Fenway Restaurant Sojuba Pays $320K to Nearly 60 Employees Following Federal Investigation | Eater Boston

"Following a federal Wage and Hour Division investigation that found violations of tip distribution, minimum-wage payments, overtime pay, and payroll-record requirements, the restaurant agreed to pay a total of $320,000 to 59 current and former employees — including $147,500 in back wages covering Aug. 17, 2019 to Aug. 13, 2022 and $147,500 in damages — plus $25,000 for a retaliation action and $40,000 in penalties for willful wage violations. Investigators concluded that some staff who were ineligible for the tip pool nonetheless collected tips, depriving other workers of earned gratuities, and that management instructed workers what to say to investigators, violating anti-retaliation protections. The gigantic, neon-lit, soju-soaked Korean restaurant and bar, known for the tagline “soju made me do it,” has been a Fenway fixture on Boylston Street for over six years, selling pitchers of soju cocktails alongside a menu of dumplings, noodles, rice cakes and more; it moved into a larger space at 1260 Boylston Street in 2020, taking over a former Tony C’s." - Erika Adams