Former Jake's 58 Casino cashier sues over tip pool

Kevin Guttinger, a former cashier at Jake's 58 Casino, has filed a lawsuit in federal court alleging that managers and supervisors unlawfully took employees' shares by participating in the tip pool. The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Guttinger says he worked at the casino from March 2022 to November 1, 2024. He claims he was fired on November 1, 2024, after objecting to how the pool was shared. The complaint states that the pool exceeded $50,000 in some weeks, covered about 50 employees, and that managers ran the pool and took a share before distribution. The complaint also alleges there was no transparency in the pool and that some supervisors acknowledged their participation may have been illegal.

The Federal Fair Labor Standards Act, enacted in 1938 with the signature of Franklin D. Roosevelt, prohibits employers, managers, or supervisors from keeping any part of employees' tips. The Department of Labor's website also states that managers cannot take a share of a tip pool.

Guttinger seeks repayment of the tips he says were taken, as well as lost wages and benefits. The lawsuit is being brought as a class action that would cover other employees in similar positions. Tipping is not a common practice in the cashier area, but some customers leave small tips for large winnings or time-consuming transactions. Newsday, which first reported the story, said Jake's 58 declined to comment and would address the matter through the appropriate legal process. The casino offers 1,000 slot-style video lottery machines, and a $210 million expansion is underway. The facility is operated by Suffolk OTB.