Lawsuit: Neosho topless dancer claims Hot's Gentlemen's Club owner didn't pay minimum wage, overtime- and charged her to work there

A Neosho woman who worked as an exotic dancer at Hot's Gentleman's Club in Jane is suing the club's owner and manager not only for not paying her minimum wage and overtime, but for not paying her anything... and for requiring her to share her tips with the bosses and with other club employees.

The legal action was filed as a class action suit on behalf of all dancers who were treated the same way.

According to the lawsuit, which was filed today in U. S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Challes Lofton, Neosho, claims the club and its owners Anthony Frank Catroppa, Sr., and manager Kimberly Mills, did not consider her and other exotic dancers to be employees, but "contract workers."

Their only source of income from the club came in the form of tips from the customers.

In fact, defendants required plaintiffs to pay a "stage fee" in order to work in the club. Essentially, defendants took money from plaintiffs under the premise that they must pay to use the club's space to make money. Plaintiffs were also required to share their tips with defendants and employees who do not customarily receive tips outside of a valid tip pool.

The dancers had to pay stage fees of $15 to $50, depending on the night, the petition said.

Defendants required dancers to clock in and clock out at the end of each shift; when clocking out, they were fingerprinted and forced to write down that they were paid wages, though they never were.

Defendants provided the dancers with music, stages, poles and other tools to perform dances; the dancers only provide their own bodies.

Defendants mandated that dancers pay minimum tips out of 10 percent of their shift earnings to the DJ, $5 to the house mom, $5 to the bartender, $5 to the shot girl and $5 to the waitresses out of every $100 the dancers earned.

Defendants also made the dancers pay a $16 jukebox fee each shift. If dancers did not pay for a song, they were required to sell buckets of Jello shots. If they could not sell a bucket, they would owe $1 per song.

Defendants used a system that requires customers to buy "drink coins" from the dancers. Drink coins are $25 each and the dancers were required to sell at least eight coins per shift or they would be fined or have to pay for the coins themselves.

Defendants set different dance fees for the customers and took a mandatory cut of dancers' tips earned from every dance; for example, a $25 dance would be split $5 to the club and $20 to the dancer.

Defendants only allowed dancers to work weekend nights if they had worked the same number of weekday nights.

Defendants require dancers to dance on stage for a minimum number of songs; dancers were required to be topless and down to their smallest thong by the second songs regardless of how much money was on the stage.

Defendants fined dancers $25 if they did not dress up on Friday and Saturday "dress up days."

Dancers were required to pay the club 10 percent of their tips when customers paid with a credit card.

Defendants fined dancers anywhere from $5 to $50 if dancers did not sit with customers.

Defendants fined dancers $50 if dancers were caught using their phones during a shift.

Lofton, who worked at Hot's from December 2016 to October 2019,  and any other employees who join in the lawsuit are asking for back pay, restitution, damages, interest, attorney fees and costs.

The petition indicates that if the class action is approved, more than 100 people would be eligible to join it.

 The petitioners, who are represented by attorney Jack McInnes, Prairie Village, Kansas, are asking for a jury trial.