In a dramatic legal filing, two former employees have taken their grievances to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, accusing a well-known Chicago restaurant and its owner of serious wage violations. On February 10, 2025, Tram Dang and Yu-Yun Lou Buhle, also known as "Lori" Buhle, filed a complaint against Peking Duck USA, Inc., doing business as Lao Sze Chuan, and its owner Hu Xiaojun, also known as "Tony" Hu. The plaintiffs allege that they were denied fair compensation under federal and state wage laws.
The case revolves around allegations that the defendants failed to pay minimum wages and overtime rates for hours worked by the plaintiffs in January 2025. Dang and Buhle claim they worked between 10-20 hours during this period without receiving any compensation. Furthermore, they accuse the defendants of illegally deducting $700 from their tips in November 2024 and failing to pay owed tips from December 2024. These actions allegedly violate multiple labor laws including the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Illinois Minimum Wage Law (IMWL), Chicago Minimum Wage Ordinance (CMWO), and Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act (IWPCA). The plaintiffs argue that these practices have been part of a consistent pattern over several years where tips were regularly withheld or delayed beyond legally permissible timeframes.
The lawsuit details how Peking Duck USA's payment practices systematically deprived employees of their rightful earnings. Plaintiffs assert that due to illegal deductions and withholding of tips, they were not compensated at appropriate tip rates nor received timely payments for their work. The complaint further alleges that these violations were willful and widespread across the defendant's operations on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. As a result of these infractions, Dang and Buhle are seeking repayment of stolen tips, back wages reflecting minimum wage differentials for unpaid periods, liquidated damages, penalties under various statutes including treble damages under CMWO, as well as attorney fees.
Plaintiffs are represented by attorney John C. Ireland from The Law Office Of John C. Ireland based in South Elgin, Illinois. They demand not only financial restitution but also injunctive relief requiring compliance with all applicable wage laws moving forward. This high-stakes litigation is being presided over by an unnamed judge under Case No: 1:25-cv-01393.