NEW YORK Celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten has agreed to pay $1.75 million to settle a tip lawsuit filed by eight former servers who worked at several of his upscale restaurants here, according to court papers.
The servers alleged in the class-action lawsuit that their tips were unlawfully shared with managers and that they were not paid for all the hours they worked.
The settlement, which still requires approval by a federal judge here, includes more than $583,000 in legal fees. The remaining money will be divided up among the servers.
Vongerichten, who owns such fine-dining establishments as Spice Market, Jean Georges and JoJo, denied all wrongdoing in the settlement and said the company had complied with all labor laws.
Anumber of other upscale New York restaurants, including Pastis, Nobu and Tao, are facing similar wage-and-hour lawsuits.
