I was told by some friends of mine who are waiters that they are held financially responsible if their customers leave without paying the tab. Is this true?

I was also told by someone else that this is illegal in GA.

Who is correct? And where can I reference the actual law regarding this?
Thanks.

Unfortunately, Georgia is one of the weakest states when it comes to laws prohibiting certain deductions. They do default to federal law regarding wages and hours, but federal law does not address deductions.

Perhaps you could get some information from the Restaurant Owners' Association. Or call the state Dept. of Labor to inquire, but I could not find anything on the DOL web site that addresses this at all.