Manger taking tips. Waiter tip laws help?

Not sure where else to put this, but I work part time at a japanese restaurant as a waiter (worked for a few months now) in addition to being a full time student, to help pay for bills and food and occasional clothing. I've never worked at another restaurant before and the tipping practices are a little shady and I'd like help on how to deal with it. We have pooled tips. All tips are gathered at the end of the night, divided by the total number of hours, and multiplied by how many hours work. Cash is paid out in envelopes that night to the closing waiter and waiters who leave early are paid by the closing waiter. All hours and tips earned that they are documented in a black notebook. First, we're forced to pool tips by management. Second, the manager/owner/boss and occasionally his son who covers for him sometimes, puts his name and hours down on the list of waiters to be paid. Since they're present from opening to closing, they make more money than the waiters. However, they don't serve. If the restaurant gets really busy they calculate the bills, fill up waters, help out with takeout bags, greet people as they come in, and if there is no free waiter they sit people. The rest of the time they just stand at the counter. No customer contact except as they walk in and walk out. Third, all waiter trainees are paid from the tip pool (minimum wage ie 7.25) and not by the restaurant. Fourth, they charge credit card usage fees from credit card tips (4%). Group tip is 15% for groups of 6 or more and those tips are "taxed" 2% (I asked once and he said it's because on average customers tip half the time from CC and half the time from cash. Half of 4% is 2%). Fifth, none of us have W2 forms and thus don't pay taxes. There's more shady dealings that doesn't have to do with tips. We had I'm pretty sure an illegal immigrant from Ecuador (pretty chill dude) as a dishwasher/chef's assistant until he left a little while ago. I'm not quite clear if he left voluntarily. The chef and the sushimen, from what I overhear, make probably less than $100 a day (I gathered this from their reactions from when we very rarely make over a benjy), most likely no health insurance, no pension plans, no nothing. They're also there 5 days a week for 13, 14 hours a day (Lunch + Evening shift) and 2 days a week for 8 hours (Evening shift). I don't think they get paid overtime (ie 1.5 x hours) because every single night they complain about going home late. Are people with salaries supposed to be paid for overtime? They also get a forced 6.5% from our tip pool (I think they should be paid 10% although they also rarely have customer contact as they're not that fluent in English), but have not been paid this 6.5% for the past 3 or so months. I've started working at another restaurant with more student suitable hours, more customers (ie more tips), and more sound practices (boss never touches tip money, leaves tip calculating to waiters, has w2 forms, biweekly salary, although tips are paid in cash that night, tips are under reported to the IRS by half, and he tells us to sign off half hour before closing even though we might up to an hour later to account for staff dinner time). How do I go about dealing with this? The son I'm more closer to and I'm planning on confront him first. I want to sit down with the boss and tell him what's up before I quit. From what I understand Starbucks was ordered to pay back tips. I think we deserve back tips. Another option would be to whistle blow, but if I leave it'll be clear who whistle-blew. When I leave, I want my fellow waiters and staff to be treated properly even if I don't get the benefit. He's a real dick. Constantly threatens to fire us, constantly criticizes us even though many times it's his own damn fault or he forget that he told us contrary things even just a little while ago, things like that. The other day he brought a bunch of his relatives ordered $3, 400 worth of food, did not pay anything, and then tipped us $20 even though he had us constantly going for things. One of his relatives took out a $100 and was about to give it to us, but the bossman snatched it out of his hand and looked at the relative menacingly as it was not "proper". One complication factor is cultural. I'm Korean. My boss is Korean. The staff is Korean. There's this East Asian respect your elders kind of mentality (bossman constantly tries to advise on life, how being a waiter prepares your for real life). Speaking openly is kind of taboo and seen as disrespectful. I always get an earful if I try to defend myself against nagging and criticism. I found it best to just say yes, sir yes sir and ignore the nagging. Anyways, help and advice from previous waiters, restaurant owners, Google search advocates, and lawyers would be welcome. I actually do want to pay income tax. It's law and I'm sure the government uses it for good purposes. Also, I have found I get a lot of my income tax back on pay day. It's kind of stupid, but I like filling out my simple tax form. I'd like concrete help. Like specific laws that I can point out to when I go confront somebody. This is one article I found about managers taking tips (http://www.newyorkrestaurantinsider....ipsharing.asp), but I don't know about the trainees being paid from the tip pool and the credit card charge laws.

i think everybody turns their tips in. some waiters/waitresses have been caught or suspected of stealing and they've been let go.

yes, miyake's.

yes, the restaurant is shitty (all fishes/meats/salads are frozen. all fishes come in bags. miso is made from powder. what they sell as tai is actually tilapia. no msg, but still, pretty shitty)

however, i really like the staff. they make food for us occasionally (ie give us free rolls and sushi) and the back chef also helps us out a lot by taking full cup and dishes trays to put them in the dishwasher when it gets really busy.

really chill ppl.


OK.

So from what I understand of DOL laws for tipped employees (http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/wages/wagestips.htm) any employee that receives $30/month or more in tips is considered tipped employees. Tipped employees have $2.55 tip credit against them. $7.25 in NY minus $2.55 is $4.65.

Trainees get paid more than $30 a month thus are tipped employees thus should get an hourly rate of $4.65 from the restaurant.

Also from what I understand management can't force tipping pools, employees can opt out, and management can't force new employees into the tip pool without consent of employees.

I think I'm going to give the local DOL division office a call.