Last week, we wrote about the wage claim class action concerning the tip jar at Starbucks stores in California. A class of an estimated 120,000 Starbucks baristas requested pay for their fair share of money from the tip jar. The court has awarded $105 million.
The suit alleged that store managers and supervisors shared in the tip jar in violation of California law. The class plaintiffs argued that Starbucks should have paid shift supervisors higher wages instead of taking money from the tip pool, and that the money diverted to managers should be paid to the baristas. Starbucks unsuccessfully argued that the shift supervisors were allowed to participate in sharing the tips.
The plaintiffs’ experts sampled 250 stores and calculated the amount due to the class as equal to $1.87 (plus or minus 16 cents) per hour worked by shift supervisors. The restitution order reached back 8 years. The $106 million award includes $87 million in back tips plus interest of $19 million. In May, the court will decide how to divide the money among class members and the amount of attorneys’ fees.
