In her Complaint, Named Plaintiff alleges Tropicana Evansville violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and the Indiana Wage Payment Statute (“IWPS”) by: (1) implementing a time-clock rounding policy, procedure, and practice that was used in such a manner that it resulted, over a period of time, in the failure to compensate its employees properly for all time worked, resulting in minimum wage and overtime violations; (2) failing to properly inform its tipped employees of the required tip credit provisions prior to paying them a sub-minimum direct cash wage; (3) deducting costs associated with gaming licenses from employee’s pay which reduced its employees’ compensation below the required minimum wage; and (4) miscalculating its tipped employees’ regular rate of pay for overtime purposes by paying 1.5 times the sub-minimum direct cash wage (as opposed to the full minimum wage), which resulted in unpaid overtime compensation.  Tropicana Evansville denies all the claims asserted in the Complaint and maintains that all of their respective employees were paid, and have always been paid, correctly and in accordance with the law.

You may be eligible to participate if you belong to one of the following groups:

• Settlement Class:
  • Tip Credit Notice Class:  All current hourly, non-exempt employees of Tropicana Evansville, or former hourly, non-exempt employees who voluntarily separated, who were paid a direct hourly wage that was less than $7.25 per hour and for whom a tip credit was claimed at any time from June 18, 2018 to December 31, 2020.
  • Timeclock Rounding Class:  All current hourly, non-exempt Table Games Dealers of Tropicana Evansville, or former hourly, non-exempt Table Games Dealers who voluntarily separated, who clocked in and clocked out using ADP timekeeping software at any time from June 18, 2018 through June 30, 2021, and who received a Class Notice Form in the Litigation.
  • Miscalculated Regular Rate Class:  All current hourly, non-exempt employees of Tropicana Evansville, or former hourly, non-exempt employees who voluntarily separated, who were paid a direct hourly wage that was less than $7.25 per hour and worked more than 40 hours in any workweek from June 18, 2018 through April 20, 2022, and who received a Class Notice Form in the Litigation.

• Settlement Collective
  • Gaming License Collective: All hourly, non-exempt employees of Tropicana Evansville who were paid a direct hourly wage equal to or less than $7.25 per hour and had a gaming license fee deducted from their wages at any time from June 18, 2017 through April 9, 2021, and who filed a Consent to Join form in the Litigation.

To the extent any Opt-In Plaintiff is not included within the class definitions due to being involuntarily separated, but would otherwise meet the class definition, the Opt-In Plaintiff will be eligible to participate in the class allocation based on their pro rata share.

The Maximum Settlement Fund, $2,100,000 in total, fully resolves and satisfies the attorneys’ fees and costs approved by the Court, all amounts to be paid to individuals covered by the Settlement, the Court-approved service payment to the Named Plaintiff, and the Settlement Administrator’s fees and costs. The Settlement funds are being divided among the individuals covered by the Settlement according to an allocation formula.

Based on the allocation formula that has been approved by the Court, you will be receiving a Rule 23 Settlement Check and/or FLSA Settlement Check, half of which is subject to deductions for applicable taxes and withholding like any other paycheck, and for which you will receive a W-2, and half of which will not be taxed at this time and will be reported on IRS Form 1099.

The Net Settlement Amount available for distribution shall be allocated as follows: 90% to the Tip Credit Notice Class, 3% to the Timeclock Rounding Class, 1% to the Miscalculated Regular Rate Class, and 6% to the Gaming License Collective.  This allocation approximates the proportional damages attributable to each group and each claim.  You can be a member of one or more Class and Collective.  Each Class Member and Collective Member’s estimated share of the Net Settlement Amount will be calculated by the Settlement Administrator as follows:

• Each Tip Credit Notice Class member’s estimated share of the Tip Credit Notice Class payment shall be calculated pro rata by comparing the number of hours that the Tip Credit Notice Class member worked from June 18, 2018 through December 31, 2020 while earning a base hourly wage (not including tips) that was less than $7.25 per hour against the total amount of such hours that all Tip Credit Notice Class members worked from June 18, 2018 through December 31, 2020.
• Each Timeclock Rounding Class member’s estimated share of the Timeclock Rounding Class payment shall be calculated pro rata by comparing the number of shifts that the Timeclock Rounding Class member worked from June 18, 2018 through June 30, 2021 against the total amount of such shifts that all Timeclock Rounding Class members worked from June 18, 2018 through June 30, 2021.
• Each Miscalculated Regular Rate Class member’s estimated share of the Miscalculated Regular Rate Class payment shall be calculated pro rata by comparing the number of overtime hours that the Miscalculated Regular Rate Class member worked from June 18, 2018 through April 20, 2022 against the total amount of overtime hours that all Miscalculated Regular Rate Class members worked from June 18, 2018 through April 20, 2022.
• Each Gaming License Collective member’s estimated share of the Gaming License Collective payment shall be calculated pro rata by comparing the amount of money that the Gaming License Collective member had deducted from his or her pay for a gaming license fee from June 18, 2017 through April 9, 2021 against the total amount of money that all Gaming License Collective members had deducted from their pay for gaming license fees from June 18, 2017 through April 9, 2021.
• To the extent any Opt-In Plaintiff is not included within the class definitions due to being involuntarily separated, but would otherwise meet the class definition, the Opt-In Plaintiff will be eligible to participate in the class allocation based on their pro rata share.

Neither Class Counsel nor Defendant makes any representations concerning the tax consequences of your settlement payment. You are advised to obtain personal tax advice prior to acting in response to this Notice.

If the Court grants final approval of the Settlement and you do not request exclusion from the settlement (described in Section 8 of the Notice), you will be bound by the release of the Released State Claims described in the Notice, and you will receive in the mail a Rule 23 Settlement Check and/or an FLSA Settlement Check, representing your share of the settlement fund.  Class Members who choose to cash or deposit their FLSA Settlement Check will further be bound by the release of the Released Federal Claims described in Section 7 of the Notice.

If you do not want to participate in the Class Settlement and receive a Rule 23 Settlement Check, and do not wish to release any state wage and hour claims included within the Released State Claims, you must send a letter stating your desire to be excluded from the settlement, include the name of the Litigation, your name, your address, and your signature.  The letter must be sent to the Settlement Administrator at:

Tropicana Evansville FLSA Lawsuit
P.O. Box 2006
Chanhassen, MN 55317-2006

Requests for exclusion sent to the Settlement Administrator should be sent in an envelope addressed to the Settlement Administrator as set forth in Section 13 of the Notice.  Note: If you are an Opt-In Plaintiff (meaning you previously filed a Consent to Join the Litigation), you are not eligible to opt-out of the settlement.

In order to be valid, your completed request for exclusion must be received by the Settlement Administrator and be postmarked no later than June 30, 2023.  If you timely submit a request for exclusion, you will not be eligible to receive any of the benefits under the Class Settlement or receive a Rule 23 Settlement Check. You will, however, retain whatever legal rights you may have with respect to the Released State Claims described in Section 7 of the Notice.

If you do not request exclusion from the Settlement but believe the proposed Settlement is unfair or inadequate in any respect, you may object to the Settlement by mailing a copy of your written objection to the Settlement Administrator.

All objections must be signed and include your address, telephone number, and the name of the Litigation. Your objection should clearly explain why you object to the proposed Settlement and must state whether you or someone on your behalf intends to appear at the Final Approval Hearing. All objections must be filed with the Court or received by the Settlement Administrator, and postmarked by no later than June 30, 2023.  If you submit a timely objection, you may appear, at your own expense, at the Final Approval Hearing, discussed in the Notice.

Any Settlement Class Member who does not object in the manner described above shall be deemed to have waived any objections, and shall forever be foreclosed from objecting to the fairness or adequacy of the proposed Settlement, the payment of attorneys’ fees, litigation costs, the service payment to the Named Plaintiff, the claims process, and any and all other aspects of the Settlement. Likewise, regardless of whether you attempt to file an objection, you will be deemed to have released all of the Released State Claims as set forth in the Notice.