On March 28, 2014, a former entertainer employed by Follies, an adult entertainment club, filed a lawsuit suit in Georgia federal court seeking unpaid wages and liquidated damages under the Fair Labor Standards Act. According to the complaint, Follies misclassified its entertainers as independent contractors, rather than employees, and unlawfully charged them fees to work, imposed fines for policy violations, required them to tip out other workers, and avoided paying them the minimum wage required under the FLSA, 29 U.S.C. § 216(b). The plaintiff filed her complaint on behalf of herself and all other entertainers who wish to join the lawsuit.
Rebekah Bailey, an attorney representing the plaintiff, explains “Entertainers are employees just like you and me, and they should be afforded the same wage and hour protections under the law. Entertainers have to abide by the club’s rules and are subject to the club’s direction and control. They should not be treated differently from other employees just because of the nature of the work they do.”
The case is entitled Payne v. WBY, Inc. d/b/a The Follies, Case Number 1:14-cv-00913-CAP, and it is filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. The plaintiffs are represented by Michele R. Fisher, Rebekah L. Bailey, and Anna P. Prakash from Nichols Kaster, PLLP, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Jeff Kerr and Craig Nydick from Mays & Kerr, LLC in Atlanta, Georgia. Additional information is available by contacting Nichols Kaster toll-free at (877) 344-4628.