Ex-Clowns Sue Booking Company for Wage Theft, Misclassification

New York-based Clowns.com Inc. allegedly failed to pay clowns and other entertainers for several hours of work and misclassified them as independent contractors despite promising a $25-per-hour wage, a proposed collective action in federal court said.

In a complaint filed Tuesday, a group of former clowns and entertainers accused the company—a site used to book a wide range of characters for children’s parties—of making unauthorized deductions from their pay.

It misclassifed dozens of children’s entertainers in order to avoid offering them the full benefits and protections to which employees are entitled under federal and state wage-and-hour laws, including overtime pay ...