Ann Arbor server Sues Anna’s House over overtime pay calculations

Lauren Burke, a server at an Anna's House location in Ann Arbor, has filed a class and collective action lawsuit alleging the breakfast chain systematically underpaid tipped workers by calculating overtime based on reduced tipped wages rather than the full state minimum wage. The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan on October 27, names the company, its owner Joshua Beckett, and 14 related entities as defendants.

Burke argues that the company's payroll system paid overtime at 1.5 times her tipped rate of $3.93 per hour, instead of 1.5 times the applicable minimum wage, contrary to the company's own employee handbook. Her attorneys claim this discrepancy left her underpaid by at least $3.20 per overtime hour, or up to $9.60 if no valid tip credit applied. The suit also alleges that Burke was never paid the $7.00 per hour base rate stated in her 2022 onboarding paperwork and that she did not receive required written notice before the company applied a reduced tipped wage.

The lawsuit seeks unpaid minimum wages, unpaid overtime, liquidated damages, and attorney fees. It arrives amid ongoing changes to Michigan's tipped-wage laws, which have gradually increased the required share of the minimum wage that employers must pay tipped workers. Anna's House disputes the allegations and stated it takes accurate pay and fair treatment seriously, while reserving further comment until the case is resolved.

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