Employees of an I-Drive restaurant staged a protest this week criticizing “unfair wages” by their Chicago-based owner.

About 25 workers at The Hampton Social stood outside the restaurant located in The Pointe shopping mall Thursday with signs showcasing their displeasure with a new pay structure — one they said likely would reduce what servers, bartenders and other “front of house” workers make.

The restaurant told employees Monday that it had adopted a new pay structure based on a federal labor law that makes certain employees exempt from overtime.

The change would drop hourly pay and require a sharing of tips, but The Hampton Social workers said they fear it will mean they take home less money while the company, Parker Hospitality, makes more.

Employee Karen Campos said many staff members will have their set pay drop $7 an hour or more.

“As of today, we’re going from regular paid employees that make $9.98, with some of us at higher wages based on merit or higher positions, and we’re all going to be making about $2 an hour,” she said.

“It’s a way for an employer to basically exploit their employees to work more for less money,” Campos said. “It puts more money in the pockets of the corporations. They basically told us we can make more money, we just have to drive up sales and pick up more shifts.”

The Hampton Social is owned by Parker Hospitality, a Chicago-based firm that operates the Mediterranean steakhouse Nisos Prime and upscale Mexican restaurant Costera Cocina Tulum, among other ventures.

Brad Parker, CEO of Parker Hospitality, denied in an email that the change would hurt employees, saying they should be able to earn the same pay for the same hours and even extra under the new system.

He said the company made the decision to “create a more sustainable business model that allows for more flexibility in scheduling” and to better manage its costs.

Restaurant employees said they were notified in a 9 a.m. meeting Monday that their minimum wage would be dropped to $2 an hour and that most of the 20% gratuity added to all guest checks would be split among front of house staff, with 2% going to Parker Hospitality.

Parker said the new system eliminates the option for guests not to tip and ensures staff will always receive compensation. The 2% charge is withheld, he added, to cover the cost of using a credit card.

Employees said they were given until Thursday to sign an agreement about the new pay structure or have their shifts removed from the schedule of the upcoming pay period, preventing them from working.

Justin Castillo, a manager who was worked at The Hampton Social for nearly four years, said his pay would be reduced from $11.90 an hour to $3 an hour plus tips under the new rules.

“We do love this job and there’s a nice community we’ve created here, but seeing that this company doesn’t care about us even though we’re putting in countless hours and effort, is disheartening,” he said. “Especially when it’s just for greed and just for money.”

Castillo was among the employees who stood on the sidewalk for about an hour Thursday waving signs that read “#ParkerHospitalityGreed” and “I Am Worth More Than $2.”

He said he worried other Orlando restaurants might soon adopt similar pay plans.

“We just can’t allow this to be the norm,” Castillo said. “Especially in Orlando, where the hospitality and service industry is so important. We’re the backbone of the economy in the city.”

Lucas Applegate, a server and corporate trainer, said he has traveled to help the restaurant open new locations across the county. He worked mostly at a Delray Beach restaurant, where employees learned of the new pay plan Wednesday.

Under the new pay structure, Applegate said his hourly pay will drop from $10.98 to $2 an hour plus tips. Averaged over a 30 hour work week, Applegate expects he’ll lose about $12,000 during the next year.

The change seems to be an effort to make restaurant workers more like “commission-based contractors,” he said, adding he would prefer to return to the old model of compensation.

“We all want to build with this company and grow with this company, but we want to be treated fairly.”

Parker said he hopes the new system will make his restaurant business a more unified one.

“We truly believe that by aligning all interests in the growth of a restaurant, you tend to have more success,” he wrote.