RIO YAMAT
AP
Updated Wed, September 27, 2023
Updated Wed, September 27, 2023
Strike Vote Nevada Culinary Union
Michael Sainato
Angel Smith and Josh Lipton
Wed, September 27, 2023
Hospitality workers in Las Vegas have voted to authorize a strike against major hotels and casinos. The Culinary Workers Union, which represents around 60,000 employees, said 95% of voters approved calling a strike if necessary. Workers are seeking improved wages, benefits, and working conditions in new contracts. Yahoo Finance's Live Josh Lipton and Julie Hyman explain the details of the Culinary Workers Union vote and discuss the rise of recent union strikes. For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Yahoo Finance Live.
Hospitality workers in Las Vegas have voted to authorize a strike against major hotels and casinos. The Culinary Workers Union, which represents around 60,000 employees, said 95% of voters approved calling a strike if necessary. Workers are seeking improved wages, benefits, and working conditions in new contracts. Yahoo Finance's Live Josh Lipton and Julie Hyman explain the details of the Culinary Workers Union vote and discuss the rise of recent union strikes.
Video Transcript
JOSH LIPTON: And moving on today, some news from casinos. Coming today, a strike as Vegas hospitality staff have voted overwhelmingly to call a strike against hotels and casinos. Tens of thousands of members of the Culinary Workers Union are currently fighting for new contracts, bargaining for better pay benefits and working conditions.
JULIE HYMAN: Yeah. This is a very interesting story. Coming-- I mean, these waves of union action. And it's a bit of a paradox, if you will, because union membership overall has been declining for quite a while in the United States.
JOSH LIPTON: To about 10%.
JULIE HYMAN: But we have Union actions that have been on the rise, whether we're talking about the UAW or the Hollywood writers or actors, right, or a Starbucks, or Chipotle workers that have also been starting to organize, Amazon as well. So the list is long and they're quite visible. This one also is visible.
As we saw today, it doesn't seem to be affecting the stocks. These stocks have not done great year-to-date. It's sort of a mixed bag, but none of them has significantly really outperformed the market. And we're talking about a lot of workers here in this case. The Culinary Union is the largest labor union in Nevada. It represents about 60,000 workers statewide. And so we're talking about 53,000, I believe, in Las Vegas specifically that are eligible to participate in this strike.
JOSH LIPTON: To your point, the bigger picture, though, I think you made a good one, it's actually almost tough to keep up with the number of strikes at this point, because it covers so many companies and sectors in industries. It's-- I mean, as you said, it's airline, it's airline workers, it's UPS workers, UAW, Hollywood. It does feel, Julie, like, maybe the pendulum is starting to swing back to labor a bit, because not only are they striking, though, when they get to the table, they are securing better pay. That complicates the picture for the Fed.
It also complicates the picture for investors, because you begin to think like, if that is the trend and it continues and broadens, what does that mean for profit margins?
JULIE HYMAN: Well, I would argue the pendulum has been in labor's favor and in workers' favor over-- you know, coming out of the pandemic when we have seen such a tight, tight labor market. And I've been asking when is the pendulum going to swing back in the other direction? Obviously, the unions are not judging that the labor market is loose enough yet, that they don't have--
JOSH LIPTON: They think now's the time to strike.
JULIE HYMAN: Exactly. So that's a really good point you make, though. If I'm the Fed and I'm watching this, this doesn't indicate that we are going to see maybe unemployment go up enough.
JOSH LIPTON: If you're Jerome Powell, you're thinking--
JULIE HYMAN: --in order to bring inflation down enough.
JOSH LIPTON: --wages are going up, right, complicates his job.
JULIE HYMAN: It does. Yeah.
Culinary, Bartenders Union workers in Las Vegas demand change, possible strike looming
95% of Las Vegas area Culinary Union votes to strike
Kyle J. Paine
Tue, September 26, 2023
95% of Las Vegas area Culinary Union votes to strike
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – On Tuesday, the largest union in Nevada authorized its leaders to strike if it fails to reach an agreement with the three major hotel and casino operators on and along the world-famous Las Vegas Strip.
95% of those union members voted yes –and rallied throughout the day Tuesday – at UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center. The two sides are expected to resume negotiations next week, union officials told the 8 News Now Investigators.
“After that, if we can’t get somewhere, I think we’ll get a strike,” Ted Pappageorge, the Local 226’s secretary-treasurer said.
Pappageorge said the union is asking for its largest wage increase ever, along with better health benefits and defense against technology – namely artificial intelligence – whittling down its workforce.
Union workers like Cherine Jackson, a guest room attendant at Linq, said it was no coincidence that Tuesday’s vote is within weeks of the much-ballyhooed Formula One auto race in November.
Culinary, Bartenders Union workers in Las Vegas demand change, possible strike looming
When asked if she was willing to use the F1 race as leverage, Jackson said, “Yes, I am..” Upon further questioning about her colleagues’ willingness to strike, as many of them were walking through Thomas & Mack chanting about a new labor contract, Jackson said, “Yes they are. Look around.”
“Workers are not dumb,” Pappageorge said in response to the same line of questioning. “They’re really smart. They’re really smart.”
He continued: “We’re concerned that companies have forgotten how this town really was built and how these companies got their profits.”
Pappageorge said the hotel is still taking advantage of lower staffing requirements that were put into place during the COVID-19 pandemic. He reminded a throng of news reporters that his union has a history of long, nasty strikes, saying a work stoppage would last “as long as it takes.”
Culinary Union members, including Veronica Flores Serrano, who works at The Linq, cast their ballots during a strike vote, Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023, at Thomas & Mack Center on the UNLV campus in Las Vegas. Tens of thousands of hospitality workers who keep the iconic casinos and hotels of Las Vegas humming were set to vote Tuesday on whether to authorize a strike amid ongoing contract negotiations.
(K.M. Cannon/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Tens of thousands of Las Vegas hospitality workers fighting for new union contracts voted Tuesday to authorize a strike that could impact more than three dozen casinos and hotels, the city’s economic backbone.
The Culinary Workers Union hasn’t gone on strike in more than three decades.
The union didn't immediately set a deadline for a walkout as it continues bargaining for better pay, benefits and working conditions with the top casino employers on the Las Vegas Strip, including MGM Resorts International, Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts.
A walkout by Nevada's largest labor union would be the latest in a series of high-profile job actions around the country, including walkouts in Hollywood. The same day the Culinary Workers Union vote took place, President Joe Biden joined United Auto Workers strikers on a picket line in Michigan.
Earlier this year, UPS reached a new deal before a work stoppage that could have significantly disrupted the nation’s supply chain.
Workers calling for higher wages, better conditions and job security, especially since the end of the pandemic, have been increasingly willing to walk out on the job as employers face a greater need for workers.
In Nevada, the Culinary Union is the largest labor union, representing about 60,000 hospitality workers statewide. Contracts for 40,000 of those members recently expired.
“We are the glue that keeps these hotels together, and we should be paid what we deserve,” Deanna Virgil, a longtime employee at Wynn Las Vegas, told The Associated Press after casting her vote.
Virgil was among 53,000 housekeepers, cocktail and food servers, porters, cooks, bartenders and other hotel employees in Las Vegas eligible to participate in the vote. The union is scheduled to return to the bargaining table next week with MGM Resorts, Caesars and Wynn Resorts.
In a statement Tuesday night, MGM Resorts said it has a decades-long history of successfully bargaining with the union and believes that “both parties are committed to negotiating a contract that is good for everyone.”
Caesars did not respond to emailed requests for comment, and Wynn Resorts said they had no comment.
Virgil, who has worked in the hospitality sector for 38 years, said she is able to make do with her current salary and benefits because she lives with her adult daughter.
“There’s no telling where I would be if I didn’t have the support of my daughter,” Virgil said. “There are a lot of us who have two jobs, but one job should be enough.”
Bethany Khan, the union’s spokesperson, said all members receive health insurance and currently earn about $26 hourly, including benefits. Khan declined to say how much the union is seeking in pay raises because “we do not negotiate in public,” although the union has said it is asking for “the largest wage increases ever negotiated” in its history.
In 1991, more than 500 workers went on strike at the now-shuttered Frontier hotel and casino in downtown Las Vegas. It became one of the longest strikes in U.S. history, stretching more than six years. The union said all the strikers returned to their jobs afterward, with back pay and benefits.
The union last voted to authorize a strike in 2018. Five-year contracts were reached soon after a majority of the participating 25,000 hospitality workers cast votes to walk off the job. Rory Kuykendall, 40, said he is hopeful that Tuesday’s vote will have the same effect.
“It’s great to see all the huge numbers in turnout,” said Kuykendall, a bellperson at Flamingo Las Vegas. “It’s a chance for all the members to come out and show that we’re really ready to fight.”
Last summer, the casino workers’ union in Atlantic City negotiated landmark contracts that gave workers the biggest raises they’ve ever had. It also removed any chance of a strike for several years, an important consideration for Atlantic City’s casino industry as it tries to return to pre-pandemic business levels.
In past contracts, the Atlantic City union had concentrated on preserving health care and pension benefits, but this time sought “significant” pay raises for workers to help them keep pace with spiraling prices for gasoline, food, rent and other living expenses, the union said.
Las Vegas hospitality workers vote to authorize strike
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Tens of thousands of Las Vegas hospitality workers fighting for new union contracts voted Tuesday to authorize a strike that could impact more than three dozen casinos and hotels, the city’s economic backbone.
The Culinary Workers Union hasn’t gone on strike in more than three decades.
The union didn't immediately set a deadline for a walkout as it continues bargaining for better pay, benefits and working conditions with the top casino employers on the Las Vegas Strip, including MGM Resorts International, Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts.
A walkout by Nevada's largest labor union would be the latest in a series of high-profile job actions around the country, including walkouts in Hollywood. The same day the Culinary Workers Union vote took place, President Joe Biden joined United Auto Workers strikers on a picket line in Michigan.
Earlier this year, UPS reached a new deal before a work stoppage that could have significantly disrupted the nation’s supply chain.
Workers calling for higher wages, better conditions and job security, especially since the end of the pandemic, have been increasingly willing to walk out on the job as employers face a greater need for workers.
In Nevada, the Culinary Union is the largest labor union, representing about 60,000 hospitality workers statewide. Contracts for 40,000 of those members recently expired.
“We are the glue that keeps these hotels together, and we should be paid what we deserve,” Deanna Virgil, a longtime employee at Wynn Las Vegas, told The Associated Press after casting her vote.
Virgil was among 53,000 housekeepers, cocktail and food servers, porters, cooks, bartenders and other hotel employees in Las Vegas eligible to participate in the vote. The union is scheduled to return to the bargaining table next week with MGM Resorts, Caesars and Wynn Resorts.
In a statement Tuesday night, MGM Resorts said it has a decades-long history of successfully bargaining with the union and believes that “both parties are committed to negotiating a contract that is good for everyone.”
Caesars did not respond to emailed requests for comment, and Wynn Resorts said they had no comment.
Virgil, who has worked in the hospitality sector for 38 years, said she is able to make do with her current salary and benefits because she lives with her adult daughter.
“There’s no telling where I would be if I didn’t have the support of my daughter,” Virgil said. “There are a lot of us who have two jobs, but one job should be enough.”
Bethany Khan, the union’s spokesperson, said all members receive health insurance and currently earn about $26 hourly, including benefits. Khan declined to say how much the union is seeking in pay raises because “we do not negotiate in public,” although the union has said it is asking for “the largest wage increases ever negotiated” in its history.
In 1991, more than 500 workers went on strike at the now-shuttered Frontier hotel and casino in downtown Las Vegas. It became one of the longest strikes in U.S. history, stretching more than six years. The union said all the strikers returned to their jobs afterward, with back pay and benefits.
The union last voted to authorize a strike in 2018. Five-year contracts were reached soon after a majority of the participating 25,000 hospitality workers cast votes to walk off the job. Rory Kuykendall, 40, said he is hopeful that Tuesday’s vote will have the same effect.
“It’s great to see all the huge numbers in turnout,” said Kuykendall, a bellperson at Flamingo Las Vegas. “It’s a chance for all the members to come out and show that we’re really ready to fight.”
Last summer, the casino workers’ union in Atlantic City negotiated landmark contracts that gave workers the biggest raises they’ve ever had. It also removed any chance of a strike for several years, an important consideration for Atlantic City’s casino industry as it tries to return to pre-pandemic business levels.
In past contracts, the Atlantic City union had concentrated on preserving health care and pension benefits, but this time sought “significant” pay raises for workers to help them keep pace with spiraling prices for gasoline, food, rent and other living expenses, the union said.
Las Vegas hospitality workers vote to authorize strike
Michael Sainato
THE GUARDIAN
Wed, September 27, 2023
Photograph: KM Cannon/AP
Hospitality workers in Las Vegas have voted to authorize a strike if their union does not reach a contract deal with dozens of hotels on the Las Vegas strip.
Thousands of workers attended the strike vote on Tuesday at the Thomas & Mack Center on the University of Nevada – Las Vegas (UNLV) campus. The union slogan headlining the event was: “One job should be enough.”
Of the 53,000 members, 95% voted in favor of authorizing the strike.
“Companies are generating record profits, and we demand that workers aren’t left behind and have a fair share of that success,” said Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer for the Culinary Union, in a statement.
“As companies reduce labor, there are less workers who have even more responsibilities and are doing more work instead of spending quality time with their families, and that has to change. Workers have built this industry and made it successful and that’s why we are demanding that workers share in that prosperity,” he said.
Pappageorge said the two sides were still “far apart” after months of negotiations with the largest three gaming companies in Las Vegas.
Among the asks from the union include “winning the largest wage increases ever negotiated in the history of the Culinary Union” amid high inflation rates in recent years, the high cost of living in Las Vegas, and furloughs during the beginning of the Covid pandemic that greatly affected hospitality workers.
The union is also pushing for reducing housekeeping workloads, mandating daily room cleaning, which was eliminated throughout much of the hotel industry during the pandemic, expanding safety protections for workers on the job, and adding clarifying language to a no-strike clause that gives casino workers the right to respect picket lines and does not prevent the union from taking action against non-union restaurants on casino properties.
“My job got so much harder since the pandemic and I’m in constant pain at work. When I get home I feel guilty that I don’t have energy to spend time with my son, help him with his homework, or even cook dinner some nights,” said Evangelina Alaniz, a guest room attendant at the Bellagio and a Culinary Union member for 18 years. “Often, I have to go to bed so I have enough strength to go to work the next day and serve the guests.”
The union has not yet set a strike deadline, but workers are currently working under expired contracts at 22 locations among MGM Resorts, Caesars Entertainment, and Wynn/Encore Resorts. Negotiations began in April, with contract extension agreed upon in June that expired in early September as the union noted a lack of substantial progress.
In 2018, 25,000 hospitality workers voted to authorize a strike, with contracts settled with employers soon after the vote.
What Las Vegas hospitality workers are looking for as possible Culinary Union strike looms
KLAS Las Vegas
Wed, September 27, 2023
Nearly 53,000 hospitality workers from MGM, Caesars Entertainment, Wynn properties, and more are ready to strike if contract negotiations stall.
Nearly 53,000 hospitality workers from MGM, Caesars Entertainment, Wynn properties, and more are ready to strike if contract negotiations stall.
Las Vegas hospitality workers vote to call a strike
Wed, September 27, 2023
Photograph: KM Cannon/AP
Hospitality workers in Las Vegas have voted to authorize a strike if their union does not reach a contract deal with dozens of hotels on the Las Vegas strip.
Thousands of workers attended the strike vote on Tuesday at the Thomas & Mack Center on the University of Nevada – Las Vegas (UNLV) campus. The union slogan headlining the event was: “One job should be enough.”
Of the 53,000 members, 95% voted in favor of authorizing the strike.
“Companies are generating record profits, and we demand that workers aren’t left behind and have a fair share of that success,” said Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer for the Culinary Union, in a statement.
“As companies reduce labor, there are less workers who have even more responsibilities and are doing more work instead of spending quality time with their families, and that has to change. Workers have built this industry and made it successful and that’s why we are demanding that workers share in that prosperity,” he said.
Pappageorge said the two sides were still “far apart” after months of negotiations with the largest three gaming companies in Las Vegas.
Among the asks from the union include “winning the largest wage increases ever negotiated in the history of the Culinary Union” amid high inflation rates in recent years, the high cost of living in Las Vegas, and furloughs during the beginning of the Covid pandemic that greatly affected hospitality workers.
The union is also pushing for reducing housekeeping workloads, mandating daily room cleaning, which was eliminated throughout much of the hotel industry during the pandemic, expanding safety protections for workers on the job, and adding clarifying language to a no-strike clause that gives casino workers the right to respect picket lines and does not prevent the union from taking action against non-union restaurants on casino properties.
“My job got so much harder since the pandemic and I’m in constant pain at work. When I get home I feel guilty that I don’t have energy to spend time with my son, help him with his homework, or even cook dinner some nights,” said Evangelina Alaniz, a guest room attendant at the Bellagio and a Culinary Union member for 18 years. “Often, I have to go to bed so I have enough strength to go to work the next day and serve the guests.”
The union has not yet set a strike deadline, but workers are currently working under expired contracts at 22 locations among MGM Resorts, Caesars Entertainment, and Wynn/Encore Resorts. Negotiations began in April, with contract extension agreed upon in June that expired in early September as the union noted a lack of substantial progress.
In 2018, 25,000 hospitality workers voted to authorize a strike, with contracts settled with employers soon after the vote.
What Las Vegas hospitality workers are looking for as possible Culinary Union strike looms
KLAS Las Vegas
Wed, September 27, 2023
Nearly 53,000 hospitality workers from MGM, Caesars Entertainment, Wynn properties, and more are ready to strike if contract negotiations stall.
Nearly 53,000 hospitality workers from MGM, Caesars Entertainment, Wynn properties, and more are ready to strike if contract negotiations stall.
Las Vegas hospitality workers vote to call a strike
Angel Smith and Josh Lipton
Wed, September 27, 2023
Hospitality workers in Las Vegas have voted to authorize a strike against major hotels and casinos. The Culinary Workers Union, which represents around 60,000 employees, said 95% of voters approved calling a strike if necessary. Workers are seeking improved wages, benefits, and working conditions in new contracts. Yahoo Finance's Live Josh Lipton and Julie Hyman explain the details of the Culinary Workers Union vote and discuss the rise of recent union strikes. For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Yahoo Finance Live.
Hospitality workers in Las Vegas have voted to authorize a strike against major hotels and casinos. The Culinary Workers Union, which represents around 60,000 employees, said 95% of voters approved calling a strike if necessary. Workers are seeking improved wages, benefits, and working conditions in new contracts. Yahoo Finance's Live Josh Lipton and Julie Hyman explain the details of the Culinary Workers Union vote and discuss the rise of recent union strikes.
Video Transcript
JOSH LIPTON: And moving on today, some news from casinos. Coming today, a strike as Vegas hospitality staff have voted overwhelmingly to call a strike against hotels and casinos. Tens of thousands of members of the Culinary Workers Union are currently fighting for new contracts, bargaining for better pay benefits and working conditions.
JULIE HYMAN: Yeah. This is a very interesting story. Coming-- I mean, these waves of union action. And it's a bit of a paradox, if you will, because union membership overall has been declining for quite a while in the United States.
JOSH LIPTON: To about 10%.
JULIE HYMAN: But we have Union actions that have been on the rise, whether we're talking about the UAW or the Hollywood writers or actors, right, or a Starbucks, or Chipotle workers that have also been starting to organize, Amazon as well. So the list is long and they're quite visible. This one also is visible.
As we saw today, it doesn't seem to be affecting the stocks. These stocks have not done great year-to-date. It's sort of a mixed bag, but none of them has significantly really outperformed the market. And we're talking about a lot of workers here in this case. The Culinary Union is the largest labor union in Nevada. It represents about 60,000 workers statewide. And so we're talking about 53,000, I believe, in Las Vegas specifically that are eligible to participate in this strike.
JOSH LIPTON: To your point, the bigger picture, though, I think you made a good one, it's actually almost tough to keep up with the number of strikes at this point, because it covers so many companies and sectors in industries. It's-- I mean, as you said, it's airline, it's airline workers, it's UPS workers, UAW, Hollywood. It does feel, Julie, like, maybe the pendulum is starting to swing back to labor a bit, because not only are they striking, though, when they get to the table, they are securing better pay. That complicates the picture for the Fed.
It also complicates the picture for investors, because you begin to think like, if that is the trend and it continues and broadens, what does that mean for profit margins?
JULIE HYMAN: Well, I would argue the pendulum has been in labor's favor and in workers' favor over-- you know, coming out of the pandemic when we have seen such a tight, tight labor market. And I've been asking when is the pendulum going to swing back in the other direction? Obviously, the unions are not judging that the labor market is loose enough yet, that they don't have--
JOSH LIPTON: They think now's the time to strike.
JULIE HYMAN: Exactly. So that's a really good point you make, though. If I'm the Fed and I'm watching this, this doesn't indicate that we are going to see maybe unemployment go up enough.
JOSH LIPTON: If you're Jerome Powell, you're thinking--
JULIE HYMAN: --in order to bring inflation down enough.
JOSH LIPTON: --wages are going up, right, complicates his job.
JULIE HYMAN: It does. Yeah.
Culinary, Bartenders Union workers in Las Vegas demand change, possible strike looming
KLAS Las Vegas
Tue, September 26, 2023
Culinary, Bartenders Union workers in Las Vegas demand change, possible strike looming
Thousands of Las Vegas strip workers have threatened to walk off the job if things don't change.
Thousands of Las Vegas strip workers have threatened to walk off the job if things don't change.
Tue, September 26, 2023
Culinary, Bartenders Union workers in Las Vegas demand change, possible strike looming
Thousands of Las Vegas strip workers have threatened to walk off the job if things don't change.
Thousands of Las Vegas strip workers have threatened to walk off the job if things don't change.
95% of Las Vegas area Culinary Union votes to strike
Kyle J. Paine
Tue, September 26, 2023
95% of Las Vegas area Culinary Union votes to strike
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – On Tuesday, the largest union in Nevada authorized its leaders to strike if it fails to reach an agreement with the three major hotel and casino operators on and along the world-famous Las Vegas Strip.
95% of those union members voted yes –and rallied throughout the day Tuesday – at UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center. The two sides are expected to resume negotiations next week, union officials told the 8 News Now Investigators.
“After that, if we can’t get somewhere, I think we’ll get a strike,” Ted Pappageorge, the Local 226’s secretary-treasurer said.
Pappageorge said the union is asking for its largest wage increase ever, along with better health benefits and defense against technology – namely artificial intelligence – whittling down its workforce.
Union workers like Cherine Jackson, a guest room attendant at Linq, said it was no coincidence that Tuesday’s vote is within weeks of the much-ballyhooed Formula One auto race in November.
Culinary, Bartenders Union workers in Las Vegas demand change, possible strike looming
When asked if she was willing to use the F1 race as leverage, Jackson said, “Yes, I am..” Upon further questioning about her colleagues’ willingness to strike, as many of them were walking through Thomas & Mack chanting about a new labor contract, Jackson said, “Yes they are. Look around.”
“Workers are not dumb,” Pappageorge said in response to the same line of questioning. “They’re really smart. They’re really smart.”
He continued: “We’re concerned that companies have forgotten how this town really was built and how these companies got their profits.”
Pappageorge said the hotel is still taking advantage of lower staffing requirements that were put into place during the COVID-19 pandemic. He reminded a throng of news reporters that his union has a history of long, nasty strikes, saying a work stoppage would last “as long as it takes.”
No comments:
Post a Comment