More Employees Jump Aboard Batali/Bastianich Wage Lawsuit

On Wednesday, Joe Bastianich told Eater that he and partner Mario Batali were going to fight a recent labor wage lawsuit filed by Babbo employees " to every inch of the law." Now, the lawyer who filed the original suit has ammended it to include tip and wage violation claims from eight other employees at five other restaurant in the group. As Grub Street reports, the revised suit now includes claims from workers at Otto, Casa Mono, Bar Jamon, Lupa and Tarry Lodge, who suggest that Batali and Bastianich pulled money out of the tip pool.

Curiously, the attorney, Maimon Kirschenbaum, who is infamous for big name restaurant lawsuits like this, included a Bastianich quote that appeared on this site on Wendesday in the amended suit, where the restaurateur likened the charges to a "shake down." Of the initial claims, Bastianich said that any out of court settlement was completely out of the question, noting that "We'll fight this to the end." Presmably these new developments won't change their stance one bit.
· Batali Suit Amended to Include Five New Restaurants [GS]
· Bastianich: We Will Not Be Shaken Down by Our Workers [~ENY~]
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