On May 28, 2013, New York’s highest state court, the New York Court of Appeals, will hear oral argument regarding the scope and application of New York Labor Law 196-d and its tip splitting provisions to Starbucks’ tip pooling practices. The court’s analysis of these issues, which came to the court as certified questions from

The Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has ruled that under Massachusetts’ unique tip statute, shift supervisors cannot participate in the tip jar-based tip pool in Massachusetts locations. Matamoros v. Starbucks Corp., 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 23185 (1st Cir. Nov. 9, 2012). Several years ago, a California Appeal Court ruled just the opposite