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Staff Of Closed Restaurant Still Waiting For Back Pay

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Reporter: Mike McKnight

Staff Of Closed Restaurant Still Waiting For Back Pay

Ask any waitress or waiter how hard they work for their tips and wages. Former employees of Omaha's French Cafe say they are still owed what they earned those last days before the popular Old Market restaurant abruptly closed.

The tables are set as wait staff left them six weeks ago and many of them are still waiting on final paychecks. “It's really frustrating that he's not willing to return an email or phone call,” says former waitress Virginia Parker-Maron, who says she has about $450 coming, mostly tips left on credit cards. “When you get a paycheck you expect that money. You have bills that automatically come out of your account or groceries.”

French Cafe owner Tony Abbott says many of his 50 employees are owed about a week’s pay. He apologizes to his former staff for making them wait on their checks, but says he can't tell them when they'll get their wages and tips. “That's why it’s at a lawyer because it’s beyond me to figure out.”

Fact Finders found Abbott on Wednesday loading up memories of 40 years at the restaurant, promising not to forget what he owes employees. “They will get paid eventually, but I'm not the attorney on the case or the accountant. I'm just the guy that says hi and can direct cooks.”

Former French Cafe and Underground workers hope Abbott will provide the final checks. “It’s just not fair,” says former bar supervisor Jocelyn Wiser. “I worked those hours so I should be paid those hours.”

The former place for elegant dinners ended with a bitter dessert that former employees will continue to taste until all are paid.

French Cafe employees aren't the only ones looking for wages and tips. The Nebraska Department of Labor has received complaints from three workers and an investigator is attempting to obtain restaurant records to determine how much is owed.

State labor law doesn't have any teeth to force payment of anything more than minimum wage. Former employees need to file in small claims court either individually or together.