US Department of Labor recovers $64K from Dallas piercing salon for 3 workers whose tips employer withheld illegally

Employer name: LaLobe Inc.

Investigation site: 11661 Preston Road, Suite 140

Dallas, TX 75230

Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Divisionfound LaLobe Inc., a family owned piercing salon that services adults, kept three employees' tips illegally. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, tips are the property of employees who receive them and employers cannot keep their tips or allow managers and supervisors to keep any portion of employees' tips. In addition, the piercing salon also failed to keep records of hours employees worked and the amount of tips owed to workers, as required by federal law.

Back wages recovered: $64,656 in owed back wages

Quote: "Federal law forbids employers from keeping any portion of employees' tips or allowing them to be shared with managers or supervisors," explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Jesus A. Valdez in Dallas. "The errors by LaLobe Inc. in this case should serve to remind other employers not to make the same mistakes and to make certain their pay practices comply with federal law."

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including a search tool to use if you think you may be owed back wages collected by the division and how to file an online complaint. For confidential compliance assistance, employees and employers can call the agency's toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243), regardless of where they are from.

Download the agency's new Timesheet Appfor iOS and Android devices - also available in Spanish - to ensure hours and pay are accurate.