South Shore restaurant partners issued nearly $500K in fines by state
Two men who co-own and operate several restaurants in Plymouth have been ordered to pay nearly half a million dollars for child labor, wage and payroll violations.
Peter Lucido, 51, of Duxbury, and Paul Tupa, 45, of Pembroke, were ordered to pay $476,351 by Attorney General Andrea Campbell's office for child labor, sick time, wage and hour and payroll-record violations at Plymouth's Tavern on the Wharf and Plymouth Public House, both of which are owned by Lucido and Tupa as partners.
They also own Proof 22 in downtown Plymouth and The Shanty Rose on Plymouth's waterfront.
The citations came in the form of restitution and civil penalties.
“These restaurant owners engaged in a pattern of violating workplace protection laws that are designed to protect workers, especially our young workers,” Campbell announced Friday, Jan. 19, in a statement on the violations. “My office will continue to hold accountable those who violate our wage and hour laws.”
Lucido said he had no comment at this time.
As a result of the investigation, Plymouth Public House was ordered to pay $133,262 in restitution and penalties for failing to pay minimum wage and failure to make timely payments to employees. It was also cited for violations of the state’s child labor laws, violations of the state’s tips laws and failure to keep accurate payroll records, Campbell said.
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Tavern on the Wharf was ordered to pay $343,089 in restitution and penalties for the same violations as Plymouth Public House. In addition, it was cited for failing to permit employees to earn and use sick time as required by law.
Paul Tupa was previously cited by the attorney general’s office in connection with a prior investigation into wage and hour law violations at SNP Restaurant Group, doing business as Red Hat Café in Boston, when he was its president. In that matter, citations totaling nearly $80,000 in restitution and penalties were issued.
The Massachusetts child labor laws impose certain requirements, including limiting the hours that employees under 18 can work and the kinds of jobs they can do. State law also requires employers to have youth employment work permits on file for all workers under 18, and minors generally must be supervised after 8 p.m.
For more information about the state’s wage and hour laws, workers can call the Fair Labor Hotline at 617-727-3465 or visit the attorney general's site on Mass.gov.
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Tavern on the Wharf, Plymouth Public House fined for labor violations
