Watch now: Local restaurant workers are fighting for what they're owed
Read the full story from News Food Editor Andrew Galarneau.
Ellen Przepasniak
Digital content editor
Ellen Przepasniak has worked at The Buffalo News since 2016. She holds a bachelor's degree in English from SUNY Fredonia and a master's in print journalism from Boston University.
As featured on
While a few of Buffalo's best-known restaurants presented an air of sophistication to their patrons, a series of lawsuits allege the many ways restaurant owners attempt to keep tip money from employees.
Faced with the prospect of losing dining space – and offering fewer tables to Covid-wary customers who prefer not to dine inside – local restaurants are at a crossroads.
Last month, a judge approved a $648,000 settlement to end a lawsuit filed in 2016 that accused Russell's of wrongdoings, including failing to provide servers the full minimum wage, proper notice of tip credit and accurate wage statements from 2010 through 2016.
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