Florida Exotic Dancers Take on Employer in Wage and Hour Suit

Class representatives who received preliminary class certification in a wage and hour suit in Florida filed by a group of exotic dancers shot back after a judgment bid was filed by the owners of two adults entertainment clubs named in the lawsuit.

Former exotic dancers Ashley Howell, Rebecca Wiles and Sarah Shaw filed their opposition to a motion for summary judgment submitted by the owners of the Cheetah-branded clubs located in Hallandale Beach and Pompano Beach in Florida.

The dancers have accused the club owners of failing to pay the minimum wage and overtime, saying they should be qualified as employees under the Fair Labor Standards Act, according to the wage and hour suit.

The club owners stated in their bid for summary judgment that the dancers performed while they were under licensing agreements and were not employees of the club.

In their opposition, the dancers argued back that the entertainment club owners based their classification of the dancers on to federal court opinions, “one over 15 years old from Oregon, and, the other from Arkansas.”

The dancers stated that the club owners’ amount of control over the performers is what determines their employment status. They listed a number of prior judgments ruling that exotic dancers qualified as employees, including a ruling last year from the Fourth Circuit in McFeely et al. v. Jackson Street Entertainment LLC.

“Plaintiffs’ position is not novel; fast majority of courts to consider this issue has found exotic dancer/entertainers to be employees as a matter of,” the opposition argued.

The dancers originally filed the wage and hour suit against The Set Enterprises Inc. and Faneuil Entertainment Inc., saying that Faneuil misclassified hundreds of exotic dancers as independent contractors rather than employees. The state that they were paid from customer tips.

The class of dancers received conditional class certification in December, with the presiding judge concluding that the dancers had provided sufficient evidence showing that approximately 300 dancers who worked in entertainment clubs were impacted by the allegations described in the lawsuit.

The club owners filed a motion for summary judgment shortly after the class certified, saying that the dancers were considered licensees who paid “modest fees” to the adult entertainment clubs in exchange for being allowed to perform at the clubs and collect tips and fees from patrons.

The club owners also stated that the dancers did not have a set schedule or job duties and had the freedom to choose their own costumes, music and activities during their performances.

In the dancers’ recent opposition statement, they said that courts are required to consider the “economic reality” of business relationship between potential please and employers.

The dancers said that it was important to consider the amount of control that the club owners had over the dancers, saying that the owners took responsibility for hiring and firing dancers, tracking their schedules and enforcing rules.

The dancers say that is also required the dancers meet certain appearance, banned certain activities such as chewing gum, smoking and being visited by a significant other while performing and required tips for certain dances.

“It has been determined such rules, whether written or unwritten, indicate control by the employer and indisputably weigh in favor of employee status,” the dancers said in their position. “In sum, defendants exercise take dancers and there is no credible argument that the entertainers were truly in business for themselves.

Currently, approximately 4500 Class notices are being sent out to potential Class members, according to an attorney for the dancers.

The Exotic Dancers Wage and Hour Suit is Shaw et al. v. The Set Enterprises Inc. et al., Case No. 0:15-cv-62152, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

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