Food For Thought 3.27.09

"At Brinker, we hold the utmost respect for the litigation system; however, we are disappointed in the jury's decision and plan to appeal. We remain steadfast in our belief of the merits of our case." (a spokeswoman for Brinker International Inc. on a federal jury verdict this week awarding $270,000 to former Chili's employee Jennifer Roussell and 54 other servers. Roussell filed a lawsuit in 2005 over the company's tip-pooling policy, alleging it violated the Fair Labor Standards Act. The jury's determined in her favor because Chili's pooling scheme shared with kitchen expediters.)