GREENBELT, Md., Jan. 19 (UPI) -- An exotic dancer says a Washington-area club is violating federal labor laws by requiring performers to pay fees to work instead of giving them paychecks.
Sabrina Tullos, a former Miss Black Nude, in her lawsuit against the Mile High Club in Clinton, Md., says she is effectively an employee of the club, not an independent contractor, The Washington Post reported. She said she is fined if she does not come to work and has to follow the dress code and other rules.
The lawsuit says dancers must pay a $15 "tip out" fee every day in addition to turning over $10 for each $20 lap dance plus a $10 fee for the disc jockey. They basically work for tips.
"Imagine a bartender at the Gaylord having to pay the Gaylord just to come to work," Tullos's lawyer, Jimmy Bell, said.
The suit was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Md. Tullos is seeking more than $200,000 in back pay and other damages.
Other dancers have gone to court to try to win employee status. A lawsuit against a Washington club is pending.
