resources & payroll manager at Love Style, and Tim Love designed a scheme whereby the various restaurants would wrongfully report that their employees took Covid-19 related leave, claim the FFCRA relief tax credit, fail to actually make any payment to any employee, fail to give any employee leave and then effectively limit their own tax expenses with the FFCRA credit,” the lawsuit alleges.
The plaintiffs want Tim Love and his restaurants to pay damages, attorneys’ fees, expenses, and costs.
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The plaintiffs are represented by Walker G. Harman, Jr. of The Harman Firm.
The Covid-19 Sick Pay Class Action Lawsuit is Worrall, et al. v. Love, et al., Case No. 3:21-cv-02602-D, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.
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