Split Ninth Circuit Decision Clarifies the Limitations of Tip Pooling
In a split 2-1 decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Oregon Restaurant and Lodging Association v. Perez (February 2016) that its 2010 decision in Cumbie v. Woody Woo, Inc. did not prevent the U. S. Department of Labor (DOL) from implementing regulations prohibiting all employers—even those that do not take advantage of a “tip credit”—from requiring tipped employees to participate in a tip pool that includes employees who are not “customarily and regularly” tipped.