POOLER, Ga. (WSAV) – A popular restaurant on River Street attempted to expand to Pooler, but former employees tell News 3 they were hung out to dry.

Employees of Bernie’s Oyster House say they haven’t received a paycheck since Oct. 2, but they worked until Oct. 18.

When Bernies first closed, employees were told that it was just temporary until more people were hired.

But they hadn’t heard from their former managers until today when they learned that they haven’t been paid because the payroll check bounced.

Prior to this, the lack of pay was justified by an electronic accounting issue; workers were told it would be fixed immediately.

“It’s a slap in the face when you put all this time into working for a place, yet you never get compensated and you find out they are going to close,” an employee who wanted to remain anonymous said.

Employees say they consulted the Department of Labor but they were told that they didn’t work at Bernie’s long enough to receive unemployment benefits.

WSAV did reach out to Bernie’s but at this time, they have not commented.