I work at a bakery in a grocery store in California and currently the company is withholding our tips. The story is that our card readers got a software update in October 2021 in which we could start accepting credit card tips. As soon as we were aware of this, I asked the manager how we would be receiving our credit card tips? Would it be disbursed through our paychecks, or would the company send a separate check to us? The manager said he would look into it, but he kept pushing it off.
In January, the grocery store came up with a solution to let us cash out our credit card tips from the cash sales we make at the end of the night. Okay this sounded good because we can start to cash out our credit card tips we’re making from now on. The problem is, what about the tips we’ve accumulated from October 2021 to January 2022? The grocery store told us that we would have to have our manager speak to accounting to figure it out because technically the bakery is a separate company from the grocery store. So, I’ve kept trying to ask my manager if he has looked into the situation about our tips being withheld but I kept getting excuses from him.
Long story short, we are at the point where the manager told me the other day that it’s possible that we might not be able to receive the tips that we have accumulated from October 2021 to January 2022. And I am just shocked because I’m very sure that we have at least made $5,000 in credit card tips in that duration, but he is telling me we won’t be getting it? He made some bullshit excuse saying that tips “probably” belong to the company and that it’s up to the boss on whether he wants to disburse our tips to us or not. I already know 100% this is illegal, and I have even warned the manager, but it seems like he isn’t willing to fight for our missing tips.
I have decided that I will be reporting the bakery for withholding our tips. The problem right now is that half of our coworkers are totally unaware of this issue because they’re recently hired so my first action will be to write letters to them to let them know about this situation so they can also bother the manager about it. The other problem is that I don’t have any proof whatsoever. Every discussion I’ve had with my manager was in person and there are no written records of our conversations, and I don’t have access to any records of our credit card tips. I was wondering if anyone had any advice for me on any steps I should be taking? Is there anything else or any other information I need to collect or know before I report the bakery?