MILWAUKEE — Employees at four Milwaukee-area chicken restaurants will receive over $442,000 back wages and damages for wage violations dating back to 2021.
The U.S. Department of Labor obtained a judgment against Chicken Palace LLC and owner Valdemar Escobar for violating federal wage regulations including “[p]aying employees straight-time pay rates for overtime hours over 40 in a workweek” and “[f]ailing to pay employees the required minimum wage” between March 7, 2021 and March 8, 2023. Escobar owned two Chicken Palace restaurants in Milwaukee as well as locations in Kenosha and Waukesha.
An investigation by the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division also found that Escobar did not “maintain complete and accurate time records”. The federal court has ordered the restaurant owner to pay “$221,070 in back wages and an equal amount in liquidated damages to the affected workers, and a civil money penalty of $10,000 to the department for their willful Fair Labor Standards Act violations”, for a total of $442,140.
“Failing to pay workers their required wages hurts employees and results in the entire restaurant community facing unfair competition,” said Regional Solicitor Christine Z. Heri in Chicago. “This outcome should remind employers that the Department of Labor will take appropriate action—including litigation—to protect workers who are denied their pay.”
In addition to the payments, Chicken Palace LLC and Escobar agreed to provide employees the Wage and Hour Division’s Handy Reference Guide to the Fair Labor Standards Act and other information on their federal wage protections in languages that the employees speak. The restaurants and Escobar also agreed to an injunction prohibiting future FLSA violations.
Fiesta Garibaldi Restaurant Group owns the Chicken Palace Fiesta Garibaldi brand as well as seven additional restaurants including Fat Valdy’s, Fiesta Café, and Fiesta Garibaldi Mexican grill in Milwaukee, Kenosha, and Waukesha. Only the four Chicken Palace restaurants are involved in this judgment.
