Overtime Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Kona Grill

An overtime class action lawsuit was filed in early May against Kona Grill Inc. and Kona Macadamia Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division.

Plaintiff Miguel Cedeno is accusing the affiliated companies of violating the national Fair Labors Standards Act (FLSA) and Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) in their employment practices.  He is in part taking legal action for the benefit of all current and former employees of Kona whose rights under the FLSA may have been transgressed.

Overtime Class Action Lawsuit Alleges Employee Misclassification

Federal law under FLSA generally requires employers to pay employees one and a half times their hourly wage for every hour worked over and above 40 hours in a standard workweek.  The only exception to this rule is if the employee is considered exempt. In an overtime class action lawsuit, the burden of proving that an employee is exempt resides with the employer.

In this vital overtime class action lawsuit, Cedeno accuses Kona of willfully misclassifying employees as exempt to avoid paying overtime wages in the first count. He brings the overtime lawsuit on behalf of the following corporate office and restaurant positions believing them to be the most likely to have been misclassified:

• Site Development Managers/Lease Administrators
• Development Procurement Managers
• Purchasing/Facilities Coordinators/Facilities Managers
• Project Designers
• Accounts Payable Managers/Accountants
• Senior Managers of Tax/Senior Tax Analysts
• Managers of Information Technology (IT)
• Manager of Architecture
• Marketing Coordinators/Managers
• Applications Systems Support Analysts
• Recruiters
• Training Coordinators/Managers
• Sous Chefs – restaurant
• Assistant General Managers/Assistant Managers – restaurant

Plaintiff Seeks Lost Overtime Wages

Cedeno alleges that as a direct outcome of Kona Inc.’s allegedly willful misclassification of certain employees as exempt, the company was able to routinely pay employees their wages based on a 40-hour work week regardless of actual number of hours worked. Employees were compensated their agreed-upon hourly wages, but they failed to see payment at one and a half times their hourly rate for hours beyond 40 at any time.

Cedeno on behalf of himself and other current and former employees that choose to join the overtime class action lawsuit are suing to obtain overtime wages that were never paid to them in addition to attorney’s fees, all other legal costs, and liquidated damages which include penalties and interest on unpaid wages.

The Filing Plaintiff and FMLA

Cedeno intends his FMLA violation accusation to be a more “individual” part of the case, arising out of Kona’s failure to consider him for a promotion he was otherwise qualified for by experience and seniority.

According to the plaintiff, he notified the company of his intention to take family leave to care for his spouse during her high-risk pregnancy. Prior to taking leave, the executive chef had quit and Cedeno performed that job in his absence.

Upon returning to the job site after the birth of his son, he said that his employer no longer considered him for the promotion that was his due. He states this is in express violation of his earned FMLA rights.

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