In Washington, Swahili Village was sentenced to pay $527,000 for tip theft and salaries

A fine-dining restaurant in Washington, DC, owned by Kenyans, has agreed to pay $527,000 in penalties in order to remove itself from the hot seat after it was accused of stealing and keeping employee tips and earnings in violation of labor rules.

The restaurant known for serving excellent African food and having fed both President William Ruto and his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta was named Swahili Village. On Tuesday, the restaurant agreed to pay the sum in an out-of-court settlement of a lawsuit brought by District of Columbia Attorney-General Brian Schwalb in 2023.

Following investigations by Mr. Schwalb’s office, it was discovered that its Kenyan founder Kevin Onyona and his Chief Operating Officer, Emad Shoeb, had (allegedly) “systematically stole wages and tips from servers, hosts, food runners, bussers, and bartenders and violated multiple DC labor laws.” This put them in hot water.

The eatery “rampantly and systematically violated the city’s tipped minimum wage law and other worker protections,” the investigators claimed, and it converted some of its employees into “chattel slaves.”

In their answer to the attorney general’s case, the defendants, who sometimes refer to the eatery as “The Consulate” due to its close proximity to Embassy Row in Washington, denied any wrongdoing.

As per the settlement agreement filed with the District of Columbia Superior Court, Swahili Village DC and Mr. Onyona must pay over $260,000 to seventy-two restaurant employees, cover the cost of worker restitution distribution, and pay $197,614 in fines to the District of Columbia.

In addition, the 2016-founded restaurant must modify its operations to conform to district wage and hour rules and submit compliance reports to the attorney general for a consecutive three-year period.

“Stealing from hardworking employees and depriving them of the full benefits they have earned and are legally entitled to is unacceptable and illegal for businesses,” Mr. Schwalb stated.

“Employers who engage in such behavior not only exploit their workforce but also unfairly gain an edge over their competitors who follow the law.”

Together with the money owed to the impacted employees, Swahili Village and self-taught chef Onyona will also pay a claims administrator selected by the DC authorities as part of the settlement.

“Swahili Village and Onyona will make an initial lump sum payment into the worker share account totaling $138,170.77 within 30 days of this account’s inception. Part of the settlement states, “Swahili Village and Onyona shall provide the district with proof of the lump payment within five days of the deposit.”

“Swahili Village and Onyona will make eleven monthly deposits into the account as follows: For ten months after the lump payment, Swahili Village will deposit the total amount of $16,904.46 into the account on or before the fifth day of each month.”

“The worker share account will be deemed fully funded when Swahili Village and Onyona deposit a total of $22,142.93 into it by the fifth day of the month that follows the final monthly payment, bringing the total amount of deposits into the account to $329,358.30.”

“A significant win for dozens of Swahili Village workers who were mistreated,” Mr. Schwalb said of the settlement, “and continues our office’s commitment to combating wage theft in the District of Columbia.”

The impacted employees expressed their thanks upon learning of the heavy fines, which the US media reported to be one of the highest settlements against a restaurant in Washington, DC.

Mr. Rowles Adams was a former bartender at Swahili Village. “I know firsthand that too many people work hard every day but still struggle to keep the lights on, provide food for their families, and pay for healthcare,” he said.

“We view new jobs as opportunities when we receive them. We inquire, “How can I succeed?” and “What are the next steps I can take to improve my family’s quality of life and mine?” We don’t inquire, “Is this company breaking the law?” or “Will I be paid for all the hours I worked this week?” Regretfully, working at Swahili Village brought up those unfavorable queries.

Mr. Adams claims that Swahili Village used the lack of knowledge about DC labor regulations of some of its employees, the majority of whom were people of color, many of whom were young African immigrants, including Kenyans.

“I witnessed supervisors mistreat my coworkers for months on end, including a number of young immigrants who were unaware that anything was wrong. I voiced my opinion, but nothing changed.

“I am incredibly appreciative that the attorneys general’s office heard our need for assistance and supported us in obtaining justice. I’m hoping that this case will bring attention to the persistent problem of wage theft, particularly in the restaurant business where tipped employees have to work twice as hard to make ends meet.

According to Mr. Schwalb, the compensation is not an admission of guilt by the restaurant or its owners, and it cannot be utilized as proof of liability in any legal action brought against the business.

In an interview with The Washington Post on Tuesday, Mr. Onyona stated that he accepted the deal “just to get this thing off my back” and resume operating his restaurant.

He claimed that in order to fulfill his end of the bargain, he would need to take out a loan and fire “at least” 20 workers.

Even after Swahili Village added a 20 percent gratuity to all charges, the impacted workers received no tips from consumers, according to the lawsuit that Mr. Schwalb filed in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

In what the authorities refer to as “a cunning move that concealed evidence on how the employees’ pay was calculated and whether statutory deductions were made,” the restaurant owners were also charged with neglecting to maintain regular payroll records.

One of the infractions that Swahili Village committed, according to the attorney general’s lawsuit, was using its employees as “chattel slaves.”

Suit papers state that although some employees worked 60 hours a week, or 20 hours of extra, they were never paid overtime rates, which are determined by multiplying regular pay by 1.5 to compensate for overtime, as stipulated by employment and labor laws.

Furthermore, it is stated that neither Mr. Onyona nor Mr. Shoeb followed labor laws requiring employers to provide paid time off to their staff.

However, workers claimed to have received criticism for missing work when they were ill and could not report to work.

In court documents, the AG claims that wage theft and worker maltreatment at Swahili Village DC were “part of the business plan” and that “these egregious and systemic violations, which persisted for years, reveal that.”

2009 saw the opening of the first Swahili Village in College Park by Mr. Onyona. In March 2020, he established the M Street address, and the following year, he opened a second branch in Newark, New Jersey.

President Ruto, who was visiting the restaurant in New Jersey as part of a lengthy US tour, praised the businessman for starting “such kind of enterprise in the US” and said the action was worth celebrating a month after the case was filed last year.

As a Kenyan leader and as a Kenyan, we’re quite pleased of the manner you hustled your way into this venture. We’ve come to see your work, and it appears like you’re doing a great job. Congrats—the food is fantastic and the atmosphere is fantastic! stated on September 17, 2023 by the President.