Judge Brody sided with P.F. Chang’s, stating that the confidentiality of the settlement was a critical component. She pointed out that two sections of the settlement explicitly outlined that the deal could only proceed with redacted monetary terms. If those terms were disclosed, the settlement would become void, Judge Brody explained.
The judge also warned that invalidating the settlement could delay the case, potentially forcing the parties to renegotiate or, in the worst-case scenario, causing P.F. Chang’s to abandon the settlement talks entirely.
The workers, who initially filed the lawsuit in 2018, claimed that P.F. Chang’s violated both federal and state labor laws by requiring servers to spend more than 20% of their time on non-tip-related tasks, yet still paying them the subminimum wage rate allowed for tipped workers. According to the FLSA, employers can pay tipped workers as little as $2.13 per hour, provided their tips make up the difference to meet the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.