A Manhattan pizza restaurant stole $175,000 in wages from its employees, Attorney General says

• Gotham Pizza owed 10 employees $175,000 for three years' worth of unpaid wages.
• The AG said the firm "knowingly and intentionally" failed to pay minimum wage, overtime, and tips.

A Manhattan pizza restaurant has been forced to fork over $175,000 in unpaid wages to employees, according to a report by New York's Attorney General.

Attorney General Letitia James said Gotham Pizza and its owner Michael Shamailov "knowingly and intentionally" failed to pay at least 10 employees a proper minimum wage, overtime, and tips between 2016 and 2019.

"No matter how you slice it, fair pay is not a suggestion — it's the law," said Attorney General James. "For years, Gotham Pizza took advantage of its hard-working employees by failing to pay them for their work.

She added: "I am proud to recover the money they have long been owed and cheated, and I will always fight to ensure New Yorkers get their fair piece of the pie."

Gotham Pizza has three locations in Manhattan, in the Upper East Side, Yorkville, and Chelsea. Insider could not reach Gotham Pizza and Shamailov for comment outside normal working hours.

The Office of the Attorney General's (OAG) investigation found that over the three-year period, employees were paid between $6 and $10 an hour, rather than the legally mandated $11 to $15 over that time. They were never paid overtime and did not receive all of their tips.

Gotham have been told to repay $175,000 to 10 workers, equivalent to $17,500 each, and provide the OAG with compliance reports containing payroll information.

"While making sure others ate, these workers had food stolen from their own table," said New York City Council Member Erik Bottcher.

In 2016, Gotham Pizza was taken to court by employees in a dispute over breaks, while they paid $30,000 to settle a separate case last year.

Insider approached the Office of the Attorney General for comment.