Rick Ross' Co. Hit with Big Fine Over Labor Violations at Wingstops
Rick Ross Company Hit w/ Huge Fines Labor Violations at Wingstop Locations
UPDATE
1:00 PM PT -- 8/17 -- Rick addressed the drama on his Instagram, saying he'll use the mistake as a time to learn and to make improvements ... then he put on some music and took a sip of booze, doesn't appear the Boss is all that worried, and things will sort themselves out.
UPDATE
Rick Ross and his family are under fire in Mississippi for allegedly skimming money from the wages of their Wingstop workers -- and now they've been hit with fines.
The U.S. Department of Labor says they hit Boss Wings Enterprises LLC -- Rick Ross's company -- with a $114,427 fine for back wages and other penalties after the agency determined their franchises were violating labor laws.
Unclear what period of time this covers exactly, but the DOL claims that after an investigation into 5 locations -- all owned and operated by Boss Wings -- they found many of the employees were taking home less than $7.25/hour after factoring in all the deductions -- a big no-no under the minimum wage laws on the books.
The reason ... DOL alleges the owners of these specific franchises were forcing workers to pay for uniforms, basic safety training, background checks and cash register shortages.
The department also claims the bosses at these 5 restaurants were, in many instances, working their employees to the bone ... making them work overtime without properly compensating them and not keeping clean time records on hand.
Not just this, but DOL claims they found one instance when a 15-year-old employee worked past 10 PM several times in June 2021 -- which the agency claims ran afoul of a law prohibiting workers that young from working past 7 PM.
All in all, the DOL hit Boss Wings with $51,674 in back wages/damages for 244 workers -- and additional fines of nearly $63,000.
Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media.
A labor official says, "Restaurant industry employees work hard, often for low wages, and many depend on every dollar earned to make ends meet. The law prevents Boss Wing Enterprises LLC from shifting operating costs to workers by deducting the costs of uniforms, cash register shortages or training expenses, or to allow a worker’s pay to fall below the minimum wage rate."
Rick has been growing his Wingstop empire for years now, and even recently gifted his teenage daughter her own franchise. His sister, Tawanda, is listed as the registered agent of Boss Wings. We've reached out to her and Rick for comment ... so far, no word back.
