Feds bust NJ steakhouse for ripping off restaurant staff overtime pay

⚪ NJ steakhouse caught ripping off staff

⚪ No overtime paid, feds say

⚪ Over $84K in wages, damages recovered

A Jersey Shore steakhouse owner has been pushed to pay more than $84,000 in back wages and liquidated damages for 13 workers, according to federal labor officials.

Dariusz Targonski, owner of Flames Brazilian Steakhouse in Belmar, paid hourly employees straight-time wages for all hours worked, investigators found.

That was in spite of their being legally entitled to an overtime rate when working over 40 hours in a week.

Investigators also discovered that non-exempt, salaried employees were not paid overtime and required payroll records were not kept.

Another $4,459 was tacked on in penalties, for violating federal overtime regulations.

“People employed in the restaurant industry often work long hours to support themselves and their families and they deserve to be paid the wages they’ve earned,” U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division District Director Charlene Rachor said in a written statement.

Back wages recovered on LBI

Five years ago, Federal labor officials recovered a massive amount of back wages from an iconic seasonal restaurant on Long Beach Island.

SEE ALSO: Feds crack down on Chicken or the Egg for $770K wage ripoff 

The Chicken or The Egg restaurant, known legally as Cramark Inc., was ordered to pay $768,548 — as a total of back wages, liquidated damages and penalties.

Those violations included terms of the H-2B temporary visa program for foreign workers.

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