Law360 Quotes Partner George Hanson in Coverage of Pinnacle Entertainment FLSA Suit
On October 10, 2019 a Missouri federal judge denied Pinnacle Entertainment’s attempt to be partially dismissed from a suit filed by a class of workers that claim Pinnacle had an illegal tip pooling arrangement and caused table dealer wages to dip below the federally mandated minimum wage.
In May Pinnacle had asked the court to dismiss the wage claims in the suit, contending that the workers didn’t show gaming license fee payroll deductions caused below minimum wage pay; and arguing even if they had the deductions were allowed because they benefited workers.
In his order U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner said that the purported class of workers, represented by Stueve Siegel Hanson attorneys George Hanson and Alexander Ricke, adequately claimed that Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. ran afoul of the Fair Labor Standards Act by deducting the costs for their state-mandated gaming licenses from their paychecks.
In Law360’s coverage of the decision Hanson is quoted telling the publication in a statement:
“As the court noted, these gaming license fee deductions are primarily for the benefit of the Pinnacle defendants who cannot shift their cost of doing business onto our clients," he said. "We look forward to promptly seeking conditional and class certification and ensuring that these hard-working employees receive all compensation they are owed.”
Law360’s full article on the decision is available here. (Subscription required).
