For one moment, Tajia Mackyeon achieved the dream of every restaurant worker: a tip big enough to change her life forever. One man, fresh from a string of wins at the baccarat table, insisted on tipping the casino waitress $76,000 — more than five times what she makes in a year. But according to Mackyeon, casino bosses promptly confiscated it, and she never saw her tip again.
Now Mackyeon has filed a federal lawsuit against MGM National Harbor Resort & Casino, represented by DC Wage Law. Her complaint claims that the casino violated labor laws and committed conversion (that is, theft) by taking her tip. She seeks additional damages and legal penalties totaling over $1 million. MGM National Harbor has yet to comment or file a reply.
Tips and Wage Theft
Although Mackyeon’s story has not yet been proven in court, it closely tracks the troubles plaguing many American service workers, especially in food and hospitality. Mackyeon worked as a tipped employee, meaning that the casino did not have to pay the full state minimum wage because it could expect her to make up the difference in tips.
The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) governs tips and minimum wage payments for many larger employers, including MGM National Harbor. States, cities, and counties may have higher minimum wages and require businesses to pay full minimum wage regardless of tips. Even so, American workers face tip confiscation and wage theft in businesses of every size.
According to the National Institute for Workers’ Rights, U.S. workers lose $15 billion a year from wage theft and recover very little of it. Wage theft tends to fall hardest on low-wage workers who can least afford it. Many service workers are women, members of minority groups, and immigrants. They often do not have union representation. They may have limited employment options or personal resources, making it difficult to try to enforce their rights. Mackyeon, however, could potentially recover a significant amount in damages.
Mackyeon and the Generous Customer
As of this writing, only Mackyeon’s account of the incident is available from her complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.
Mackyeon was a cocktail waitress at MGM National Harbor Resort & Casino in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Early on April 13, she served a guest whom the complaint only names as “the Generous Customer.” For several hours, the Generous Customer had been playing baccarat successfully for high stakes, placing bets of up to $25,000. Around 2 a.m., he put chips worth $76,000 in Mackyeon’s hands. Three times she asked the Customer if he was sure, and three times he confirmed that he wanted Mackyeon to have them. Then he went back to the tables and continued to gamble.
Once the Generous Customer had left the casino, Mackyeon’s manager and a table games manager told her to hand over the chips. Mackyeon “believed that if she did not comply she would be forced to do so.” Later, she repeatedly asked about the tip, but she heard nothing from them. The casino had returned it to the Generous Customer. The complaint does not state when or even whether he had asked for it.
According to Mackyeon, “the Generous Customer was not in any apparent state of confusion or impairment” when he tipped her and answered her questions. The complaint also notes that the casino’s policy is to intervene when it appears that “a patron is unable to make competent decisions about his own money.” This never happened to the Generous Customer. The complaint emphasizes that if he “had placed a $76,000.00 roulette bet on ‘red,’ and lost, [the casino] would not have given it back.”
Her Argument: Unfair Labor Practices and Theft
Mackyeon’s complaint seeks damages from MGM Casino on nine separate counts of labor law violations and injuries in tort. She argues that keeping the tip was against federal law, which states that “an employer may not keep tips received by its employees for any purposes, including allowing managers or supervisors to keep any portion of employees' tips …” 29 U.S.C. § 203(m)(2)(B). This also violated Maryland labor laws, according to the complaint.
She also alleges that the casino unlawfully failed to pay her minimum wage under Maryland law because it kept her tip, per Md. Code, Lab. & Empl. Art., § 3-419. The other counts are for civil violations: conversion, conspiracy, tortious interference with Mackyeon’s economic advantage, and intentional infliction of emotional distress on her.
The case is new, and it is not clear which, if any, of these counts will go forward in the lawsuit. However, the case could potentially shine a light on wage theft and the high stakes that every worker plays for.
Related Resources
- How To Report Wage and Hour Violations (FindLaw's Learn About the Law)
- Fair Labor Standards Act: Laws for Minimum Wage, Working Hours, and Other Protections (FindLaw's Learn About the Law)
