A former employee has filed a lawsuit against a Chicago-based business, alleging violations of federal and state labor laws due to unpaid overtime wages. The complaint was lodged by Silviano Factor in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on December 11, 2024, targeting TJ United Grill, Inc. and its owner Trifon Tambakos.
Silviano Factor claims that during his employment at TJ United Grill from 2017 until April 2024, he regularly worked over 40 hours per week without receiving the legally mandated overtime pay. Factor asserts that he was compensated with a flat rate of $600 bi-weekly plus minimal tips, despite often working an average of 65 hours weekly. This alleged practice contravenes the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Illinois Minimum Wage Law (IMWL), which require time-and-a-half pay for overtime hours.
Factor's lawsuit is not just for himself but is filed as a collective action under the FLSA and as a class action under the IMWL. He seeks to represent all current and former employees who were similarly denied proper overtime compensation. According to Factor, this systematic underpayment affected numerous employees at TJ United Grill, who were subjected to identical employment practices.
The plaintiff accuses Trifon Tambakos of being directly responsible for these violations due to his role in hiring decisions, supervising work schedules, setting payment methods, and maintaining employment records. The complaint alleges that these actions constitute willful violations of labor laws designed to protect workers' rights to fair compensation.
Factor's legal team is pursuing several forms of relief from the court. They are seeking unpaid wages owed under both federal and state laws, liquidated damages equal to those unpaid wages, statutory damages including treble damages as per Illinois law, and attorney’s fees. Additionally, they request injunctive relief requiring the defendants to comply with wage laws moving forward.
Representing Factor are attorneys James M. Dore from Dore Law Offices LLC and Daniel Schlade from the Law Office of Daniel I. Schlade. The case has been assigned Case ID 1:24-cv-12717 in front of judges yet to be named.