Jeong Woo Kim v. 511 E. 5th Street, LLC

133 F. Supp. 3d 654, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 135337, 2015 WL 5732079
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedSeptember 30, 2015
DocketNo. 12cv8096-FM
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 133 F. Supp. 3d 654 (Jeong Woo Kim v. 511 E. 5th Street, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jeong Woo Kim v. 511 E. 5th Street, LLC, 133 F. Supp. 3d 654, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 135337, 2015 WL 5732079 (S.D.N.Y. 2015).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER

FRANK MAAS, United States Magistrate Judge.

Plaintiff Jeong Woo Kim (“Kim”) brings this action against defendants 511 E. 5th Street, LLC (“511”), d/b/a Goat Town, Nicholas Morgenstern (“Morgenstern”), and Joel Hough (collectively, the “Defendants”), under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), 29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq., and the New York Labor Law (“NYLL”), N.Y. Lab. Law § 190 et seq. On December 13, 2013, the Court conditionally certified the case as a collective action under the FLSA on behalf of kitchen staff members employed by the Defendants. (ECF No. 49). Thereafter, Abdulaye Tounkara (“Toun-kara”) and Juan Saiteros (“Saiteros”) joined the action as plaintiffs. (ECF Nos. 58, 59).

All three plaintiffs (collectively, the “Plaintiffs”) have now moved for summary judgment pursuant to Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. In their motion, the Plaintiffs seek a determination that the Defendants: (a) failed to pay Kim and Saiteros overtime in violation of the FLSA and NYLL; (b) failed to provide the Plaintiffs with wage notices and wage statements in violation of the NYLL; (c) failed to pay Kim and Tounkara spread of hours premiums in violation of the NYLL; and (d) wilfully violated both the FLSA and NYLL, thereby entitling the Plaintiffs to recover liquidated damages. In addition, the Plaintiffs seek a determination that.511 and Morgenstern are jointly and severally liable under both statutes. Finally, the Plaintiffs maintain that they are entitled to an award of $47,489.50 in back wages, liquidated damages, and statutory penalties. (See ECF No. 68 (Mem. of Law in Supp. of Pis.’ Mot. for Summ. J. (“Pis.’ Mem.”)) at 3-4). For the reasons set forth below, the Plaintiffs’ motion, (ECF No. 67), is granted in part and denied in part.

I. Relevant Facts

Except where otherwise noted, the following facts are set forth in the light most favorable to the Defendants.1

The Defendants operate a restaurant in Manhattan known as “Goat Town.” Mor-genstern is the managing partner, handling the day-to-day operations of Goat Town, including the hiring and firing of employees, staff and payroll, and human resources. (Morgenstern Decl. ¶ 1; Mor-genstern Tr. 8-9; but see Morgenstern Tr. at 24-25 (testimony that Morgenstern’s payroll and human resources duties were limited to signing paychecks)).

In early 2012, Kim responded to a job listing posted by the Defendants, expressing interest in a sous chef position at Goat Town. (Kim Tr. 73, 77). In April 2012, Kim was hired on a “consulting basis,” and [658]*658he remained at Goat Town until August of that year. (Morgenstern Tr. 21; Kim Tr. 81). At the time of his hiring, Kim was applying for a visa, and Goat Town agreed to serve as his sponsor. (Kim Tr. 82; Morgenstern Decl. ¶ 8). Since Kim lacked a social security number, Goat Town could not pay him through its regular payroll. Accordingly, as an alternative, the Defendants initially paid Kim $550 in cash each week. These payments later were reduced to $400 per week about five weeks before Kim’s departure from the restaurant, after Kim abandoned his visa application and began working fewer hours. Kim did not receive any pay stubs, but the Defendants documented all of their payments to him at year-end on a “1099” form. (Pis.’ R. 56.1 Stmt. ¶ 12; Morgen-stern Decl. ¶ 4; Morgenstern Tr. 29-30, 40; Kim Tr. 86-87; Ex. 5).

Kim has significant culinary training, including degrees from the French Culinary Institute in Vancouver and the Culinary Institute of America. (Kim Tr. 18-21). Despite having been hired as a sous chef, however, Kim maintains that he actually worked as a line cook and that his primary duties involved cleaning, washing dishes, and preparing food. (Kim Decl. ¶¶ 1, 3). Kim also did butchering, helped with ordering and inventory, and occasionally helped with scheduling, but contends that he did not manage other staff members or have the authority to hire or fire, and never was asked to provide input regarding such decisions. (Morgenstern Decl. ¶ 8; Morgenstern Tr. 22; Kim L>ecl. ¶ 3; Kim Tr. 110-111).

Goat Town is open from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. or 12 a.m. during the week. In addition, the restaurant serves brunch on weekends beginning at 10 a.m. (Morgen-stern Tr. 42). Despite this schedule, Kim contends that he typically worked fourteen-hour days, either five or six days per week. (Kim Decl. ¶ 2).

The opt-in plaintiffs, Tounkara and Saiteros, have not submitted any affidavits or declarations detailing the circumstances of their employment. Tounkara, however, appears to have been employed by Goat Town from October 2012 until June 2013, (see Exs. 11, 13), and Saiteros appears to have been employed there from late April until mid-June 2011, (Ex. 12). According to Goat Town’s time records, Tounkara’s workday exceeded ten hours per day approximately once each week. (Ex. 13).

The Defendants maintain that all Goat Town employees other than Kim and the head chef were paid on an hourly basis and “receive[d] overtime at one and one-half their regular rate for all hours worked over 40 hours a week.” (Morgenstern Class Cert. Decl. ¶ 5 (parentheses omitted); see also Morgenstern Tr. 25 (“Q. Do you pay your employees on a fixed salary basis? A. No.”)). Earn disagrees, alleging that all kitchen staff members were compensated on a salaried, rather than an hourly, basis, and therefore did not receive overtime pay. Kim bases this assertion on complaints by other kitchen staff members that he had overheard. (Kim Decl. ¶ 4).

II. Standard of Review

Under Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, summary judgment is appropriate only when “the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact” based on supporting materials in the record. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56. “An issue of fact is genuine if ‘the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.’ A fact is material if it ‘might affect the outcome of the suit under the governing law.’ ” Roe v. City of Waterbury, 542 F.3d 31, 35 (2d Cir.2008) (quoting Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986)).

[659]*659In deciding a motion for summary judgment, the Court must “view the evidence in the light most favorable to the party opposing summary judgment and must draw all permissible inferences” in favor of that party. Harris v. Provident Life & Accident Ins. Co., 310 F.3d 73, 78 (2d Cir.2002); Fischl v.

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133 F. Supp. 3d 654, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 135337, 2015 WL 5732079, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jeong-woo-kim-v-511-e-5th-street-llc-nysd-2015.