My college age daughter is working on a cruise ship that travels the Maine coast that has numerous dubious practices: (1) Pay is like for a waitress, a combo of $3/hr. plus tips. The company is paying the students $3/hr. even for the days before the first voyage (no passengers, just cleaning the ship) when tips weren't a player. Is this allowed? (2) They generally work all but the hours they sleep, even though they are supposed to get breaks. Managers frequently assign them tasks just prior to a break that they know will take longer to complete, and thus they frequently end up working through breaks. Is this allowed? (3) Last, they have been told that if they quit in the middle of a 2-week pay period, they will forfeit all pay that has not yet been paid out. Is this allowed? Thanks!

ps. The ship has an American registration and is owned by an American corporation, and stops only in Maine.

Ships crew are exempt from overtime as well as minimum wage so they can get away with the pay.

Also, breaks are not mandated by federal law so they can get away with that too.

Last query about forfiet of wages, I don't know of that one but I suspect (and hope) that is illegal. However the worker may be liable for any transportion costs back to the point of hire.