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Former Employee Alleges Greek Restaurant Violated Overtime Pay Laws

COOK COUNTY RECORD

Thursday, November 21, 2024

Former Employee Alleges Greek Restaurant Violated Overtime Pay Laws

Federal Court

Mario Espinosa Olguin has filed a lawsuit against his former employer, a Greek restaurant in Illinois, for alleged violations of labor laws. The complaint was lodged on November 4, 2024, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against Thassos, Inc., operating as Thassos Authentic Greek Restaurant, and its owner Nikolaos Fatouros. The case revolves around accusations that the defendants failed to pay overtime wages to Olguin and other similarly situated employees.

According to the court documents, Mario Espinosa Olguin worked as a cook and kitchen staff member at Thassos Authentic Greek Restaurant from March 2023 until October 14, 2024. He claims that during his employment, he regularly worked over forty hours per week but was not compensated with overtime pay as required by law. Instead, he alleges that he was paid his regular hourly rate for all hours worked beyond forty in a workweek. The lawsuit argues that this practice violates both the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Illinois Minimum Wage Law (IMWL).

Olguin's attorney, Timothy M. Nolan of Nolan Law Office, states that this lawsuit is brought as a collective action under the FLSA on behalf of Olguin and other current and former cooks and kitchen staff who were similarly affected by these practices. The complaint highlights that these employees had similar job descriptions and pay rates but did not receive the legally mandated overtime premium due to what they describe as an "unlawful wage payment scheme" by their employer.

The plaintiff seeks several forms of relief from the court. This includes judgment for unpaid overtime compensation calculated at one-and-a-half times their regular hourly rate for all hours worked over forty per week. Additionally, Olguin requests liquidated damages equal to the unpaid overtime amount under federal law and statutory damages under state law amounting to three times the unpaid overtime. He also seeks reasonable attorney’s fees and costs incurred in bringing this action.

The legal team representing Mario Espinosa Olguin is led by Timothy M. Nolan from Nolan Law Office based in Chicago. The case is presided over by judges assigned within the Northern District of Illinois under Case No. 1:24-cv-11353.

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