Tips welcomed

There are rules on tipping — such as giving at least 15 percent to a waiter at a restaurant — and there are RULES on tipping — courtesy of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.

I was doing research for a Daily Record story when I came across the outline for a Webcast entitled “Managing Tipped Employees: The Implications of the $105 Million Starbucks Verdict” given last week by three lawyers from international firm Morgan Lewis.

The Starbucks decision, handed down by a judge in San Diego in March, awarded 120,000 current and former baristas money that was illegally taken from tip jars by supervisors. California and several other states (though not Maryland, as far as I can tell) have laws expressly prohibiting managers or owners of a business to share in tip pools.

The Webcast outline features… well… tips for employers about compliance with state laws and FLSA when it comes to tip pools.

All in all, I found the outline interesting because it talked about laws that I didn’t know (or think) existed. The only thing missing was an after-Webcast mint.

DANNY JACOBS, The Daily Record