Illinois Department of Labor Files Wage Theft Complaint Against Gino & Marty’s

The Illinois Department of Labor filed a civil complaint in Cook County Circuit Court alleging That’s Gino and Marty’s, LLC and its management firm White Glove Service and Management, LLC, along with several individual owners and managers, failed to pay earned wages, tips and overtime to multiple employees. The Office of the Illinois Attorney General brought the action on behalf of IDOL, accusing the defendants of violating the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act and the Illinois Minimum Wage Law.

IDOL’s preliminary investigation found that at least nine employees are collectively owed more than $20,000 for conduct said to have occurred between December 2023 and August 2025. The complaint alleges denial of earned tips and gratuities, payment of wages below the Illinois minimum, and failure to pay overtime for hours worked beyond employees’ regular schedules. The lawsuit seeks unpaid wages plus additional damages and statutory penalties allowed under state law.

IDOL Director Jane Flanagan emphasized the enforcement posture in a statement: “Illinois law is clear: workers must be paid fully, fairly, and on time.” Officials caution that the allegations in the complaint are claims only and have not been adjudicated. The original filing also notes that the West Loop restaurant later shuttered, a detail not duplicated in all reporting about the case.

The Office of the Illinois Attorney General’s Workplace Rights Bureau handles systemic and widespread wage-law violations and often litigates cases referred by IDOL. For context, the bureau is pursuing more than $850,000 in unpaid wages and penalties on behalf of 93 former employees in a separate matter, and the General Law Bureau recovered $911,596.80 in unpaid wages and penalties between November 2020 and June 2022 based on IDOL referrals.

For workers, alleged wage theft has immediate financial and workplace consequences: lost take-home pay, erosion of tip income that servers and bartenders rely on, unpaid overtime that inflates workloads without compensation, and heightened turnover and low morale that can ripple through front- and back-of-house operations. Wage-law enforcement is also meant to level the playing field for law-abiding restaurants that compete on fair labor practices.

Employees who believe they are owed wages should act promptly. IDOL filings must generally be made within one year after wages were due. IDOL’s Fair Labor Standards Division accepts completed applications and documentation in person or by mail at 160 N. LaSalle Street, Suite C-1300, Chicago, IL 60601-3150, or by email to DOL.MWOT@illinois.gov or DOL.Wages@illinois.gov; the division can be reached by phone at 312-793-2800. IDOL materials explain an option to remain anonymous for claims limited to minimum wage and overtime with specific exceptions, and advise claimants to attach copies of pay stubs, time records, and other documentation rather than originals.

This case is another reminder that enforcement mechanisms exist and that workers have avenues to recover pay. Expect reporters and court monitors to seek the complaint filing date, docket number, named individuals, and responses from That’s Gino and Marty’s and White Glove Service and Management as the matter moves through Cook County Circuit Court.