Mystic Pizza employees are going to be paid a total of $105,000. This order was finalized by the state since Mystic Pizza failed to pay minimum wages or overtime fees to 110 Misty Pizza employees. This amount is not inclusive of the accompanying $23,000 for civil penalties for violating the state's wage laws.
Additionally, at least one worker is expected to receive over $15,000 in back pay, while the smallest amount to be paid is $30.
The Mystic Pizza brand is actually based on a Julia Roberts movie that has the same name of the establishment. Since the establishment was founded, it has continued to grow and draw even more tourists who pass by it at 56 W. Main Street.
The state Department of Labor has stated on Thursday that they already got three complaints alleging that the owner of Mystic Pizza, John Zelepos, paid dishwashers and cooks as little as $5.69 per hour, which is about $3 less than the mandated minimum wage. Moreover, according to the complaints, other Mystic Pizza employees were also only paid $7.40 per hour, as compared to the state minimum which is $8.70.
Gary K. Pechie, the director of the department's Wage and Workplace Standards division, said in a statement, "Unfortunately, we find situations similar to this far too often." Zelepos, on the other hand, refused to give a comment on the matter at hand.
It was actually a former Mystic Pizza employee who submitted a complaint against the establishment. The complaint was made via an email, which was sent to The Day, in order to alert the press about the ongoing Mystic Pizza wage issue. The former employee said, "I came to find out at the beginning of this past summer that Mystic Pizza had been underpaying the whole time I worked there. Everybody who worked there, excluding waitresses." Of course, the complainant requested to retain anonymity.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
