In a significant legal move, an employee of a prominent country club has filed a lawsuit alleging serious violations of federal and state labor laws. Raymond Honaker lodged the complaint against The Country Club of Harrisburg, Inc., along with its General Manager Cynthia McComsey and Executive Chef Phillip Nusinov, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania on June 12, 2024.
Honaker's complaint centers around accusations that the defendants failed to pay him overtime wages as mandated by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act (PMWA). According to the filing, Honaker was hired by The Country Club of Harrisburg on February 14, 2023, and has been employed there ever since. Despite being given titles such as "supervisor" or "Sous Chef," Honaker contends that his primary duties were those of a laborer, involving food preparation, cooking, and cleaning. He asserts that he worked between 65 to 75 hours per week without receiving any overtime compensation.
The plaintiff alleges that his job title was used to misclassify him as an exempt employee to avoid paying overtime. "Plaintiff did not: (a) have any office; (b) perform office duties; (c) perform any primary duties of management; (d) create, adopt, or modify business policies; (e) evaluate employees; (f) give any employees raises; (g) hire or terminate employees; (h) execute any contracts on behalf of Defendant; or (i) schedule employees or handle PTO / vacation or other approval processes," reads the complaint. Honaker argues that these tasks are essential for an employee to be considered exempt from overtime under both federal and state laws.
Further compounding his claims, Honaker points out that Defendants failed to keep accurate records of his working hours. As a result, he estimates having been shorted at least $1,171.88 per week in unpaid overtime during his employment period. Citing various legal precedents where similar job roles were deemed non-exempt from overtime pay, Honaker believes he is entitled to over $160,000 in unpaid wages and liquidated damages.
The lawsuit seeks multiple forms of relief: payment for all unpaid wages and benefits, liquidated damages as allowed by law, reimbursement for legal fees and costs associated with the action, and any additional financial recovery permitted by law. The plaintiff has also requested a jury trial.
Representing Raymond Honaker is Ari R. Karpf from Karpf, Karpf & Cerutti P.C., while no information about the defense attorneys is available at this time. The case has been assigned Case ID 1:24-cv-00965-JPW.