Babi Nail workers settle, return to work

The owner of a Carle Place nail salon whose Chinese employees claimed they were fired because of a discrimination lawsuit agreed to settle a federal labor complaint by reinstating the workers.

The four Chinese staff members who brought the complaint to the National Labor Relations Board returned to their positions at Babi Nail this month after a deal was negotiated March 28.

As part of the agreement, owner Kui Soon Cho allowed them to return to work once they obtained proper licenses, and also agreed to post a notice outlining workers' rights in the salon. By accepting the settlement, Cho did not admit to any wrongdoing, her attorney said.

Justice Will Be Served! Campaign, a Manhattan-based advocacy group, hailed the case as a victory for workers rights.

"This win is important because workers don't need to be afraid to stand up for their rights on the job," said Tracy Kwon of the justice campaign.

Cho's attorney, however, said the workers were never fired.

"All of these individuals had been offered employment prior to the settlement agreement," said Saul Zabell, a Bohemia attorney representing Babi Nail. "They [workers] left their employment coincidentally when either their licenses expired or . . . they didn't have their immigration papers in order."

The four Chinese workers were among a group who filed a civil lawsuit against Babi Nail in December 2009, Kwon said. The suit alleges that the salon discriminated against them because they are Chinese, paid them less than the minimum wage, and did not compensate them for working overtime, she said. That lawsuit is pending in federal court and is separate from the NLRB complaint.

The workers complained to the NLRB last year, saying Cho fired them in retaliation for filing the original lawsuit. The workers were always interested in returning to work, but Cho made no true offer to reinstate them until shortly before the NLRB hearing, said Aaron Halegua, a Legal Aid attorney representing the workers.