<human>: I'm a manager at a small locally-owned restaurant that is one of 3 in a local chain. Our setup is a bit like a Moe's or Chipotle, in that you start at one end of a line of food and instruct a clerk on what you'd like on your burrito, tacos, quesadilla, etc. We have a tip jar by the register and at the end of the shift, tips are distributed evenly 100% among the staff. We are not a full service restaurant, but our particular branch prides itself on its service so we are very friendly and sociable with our customers and even after they've paid and sat down we'll come out from behind the line to check on their meal, offer refills, and clear finished plates and dishes.

No one is paid server wages, and indeed everyone's hourly rate is well above minimum wage, and with tip pooling you're probably gonna leave a shift with at least $20 cash in your pocket.

The problem is that up until our regional manager started looking into tip pooling rules after finding out about the class action suit against Starbucks a few years back, managers were included in the tip pool. This never struck anyone as unfair because the managers have the exact same duties as the regular clerks. We don't have an office or kitchen to retreat to until we're needed, we're on the line making food and serving customers as much (if not moreso) than a non-manager. But because we're no longer a part of the tip pool, the clerks are now making profoundly more money per shift than the managers. And obviously this isn't sitting well with any of us. Suddenly we're getting paid way less for the same job that someone else is getting paid more to do, and without the added responsibility of being a manager.

My question is, is there a legal way we can still participate in these pools? The owner seems unwilling to raise our hourly rate to make up for the difference. As the de facto head manager, I've done all I can to try to placate my staff and get them to hang on but I fear for a mass exodus if a solution can't be found.

Can you summarize the given text in a few sentences?
<bot>: Managers ejected from the tip pool even though they perform the same duties as the servers. How do I get them back in?