Bouffard also did not schedule Savage during Friday night shifts, which are some of the busiest during the week. According to the filing, Savage was not permitted to play hip-hop music while on shift and was publicly reprimanded when she did not take out the trash - two things she said white bartenders did not experience. The suit also alleges that Bouffard treated Savage with increased scrutiny and discipline compared to white bartenders. On at least one occasion, Bouffard accused Savage of “playing the race card,” the lawsuit said.
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Bouffard “persistently made derogatory, racialized comments to or in front of Savage,” such as references to having “jungle fever” when talking about an attraction to Black women, the lawsuit said. The lawsuit also alleges that Bouffard discriminated against Savage, who is Black and Haitian-American, because of her race. “Plaintiffs observed that on nights Bouffard ‘tipped herself out,’ privately ‘counted tips,’ ‘made change,’ or ‘traded out low value bills,’ they almost always went home with far fewer tips than they earned on nights with a similar customer volume when Bouffard did not engage in these practices,” the lawsuit said. After one Pride weekend, the lawsuit alleges, Bouffard tipped out employees based on her subjective impression of how well each person performed.Īdditionally, Bouffard is accused of repeatedly participating in tip share despite her managerial position, using tips for personal use, including to restock the bar with alcohol, and stealing tips.
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When the bar moved to a tip pool model for bartenders and barbacks, the plaintiffs allege there was no predetermined basis for how employees were compensated. The plaintiffs allege they were routinely paid less than minimum wage and, in 2020, performed work they were never compensated for while Blush & Blu was closed because of the pandemic. “I put up with mistreatment and underpayment at Blush for years, but I am proud to finally speak out.” “When you’re queer or trans, it can be hard to risk exclusion from queer spaces and the queer community,” Feltner said in a statement. According to the lawsuit, Bouffard “weaponized the so-called ‘safe space’ and the ‘family’ at Blush & Blu to create a culture of obligation where workers were required to accept mistreatment and brazen underpayment as a ‘service’ to the bar and broader queer community.”īouffard could not immediately be reached for comment.
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They are represented by Towards Justice, a nonprofit legal organization based in Denver.īlush & Blu is one of about 20 lesbian bars remaining in the United States, a dying breed that is essential to maintaining and supporting queer people and culture, Bouffard told The Denver Post in June. Plaintiffs Jordan Feltner, Mary Hannah Williams and Jessica Savage, who worked as bartenders, barbacks and security personnel for various stints between 20, filed suit against the bar and Bouffard last Friday. Blush & Blu, Denver’s only lesbian bar, is being sued by three former employees who allege owner Jody Bouffard routinely failed to pay them minimum wage, stole tips during shifts and discriminated against one of the establishment’s only Black employees, among other issues alleged in the suit.