Financial Times - May 17, 2002
THE AMERICAS: Low-paid poised for Las Vegas strike By CHRISTOPHER PARKES
Thousands of low-paid workers who feed and clean up after the 250,000 tourists who visit Las Vegas each day voted yesterday in a poll that could lead to the first serious strike on "The Strip" in 18 years.
The Culinary Union, representing 53,000 workers, has launched a "To the Streets" campaign, in a souring of a union-management relationship considered a model of co-operation for more than a decade. At issue are allegations that the employers running 23 resorts and hotels in the world's gaming capital are attempting to dilute health benefits and impose unfair workloads on 10,000 housekeepers.
Underlying the conflict is lingering resentment at a retrenchment by employers within days of the September 11 terrorist attacks, in anticipation of a slump in tourism, which resulted in more than 15,000 lay-offs.
Although room occupancy rates are recovering from lows of around 20 per cent, and most of those laid-off are back at work, the union says the casinos are trying to recoup lost profits at the cost of their lowest-paid employees. Yesterday's vote was called to authorise strike action if no settlement is reached by May 31.
Since the last strike in 1984, tourism has ballooned into a Dollars 32bn industry. The Culinary Union also expanded to cover most blue-collar workers. Now the union finds itself negotiating with separate teams representing leading gambling groups Park Place Entertainment, Harrah's MGM Mirage and the Mandalay Resort group.
The union, which is not asking for any increase in hourly rates, wants a two-year contract during which the employers will top up health insurance funds depleted by the round of lay-offs and reduce the workloads of cleaners.