Toronto restaurant chain faces wage theft allegations from workers

A Toronto restaurant group with four locations is facing allegations that it withheld wages for years, leaving some workers unpaid for shifts and others paid below Ontario’s minimum wage. The complaints against Latin World Restaurants stretch back as far as three years, according to workers and the Workers’ Action Centre, which says the case shows how wage theft can linger in restaurant workplaces where staff may be too vulnerable to speak up.

Organizers say they have heard from about six to seven workers so far, though they believe more people could be affected. Two workers have alleged they are owed more than $3,700 combined. Advocates say the pattern goes beyond a single payroll mistake: workers have reported unpaid wages, underpayment and, in some cases, no pay at all for completed shifts.

The dispute has also raised concerns about how immigration status can shape what restaurant workers are willing to report. Labor advocates say some of the affected employees are migrants, including some without stable immigration status or work permits. They also say some staff were threatened with being reported to immigration authorities, a fear that can keep unpaid-wage complaints buried until the losses pile up.

The Workers’ Action Centre took the fight public with a protest outside a Latin World location on March 28, 2026, demanding back pay. The group says wage theft remains common in low-wage work and that enforcement moves slowly. In a 2024 survey of 513 low-wage workers in the Greater Toronto Area, the centre documented wage-theft-related problems and has said the majority of workers who contact it are facing wage theft.

Latin World’s owner, Tatiana Fernandez, had been asked for comment but had not publicly responded. The allegations come as Ontario restaurant workers continue to report serious pay disputes across the sector. In one separate case, workers at a Caribbean restaurant chain alleged more than $94,000 in unpaid regular wages, overtime, public holiday pay and vacation pay.

The broader provincial picture is also stark. CBC Toronto reported that Ontario had around $60 million in unpaid wages that the government had not collected from employers between the 2017-18 fiscal year and July 2024, a reminder of how hard it can be for restaurant workers to recover money they say they have already earned. In a business built on thin margins, tipped income and high turnover, workers’ advocates say those gaps can persist for years before anyone outside the kitchen hears about them.