Richmond Mayor LeVar Stoney (D) is going to get his dearest wish: an electoral do-over for the Urban One casino proposal, which voters narrowly nixed at the ballot box last November. A year later, the electorate will get a chance to revisit the issue, now that a local judge has ordered it placed on the 2022 ballot. While the referendum question only specifies the location of the casino, we know darn well who will benefit from a win. Interestingly, opposition to the casino includes the local chapter of Unite-Here, which is skeptical that Urban One is going to provide good jobs, salaries and benefits. Union lobbyist Sam Epps said his constituents are “disproportionately affected by income inequality and bad jobs. Workers need to understand how they will benefit from new casino development before it moves forward.”
Also flummoxed by the court’s ruling is state Sen. Joe Morrissey (D), who favors putting a casino in Petersburg instead. He’s trying to slip that into the state budget, which will be the subject of an impending special session of the Lege. The Urban One ballot question was such a close call last year that we think this could either way, although Stoney’s sweetening of the pot with a property tax cut improves the casino’s chances more than a little.
Speaking of labor unions, kudos to Caesars Windsor for completing a new pact with Unifor Local 444 and in what seems like record time—one month of talks. “We would like to commend Unifor Local 444 and the entire bargaining team for their respectful and productive efforts in an agreement that is mutually beneficial for both, while balancing and recognizing the challenges our business has faced over the past few years,” said Caesars Windsor President Kevin Laforet. So good was the deal that it got a best-ever 93% approval vote from union members. Explained union prexy Dave Cassidy, “We understood the financial situation of Caesars Windsor, but at the same time, we know that this virus will not be here forever, and we were not about to let that be an excuse for your worth.”
Indeed, the economic effects of Covid-19 have seen the Caesars Windsor workforce shrink from 2,200 souls to 1,800. Earlier this month the casino stopped requiring vaccination passports and is lifting its mask mandate today.
On the flip side of the coin, “a large majority” of slot technicians at Red Rock Resort, have signed a petition to the National Labor Relations Board, asking to have the International Union of Operating Engineers decertified as their collective-bargaining representative. This sets the stage for a formal vote in April. (Interesting that Station Casinos is willing to ask the help of the NLRB when a union is on the way out.) The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation accuses Las Vegas unions of “allegations of employer misbehavior that union officials regularly invent to stop workers from booting them from a facility.” Consideration of such “blocking charges” is no longer allowed, thanks to a Trump administration rule change. The foundation is also helping fight the Culinary Union at Red Rock, where it lost a secret-ballot election. NLRB regional director Cornele Overstreet may have overstepped his authority by recommending certification of the Culinary on the basis of a favorable ‘card check.’
The Defense Foundation, an avowedly anti-union group, is also bigfooting the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians‘ effort to reconstitute the Palms Casino Resort workforce. Some maintenance workers are trying to boot the IUOE and International Union of Painters & Allied Trades as representatives. Again, blocking charges are involved, and (argues the foundation) “Overstreet is leaving him and his coworkers trapped under an unpopular union despite the new NLRB rules regarding ‘blocking charges,’ and despite the fact the unions’ accusations against the employer relate to other unions besides those involved in his case, and to other bargaining units having nothing to do with the 19-person maintenance unit involved in his case.”
Blustered foundation President Mark Mix, in a groan-inducing play on words, “Las Vegas union officials likely believe they can violate workers’ free choice rights without any consequences, as it seems ‘the union house always wins’ at NLRB Region 28 … Foundation attorneys will fight to make sure their voices are heard even though the deck may seem to be stacked against independent-minded workers.” Somebody needs to clue the mixed-up Mix that in Vegas the ‘house’ is ownership and management, which have never had much difficulty in stacking the deck against organized labor. (In other Palms news, popular Mabel’s BBQ, brainchild of Michael Symon, is officially confirmed to return sometime “this spring.”)
Jottings: After a long run atop Rush Street Gaming, CEO Greg Carlin is calling it a day. CFO Tim Drehkoff replaces Carlin, his mentor, who spent 20 years at the helm … The South Carolina Lege is tiptoeing toward sports betting. Bills have been introduced in both chambers to permit mobile wagering on horseracing (for the good of the sport, y’know) … Travel + Leisure has graced Wynn Resorts with a Sustainability Award, one of six awarded to the hospitality industry. Wynn owns a solar-power farm and aims to be carbon-neutral by 2050. Congratulations on an honor well earned … Nevada regulators can be a bit tight-assed about what kinds of wagers sports books are allowed to take. But they’ve loosened their sphincters to the extent of permitting bets on who will win Most Outstanding Player in March Madness. Good for them … It’s hard to conceptualize exactly what a KISS-themed casino would be like but $200 million Rock & Brews is said to still be a ‘go’ in Biloxi, even though the underlying land is listed as being for sale. Rock & Brews rep Tom Moore says Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley still have right of refusal to the $16 million former Margaritaville site. The project is two years behind schedule … Expect to be carded if you go to gamble at the El Cortez. Like Circa, it is making the transition to an adults-only resort, starting on April Fool’s Day … Hollywood Lawrenceburg in Indiana has poured $2.5 million into an augmented, Barstool-branded sports book. It’s a hedge against oncoming competition from Ohio, which goes live next Jan. 1. Even Kentucky legislators, averse to gambling, are looking more favorably upon sports betting. Wonders never cease.
Quote of the Day: “Funny this Adele show on NBC is just her and a band, and everyone seems happy. No waterfalls, no James Bond choirs. Interesting.”—former Las Vegas Review-Journal entertainment columnist Mike Weatherford.
