BOSTON — A judge has ruled that about 70 dancers who worked at a Boston area strip club are entitled to thousands of dollars in damages because their employer misclassified them as “independent contractors,” depriving them of wages and tips.

The lawsuit seeks to recover money the dancers should have received at King Arthur’s Lounge in Chelsea since 2004.

The club did not pay dancers, but required them to pay $35 per night to perform, and kept $10 of every $30 they got for private dances.

The club said selling alcohol is its main business, and the performers were contractors who provided extra entertainment.

Suffolk Superior Judge Frances McIntyre dismissed that argument.

A lawyer for the club tells The Boston Globe the dancers made hundreds of dollars per shift and suffered no financial hardship.