Lisa Vanderpump has agreed to pay a $250,000 settlement to former employees of her West Hollywood restaurants amid accusations of stiffing staff and refusing to provide proper breaks.
According to a new report, the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum and her husband, Ken Todd, who were accused of violating California labor laws for years, came to the agreement with a former employee, who filed a class action against them in December 2019, through mediation.
According to court documents obtained by Radar Online on December 21, the ex-staffer informed the court of the settlement on November 12. However, despite the settlement agreement, which gives him and other employees (a total of 153 joined the lawsuit after it was filed) a quarter of a million dollars, Lisa and Ken have not admitted to violating labor laws. Instead, they’ve denied the claims brought against them.
In the former employee’s suit against Lisa and Ken, the couple was accused of allegedly “not paying wages” or “providing meal breaks” for years at their restaurants, which include SUR, TomTom, and Pump. They were also accused of “manipulating or editing time records to show lesser hours than actually worked” by the man, who claimed he was not given proper meal or rest breaks.
Following the filing of the lawsuit two years ago, Lisa neglected to file an official answer. Instead, she and her spouse agreed to settle the case with the employees who were on staff at their venues from December 16, 2015, to present.
“Both parties at mediation had strong positions regarding the certifiability of Plaintiff’s claims, the merits thereof, the manageability of a trial, and the likelihood in recovering civil penalties for aggrieved employees. Nevertheless, the parties concluded after considering the sharply disputed factual and legal issues involved in this litigation, the risks associated with further prosecution, and the substantial benefits to be received pursuant to the” settlement, the ex-staffer stated.
As part of the settlement, the lawyers representing Lisa and Ken’s employees will be given $87,500.
The case will be brought in front of a judge in February, where he or she will decide whether or not to sign off on the agreement.
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