Culinary Union Plans Friday Strike on Strip, Downtown Monday

Posted on: February 1, 2024, 07:46h. 

Last updated on: February 3, 2024, 12:14h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More
Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

Culinary Union members plan to walk off their jobs at 5 a.m. Friday at the Las Vegas Strip hotel-casinos that haven’t yet agreed to a new contract.

Virgin Las Vegas
The Virgin Las Vegas, pictured above. The Las Vegas property is among three properties that could see a strike by hospitality workers on Friday. (Image: Eater Las Vegas)

These properties include the Rio, Sahara, and Virgin Las Vegas. But on Wednesday, the union pushed forward its strike deadline until Monday for the 10 properties in downtown Las Vegas still without an acceptable offer.

The downtown properties include Binion’s, Circa, Downtown Grand, El Cortez, Four Queens, Fremont, Golden Gate, Golden Nugget, Main Street, and The D Casino.

In total, some 5,200 hospitality workers currently are working without a contract. They are seeking a five-year agreement.

The union announced it had reached its latest tentative contract with the Plaza early Wednesday. The five-year deal would cover about 250 workers if rank-and-file members approve it.

Negotiations Continue

One of the 13 properties still without an agreement, the Downtown Grand Hotel & Casino, said in a statement this week that it’s “committed to bargaining in good faith and working diligently with the Culinary Union.”

We take great pride in creating a quintessential Las Vegas experience for our teammates and patrons alike, and aim to have a new contract finalized as soon as possible so everyone can return to the fun,” the statement said.

There have been settlements between the union and several Las Vegas properties over recent months.

“We’ve been working hard since last year to win historic contracts, but we aren’t done yet,” Ted Pappageorge, the union’s secretary-treasurer, said in a statement this week.

Workers at the other Strip independents and downtown deserve the same wage increases, benefit protections, safety and technology language, and reductions in workloads as the rest of the Las Vegas Strip, and they are organized and ready to fight for it.”

Details on recent settlements weren’t released to the public.

Last year, union members at MGM Resorts, Caesars Entertainment, and Wynn Resorts received a 10% wage increase in the first year of the agreement. They also got a total of 32% in salary increases over the life of the contract. The agreements with the three companies also gave workers a reduced workload, daily room cleaning, and increased safety and job security.

The Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and the Bartenders Union Local 165 have about 60K members. Some will be picketing at Las Vegas properties starting on Friday. They include bartenders, bellmen, cocktail and food servers, cooks, guest room attendants, laundry and kitchen workers, and porters.

Super Bowl Interference?

The threatened strike is scheduled to occur just days before Super Bowl LVIII, which will be played at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Sunday, February 11.

Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) of Southern Nevada bus drivers and mechanics have also threatened to strike. That could impact bus service in the days leading up to and on the Super Bowl.

Many events are scheduled in Las Vegas the week before the game, beginning with Monday’s Super Bowl Opening Night at Allegiant Stadium.