Two Restaurant Owners From Waterbury Arrested, Facing Charges

If you've ever enjoyed a meal at the now closed Vintage 471 in Oakville, or Via Al Paraiso in downtown Waterbury, I hope you tipped the staff, they were allegedly cooking and serving you without the safety net of Workers' Compensation.

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According to fox61.com, two restaurant owners from Waterbury were recently arrested after allegedly failing to carry Workers' Compensation insurance coverage for their employees. Both have been charged with Criminal Liability, and Noncompliance with Insurance Requirements. Giovanni Rubano, the former owner of Vintage 471 in Oakville, allegedly failed to carry Workers' Compensation insurance coverage for his employees between January 2021 and September 2023. Hilario Taveras, the owner of Via Al Paraiso on Waterbury's West Main Street, allegedly failed to carry Workers' Compensation coverage for his employees for an even longer period of time - December 2018 through October 2022.

Working in a commercial kitchen is a dangerous job, every moment of the workday you are at risk of slips, falls, burns, cuts, and exposure to foodborne illnesses like Listeria, Salmonella, and E. coli. According to the US Department of the Interior, the Workers' Compensation Program and FECA (Look it up on your W-2) provides workers' compensation coverage for employment-related injuries and occupational diseases, and may provide wage replacement, payment for medical care, medical and vocational rehabilitation assistance, and survivor benefits. One slip on a drop of oil in a busy kitchen can produce a hospital bill of $150,000, it happens.

Rubano and Taveras were both released on $10,000 bonds, and both have been scheduled to appear at Waterbury Superior Court today, January 17, 2023.