By Youjung Jun
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
QUEENS — A group of workers who built piñatas for a chain of party-supply stores have filed suit against their employers for allegedly violating labor laws.
The employees — who sued party supply firms Let's Have A Party II Inc., Balloons Party, Inc., Party Surprise, Inc. and Happy Fiesta Corp. — claimed they were forced to work under awful conditions for little pay, according to the New York Post.
The underpaid workers claim they were kept inside a confined, windowless Woodside basement without sufficient protection from potentially dangerous chemicals. They say they were also restricted from leaving the room to use the bathroom, the Post reported.
The workers claim they were the victims of false imprisonment, according to the lawsuit filed last week in Brooklyn federal court, the paper reported.
According to the suit, the employees violated federal and New York state labor laws by flouting overtime provisions and minimum-wage requirements — paying only $3 an hour, the Post reported. The workers claimed they were paid in cash, according to the Post.