Trump’s Matzah Lawsuit: Dough Fails to Rise at VIP Passover Event

While campaign ads focus on Trump as a defendant in lawsuits (e.g., Trump University), he has an unusual pattern of suing others—unusual for its scale and harshness. Two labor cases make the point. The Trump Plaza Doral Hotel in Miami organized a 10-day Passover event, and hired a catering company.  The firm he engaged failed to pay 57 servers, cooks, and managers. They were owed $139,067. But the catering company says it’s not responsible— Trump’s hotel outsourced the hiring to a staffing company. Trump’s lawsuit disclaims responsibility for paying anything to the workers. He brought suit to shift the responsibility to others. The workers sued on a theory of joint employment—that is, the hotel arranged the tour, provided space, and benefitted from the labor, so Trump can’t avoid some or all responsibility. The matter is pending.

In another lawsuit, last October Trump sued Culinary Workers Union Local 226 after members distributed a flier at a campaign event. The union informed the public that Trump stayed at the rival Treasure Island Hotel, dissing his own hotel. Trump’s suit says the point of the leafletting was to damage the reputation of Trump Hotel Las Vegas. The union— now defendant— said its leaflet showed that Trump is a hypocrite, a phony corporate leader who stayed a mile away from his own Vegas hotel.