Las Vegas Caesars employees agree to new contract - Wynn and MGM next to vote
A new contract goes into effect for hotel employees at the Caesars Entertainment hotel in Las Vegas. The plan received overwhelming approval from rank-and-file union members on Monday.
Thousands of Culinary Union members voted on the five-year deal. Voting closed at 8pm and when votes were counted on Monday night, the union announced that 99% of voters approved the new deal.
The agreement covers approximately 10,000 employees employed by Caesars, including housekeepers, cocktail and food vendors, porters, servers, cooks, bartenders and laundry and kitchen workers.
Union leadership described the deal as "the best contract ever".
Culinary Union secretary-general Ted Papach, speaking to reporters on Monday ahead of the Kaiser workers' vote, called the deal a "historic contract" with "record economics." He said the contract includes "substantial increases," but details have not yet been released.
He pointed to some improvements in the contract, such as in financial management. The hotel will clean the room every day unless the guest puts a Do Not Disturb sign on the door. There will also be paid training and an easier career path for housekeepers.
The third area of improvement involves workplace safety, including preventing sexual harassment, sexual assault or other assaults.
Caesar is a great partner
Negotiations with Caesar lasted seven months, with the final meeting lasting 20 hours. Apache George praised Caesar, calling him a "great partner."
We have to commend Caesars Entertainment for working hard and doing the right thing in this deal," he said.
Papagiorgi also noted that workers are ready to strike if necessary. "Our trucks are fully loaded. We have generators, picket signs and loudspeakers ready," he said.
MGM Resorts International employees are scheduled to vote on a tentative contract on Tuesday. Wynn Resorts employees are scheduled to vote on their agreement Wednesday.
The Culinary Union made its mark within days or hours of 10 threatening a strike. November Tentative agreements reached with three major casino companies.
About 35,000 hotel employees in Las Vegas have been working without contracts since September. About 95% of workers had previously approved the strike.
Further negotiations are about to take place
If worker contracts at MGM and Wynn are approved, the next step for the culinary union will be negotiations with other Las Vegas operations.
Pappageorge hopes to apply the same economic package negotiated with the three companies to contracts for other properties on the Las Vegas Strip.
For downtown Las Vegas real estate, the union is advocating for the same wage increase. Downtown properties have traditionally paid their employees lower wages than hotels and casinos on the Las Vegas Strip.
On the other hand, Apache George confirmed that some workers at last weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix were unable to commute due to increased traffic.
Across the country in Detroit over the weekend, workers at the Greektown Hollywood Casino and Motor City Casino voted to approve a five-year contract, while workers at the MGM Grand Casino remain after their members voted to reject the proposed contract Strike deal.
The Detroit Strike began on October 17 with 3,700 employees from three companies on strike.
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Source: www.casino.org