Workers to Picket MGM and Caesars Casinos

At a time when casino operators are reporting record profits, the Culinary Workers Union and the Bartenders Union are attempting to negotiate a new five-year deal that will include increased pay and benefits.

Workers to Picket MGM and Caesars Casinos

The unions representing the workers in Las Vegas have announced that on Thursday, thousands of employees will picket MGM Resorts (MGM.N) and Caesars Entertainment (CZR.O) casinos for the first time in nearly two decades as they consider going on strike.

At a time when casino operators are reporting record profits, the Culinary Workers Union and the Bartenders Union are attempting to negotiate a new five-year deal that will include increased pay and benefits. The threat of a strike was sufficient to push a resolution in previous negotiations; but, union leaders claimed on Monday that current talks have been moving at a snail's pace.

"We're not really seeing anything that's sufficient to try to avert a strike and that's unfortunate," Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer for the Culinary Union, told reporters.

On Thursday, members of several unions will picket in front of eight different resorts owned by MGM and Caesars. Customers at casinos have been urged not to cross picket lines by union representatives.

In recent months, labour actions taken by unions in the automotive, rail, healthcare, and other industries have thrown off the balance of the firms in those sectors. Because they represent 53,000 people employed in the hotel industry in Las Vegas, the unions are among the most influential in the United States.

Last week, representatives from the city's three largest private companies, MGM, Caesars, and Wynn Resorts (WYNN.O), met with representatives from the city's labour unions.

The discussions, according to Pappageorge, were "very disappointing," and the corporations did not make any substantial pay suggestions. The unions are asking for reduced housekeeping quotas, enhanced safety, higher compensation, and tighter protections against new technologies that may endanger jobs.