Hypocrisy at Station; Gamblers flee smoke-free casinos

Station Casinos has claimed on at least seven occasions that, if its workers want to unionize, it will honor their wishes. The Culinary Union called Station’s bluff and the company has been talking out of the other side of its mouth ever since. Most recently, yesterday in fact, the National Labor Relations Board tossed Station’s challenge to the Green Valley Ranch election, saying, “we find that the Employer failed to prove that any employees knew or would have reasonably inferred that the Petitioner had made a list of employees who had not yet voted in the election. Absent such proof, the Petitioner’s conduct could not have reasonably tended to interfere with the employees’ free choice in the election.” No matter that 78% of employees voting cast their ballots in favor of the Culinary, where there are unions Station sees only sinister forces.

Station is still trying to fight the outcome of the Palms election, which it lost by an even more lopsided margin, with 84% of ballots cast in favor of unionization. Rather than gracefully accept the inevitable, Station ownership continues to refight yesterday’s battles. This only adds to the credibility gap the company has suffered for years, ever since the scandal that drove Station out of Missouri. If Station executives don’t stand by their rhetoric vis-a-vis unionization, in what other respects are they not to be believed?

* Louisiana casinos were generally prosperous last month, up 5%, except in Baton Rouge, where a smoking ban has driven business down 15.5%. Belle of Baton Rouge got hammered, plunging 26% to $4 million, but nobody got off easy. Casino Rouge dropped 12% to $5 million and L’Auberge Baton Rouge tumbled 13% to a coincidental $13 million. By contrast, the smoke-free New Orleans casinos did well, with Harrah’s New Orleans up 6% to $24 million and Fair Grounds racino rising 9% to almost $4 million. Across the river, you can light up, Treasure Chest gained 6% and Boomtown New Orleans ascended 7.5%, both grossing $10 million, while Amelia Belle gained 10% to close the month at $4 million.

In the dominant Lake Charles market, L’Auberge du Lac ($30.5 million, +13.5%) and Golden Nugget ($28 million, +17%) continued to duke it out for supremacy. Isle Grand Palais continued its decline, down 13% to $8.5 million. Delta Downs brought home $17 million, a 14.5% jump. Elsewhere, Evangeline Downs was flat at $7 million. Caesars Entertainment was doubly fortunate in the Shreveport/Bossier City area, grossing $18 million (+16%) at Horseshoe Bossier City and $4 million (+7%) at Harrah’s Louisiana Downs. Sam’s Town gained 2% to reach nearly $7 million, Margaritaville leapt 10% to $14 million and Boomtown Bossier was one of the revenue-negative casinos, slipping 2% to $5 million.

* A “trailer station” may pop up at what’s left of the Vegas Club, to preserve the gaming entitlement while Derek Stevens keeps planning the 777-room resort that will replace. Plans for Downtown‘s first ground-up casino resort in decades “breezed” through the Las Vegas City Council, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Despite his flair for showmanship, Stevens has been curiously offhand about his project, letting it become public through a planning request filed with the city and eschewing the pulpit provided by the City Council to tout his project.

That doesn’t mean the construction process won’t be alleviated with a bit of flash. Stevens promised the comeback of high-kicking “Sassy Sally.” We’ll be waiting with bated breath to see what else Stevens has planned. Hey Derek, couldn’t you leak at least one rendering? Or are you still brainstorming?