Nearly 10,000 workers are accusing Chipotle of wage theft
The lawsuit claims the company forced employees to work without pay after their scheduled shifts ended.
"Chipotle routinely requires hourly-paid restaurant employees to punch out, and then continue working until they are given permission to leave," the suit reads.
The lawsuit is called Turner v. Chipotle after Leah Turner, a former manager at a Chipotle restaurant in Colorado. Turner claimed in a complaint filed in 2014 that "general managers are awarded bonuses and other compensation for staying within their payroll budgets. If a payroll budget is exceeded, the general manager's job security is threatened."
Chipotle has denied any wrongdoing. The chain is renowned for its internal promotion program and for paying employees more than the industry average. Starting pay for "crew" members is about $10.50 an hour, or $21,000 annually, according to reports. Employees also get health insurance and two weeks of vacation.
As of last week, 9,961 current and former workers had joined the lawsuit, according to CNN Money. Read the full story at CNN Money.