Exotic Dancer Sues Peoria Area Strip Club Over Minimum Wage

PEORIA, Ill. (AP) — An exotic dancer from the Peoria area has filed a federal lawsuit against the strip club where she works claiming the business is violating state and federal labor laws because it doesn't pay her a minimum wage.

Aleigha Woods filed the lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court in Peoria. She's seeking class-action status to cover about 100 other dancers at Club Cabaret in Creve Coeur.

The lawsuit alleges that dancers at the club are treated like employees instead of "independent contractors." It says the dancers must pay a nightly "house fee" to perform on stage and face fines if they don't follow the club's rules.

A manager at Club Cabaret declined to comment Monday to the (Peoria) Journal Star (http://bit.ly/1Q3P4Os ).

Creve Coeur is a village just outside of Peoria.