US Department of Labor recovers $912K in back wages, withheld tips, liquidated damages for 44 employees of New Hampshire taproom

MANCHESTER, NH – A federal investigation has recovered $912,594 for 44 employees of a Londonderry brewery and restaurant that illegally kept workers’ credit card tips and incorrectly exempted several salaried employees, such as brewers, bartenders, cooks and administrative staff from overtime pay requirements.

The recovery of $456,297 in back wages and withheld tips as well as an equal amount in liquidated damages comes after an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division determined that Pipe Dream Brewing LLC violated the Fair Labor Standards Act when it retained tips paid on credit card transactions and denied overtime wages to incorrectly exempted employees for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. The department also assessed $5,148 in civil money penalties for the tip-related violations.

“The U.S. Department of Labor found Pipe Dream Brewing violated federal law that forbids managers, supervisors and employers from participating in tip pools or pocketing any portion of employees’ tips for any purpose,” explained Wage and Hour Division District Director Steven McKinney in Manchester, New Hampshire. “As the case’s outcome shows, denying employees their full legal wages and keeping employees’ tips can have costly consequences for employers.” 

The Wage and Hour Division is currently distributing the monies recovered to the affected workers. Workers who believe they are owed back wages from this investigation are encouraged to use the Wage and Hour Division’s Workers Owed Wages online search tool to claim their back wages.

Learn more about the Wage and Hour Division, including tipped employees’ rights and overtime guidance under the FLSA. 

Workers and employers can also call the division’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243) confidentially with questions, regardless of immigration status. The division can speak with callers in more than 200 languages. Download the agency’s free Timesheet App for Android and iOS devices, available in English and Spanish, to help track work hours and pay.