Herrmann Law

08/27/2026

You do not have to prove your employer's tip pool is illegal. Your employer has to prove it is legal.

That is the rule most servers and bartenders have never been told. If your tips are pooled or tipped out, federal law puts the burden on your employer to show that every dollar went only to employees customers intended to tip.

The test is duties, not job titles: tips may be shared only with employees who are “customarily and regularly tipped,” workers in customer-facing roles that customers actually tip for. Owners, managers, and supervisors never qualify. Neither do cooks, dishwashers, janitors, or office staff. “They work hard and deserve it” is not a legal justification.

And the bright line: your employer can never keep your tips or use them to cut its own labor costs, whatever the deduction is called. That rule produced a $21.2 million judgment against Perry’s Steakhouse.

Our full guide covers who can lawfully share your tips, what records to keep, and what to do if something feels off: https://paycheckcollector.com/tip-pools-tip-outs-whats-legal-whats-not/

Consultations are free, and we handle these cases on contingency. Call or text 817-479-9229.

Tip Pools and Tip Outs: Learn exactly what’s legal and what’s not under the FLSA. See who can share in tips, when back-of-house can be included, and how to protect your pay. Free case review.

08/24/2026

The doors were locked. Your tips walked out anyway.

If your restaurant makes you share tips with employees who start work before it opens, federal law may be on your side, and the numbers are bigger than you think.

A mandatory tip pool can include only employees who “customarily and regularly” receive tips (29 U.S.C. § 203(m)(2)(A)). Federal courts have held that workers doing prep and setup while the restaurant is closed to customers do not qualify. One ineligible participant can make the entire pool unlawful.

The math on one shift: $2,000 in sales, a 4.5% tip-out, $90 gone. That adds up to about $360 a week and nearly $18,000 a year. In March 2026, that same theory produced a $21.2 million judgment against Perry’s Steakhouse for 707 servers.

Our new article breaks down who can legally share your tips, what records to keep, and why the deadline to recover moves forward every day you wait: https://paycheckcollector.com/tip-pool-before-restaurant-opens/

Consultations are free, and we handle these cases on contingency. Call or text 817-479-9229.

08/22/2026

Your title says “manager.” Federal overtime law doesn't care.

For two years, headlines said the overtime salary cutoff was jumping to $58,656. It never happened: the federal threshold is still $684 a week. And that number is the least important part of most overtime cases, because a salary alone never makes you exempt. Your employer must prove every part of a four-part test, and missing even one means overtime is owed.
The math: an assistant manager paid $48,000 a year working 55-hour weeks may be owed about $27,000 a year in unpaid overtime, before federal law doubles it.

We represent employees only, nationwide. Read what your employer must prove:
https://paycheckcollector.com/salaried-overtime-rules-684-a-week/

The $58,656 overtime cutoff never took effect. The rule is still $684 a week, and salary alone never makes you exempt. See what your employer must prove.

03/26/2026

🏆 MAJOR VICTORY: $21.2 Million Judgment Against Perry's Steakhouse for Tip Theft.

A federal judge just entered a $21.2 million judgment against Perry's Steakhouse — one of Houston's most iconic restaurant chains — for illegally taking its servers' tips.

Here's what Perry's did: It required every server to contribute 4.5% of their total sales into a mandatory tip pool every single shift. At a fine dining restaurant like Perry's, that worked out to nearly 25 cents out of every dollar earned in tips. Perry's then used that money to pay other employees — including workers who spent their entire shifts mopping floors, stocking shelves, and polishing silverware in an empty restaurant before the first customer ever walked through the door.

The Court found that Perry's violations were willful — meaning the company knew what it was doing was illegal — and held the company's owner, Christopher V. Perry, personally liable for the full $21.2 million.

This is a landmark victory for more than 700 servers and a powerful message to every restaurant in America: tips belong to the employees who earn them.

👇 Read the full story here:
🔗 https://paycheckcollector.com/perrys-steakhouse-21-million-judgment/

A federal judge entered a $21.2 million final judgment against Perry's Steakhouse and its owner Christopher V. Perry for willfully stealing tips from more than 700 servers. Learn what Perry's did, what the Court found, and whether you may be owed money.

11/20/2025

We are very proud of our clients for standing up, even as Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille still refuses to take accountability for willfully violating federal law. It might be “industry standard” by Perry’s standard, but that doesn’t make it legal.

Servers: if your tips are being unlawfully taken from you, that’s a red flag, not “just how it works."

🔍 750 servers just won a major case against Perry’s Steakhouse.

A judge says the company “willfully” violated federal law with its tip pool.

11/20/2025

We are poud to stand up for the servers at Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille who trusted us with their case. A federal court has now confirmed what they knew all along: tips are for the workers who earn them, not a slush fund for the restaurant.

If you’re a server and you’re being forced to unlawfully share tips, you have rights, and you don’t have to just “accept it.”

01/16/2024

🚨 Attention Servers! Are you aware of your rights regarding non-tipped work? 🤔 Learn about the 80/20 rule and the legal limits of side work in our latest blog. Don't let restaurants exploit your hard work! Read more ➡️ https://paycheckcollector.com/servers-guide-non-tipped-side-work-laws-limitations

Discover the legal boundaries of non-tipped side work for servers. This blog post outlines the types and limitations of side work in restaurants, helping you understand your rights under federal wage laws.

09/20/2023

📣 Important News: Our firm has filed a lawsuit against Gloria's Restaurant on behalf of servers for alleged FLSA violations. Learn more about how this case aims to protect the rights of servers across the industry 👉 https://www.dallasnews.com/food/2023/09/19/former-employee-sues-glorias-latin-cuisine-for-failure-to-pay-minimum-wage/

You can also learn more about the case by visiting our website 👉https://paycheckcollector.com/cases/glorias-latin-cuisine-restaurant-lawsuit/

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A former server says workers performed non-tipped labor and were not compensated.

08/27/2023

🚚 Are you a medical courier driver working endless hours without fair pay? You may be misclassified! Learn about your rights to unpaid wages and overtime in our latest blog post. 👉 Link https://paycheckcollector.com/misclassification-of-medical-courier-drivers-rights-to-unpaid-wages/