Servers Win Tip-Pooling Case Against Chili's

As discussed here, a federal jury in Texas has awarded $270,000 to 54 former Chili's servers forced to participate in an illegal tip pool. The lawsuit, filed against Chili's parent corporation Brinker International, alleged that Chili's violated the Fair Labor Standards Act by requiring servers to share their tips with "quality assurance" workers or "expeditors" who had little customer contact. Under the FLSA, workers forced to sue to convince their employers to pay minimum wage are entitled to recover attorney's fees and expenses incurred in fighting the battle. By all accounts, Chili's fought the lawsuit "tooth and nail" and, as a result, the Court is considering whether Chili's should pay over $2 million in legal expenses incurred by the former servers. Moreover, it is likely that Chili's spent much more than that on high-powered defense lawyers in order to fight the servers. Wouldn't it just be easier to pay a living wage?