Around 2,600 staff
MGM Resorts International has inked a $12.5m wage deal to settle class claims with around 2,600 of its casino staff in New Jersey and Maryland.
Plaintiffs Maria D. Maldonado and Laura A. Day filed their motion for preliminary approval of the deal in New Jersey federal court on November 12. The two MGM casino workers hailed the outcome as an:
outstanding result for class members.”
According to legal news resource Law360, MGM Resorts is forking out the $12.5m to settle claims it paid casino employees sub-minimum wage “by improperly claiming a tip credit without notice.” The deal will reconcile two connected lawsuits brought by table games dealers at the MGM National Harbor casino in Maryland and The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in New Jersey.
Maldonado and Day, who earned less than minimum wage plus tips while working at the casinos, challenged MGM Resorts’ capacity to claim a tip credit because of a supposed failure to give notice as stipulated by the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Dealers dealt a break
According to Maldonado and Day’s motion for preliminary approval, the $12.5m deal constitutes over 64% of the tip credit damages alleged. As a result, table game dealers at MGM National Harbor and the Borgata will walk away with average payouts of $4,500 and $1,000, respectively.
The two plaintiffs — who will each receive $7,500 service awards — described the payments as “meaningful.” As per the proposed settlement, just under $4.2m from the fund will go to employees’ attorneys.
Staff from the Borgata and MGM National Harbor won’t need to go through the hassle of claiming their dues either. Unless they requested to be excluded, the workers will “automatically receive a check in the mail for their share of the settlement fund.”
Hard work pays off
According to Law360, the 2,600+ MGM staff members have agreed to an “appropriately narrow release of claims tailored to the facts asserted in the operative complaint.”
The outcome results from suits filed in May 2020 and early 2021 by Maldonado and Day, respectively. For the two table games dealers, the settlement with MGM Resorts is the culmination of “significant” investigation, discovery, litigation, and mediation.