Lawsuit Alleges Louisiana Restaurant Pressured Servers to Perform Unpaid Work

Three former table servers are suing owners and managers of an iconic Louisiana restaurant, claiming managers pressured them to work for no pay.

The Advocate reported the lawsuit against The Chimes was filed last week in federal court in Baton Rouge by Karly Kyzar, Sarah Little and Elizabeth Pruitt.

The restaurant, founded near Louisiana State University, has two locations in Baton Rouge and one in Covington.

The suit claims managers pushed servers to do pre- and post-shift work off the clock in exchange for maximizing potentially lucrative serving shifts.

The suit seeks to allow current Chimes servers, or former servers within the past three years, to join the suit.

Chimes attorney Ed Hardin Jr. says owners haven’t adequately reviewed the lawsuit, but says the restaurant “is a good corporate citizen.”