Former Server Files Lawsuit, Claiming Bombay Club Denied Him Overtime Payment

A former server at Bombay Club is suing his previous employer, alleging (among other labor-related claims) that the restaurant did not pay him properly for working overtime.

According to a story in The Washington Post, Nasser Razmyar is behind the suit and claims multiple restaurants in the Knightsbridge Restaurant Group, owned by D.C. restaurant mogul Ashok Bajaj, have violated labor laws, including not properly compensating workers for overtime and engaging in improper tip-pooling practices. The class-action claim was filed in the U.S. District Court for D.C.

Bajaj tells WaPo that before the suit was filed, he reviewed company records and did find instances of underpayment, which he said was due to faulty management (that manager has been fired). The company mailed checks to the employees to compensate them for the lost wages. Razmyar did not cash the check (which also included a waiver not to sue), and proceeded with the suit. Razmyar has sued another restaurant employer in the past, Clover Cleveland Park LLC, over labor issues.

Bajaj tells The Post that other practices mentioned in the suit, such as administrative fees that went to restaurant managers, are legal. This is the first legal complaint Bajaj has faced from an employee in several decades of business, according to the report.