The U.S. Department of Labor has fined Oo-Kook Korean BBQ, a renowned Los Angeles Korean barbecue restaurant, $66,429, following an investigation into wage theft. A manager illegally kept over $28,000 in employee tips, according to reports by Eater LA and KTLA. In violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the restaurant, based in Koreatown, had a manager involved in the employee tip pool.

As per the Department of Labor, the manager had unjustly claimed $28,213 in tips which should have been handed out to the restaurant's staff. In response to this malpractice, the restaurateurs have been ordered to reimburse $28,213 in unpaid tips to the wronged 35 workers, pay an equivalent amount in liquidated damages, and should pay, a $10,103 civil penalty, given the eatery's prior breach history.

Violations at Oo-Kook Korean BBQ have been identified earlier too by the Department of Labor. It discovered in 2012 a sum of $5,300 in back wages to be compensated to 14 workers, and another inspection in 2020 unveiled that an employee at the La Mirada outlet was due over $16,000, as KTLA published.

This newest inquiry forms part of the Department of Labor's cross-regional drive to foster workplace fairness and effectively communicate with key workers through regional stakeholder involvement. The Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance has been acknowledged for having played a crucial role in bringing to light these findings, as Eater LA reported.

In a news release, Siriporn Poondee, Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director, emphasized that, "Restaurant employers must ensure that workers are given all the wages they are entitled, that includes tips." To help employers honor worker's rights and adhere to FLSA, the Department of Labor offers a variety of tools, including the Quick Service Restaurants Compliance Assistance Toolkit available on their website.