Casino workers in New York really can be assured of good-paying jobs. According figures released by the New York Hotel & Trades Council, a starting salary of $40,000 is quite plausible. Resorts World New York employees landed a contract last year whereby they went from $10-$12 an hour to $20. The same union signed a pact for Gotham hotel employees whereby annual salaries will go from $50,000 this year to $59,000 in 2019 and escalate to $69,000 by 2024.
All casino applicants have to show progress on something called a “labor 
peace agreement” in order to be considered. Surprisingly, casino interests aren’t making a squawk about this. Neither is the Trades Council expecting Manhattan-sized wages in the boondocks. “The cost of living is higher in New York City than it is upstate. While the blueprint is the same. We understand the reality A living wage is different in Saratoga County than it is in Queens County,” said the union’s political director, Josh Gold.
In return, Gold’s union lent its muscle to a bill favored by Empire State racinos. It gives them longer operating hours (until 6 a.m.) and larger free plays. Making less progress — read: none — with the casinos is the Upstate Theater Coalition for a Fair Game. It wants make-good payments for lost business. According to the Albany Times Union, its demands also call for “agreements that bidders limit casino arts centers to 1,000 seats. They also seek thing such as sponsorships, guarantees against exclusive rights to talent and the payment of annual fees to the ‘Fairgame Fund’ to support affected facilities.” But, lacking state and labor support it is questionable if this will go anywhere. Casinos are a rival form of entertainment Upstate Theater Coalition members are likely to be told to suck it up.
* Add Deadwood, South Dakota to the list of markets where gambling has hit the wall. However, the answer to the problem is not, for a change, more casinos. City fathers are looking to family friendly activities that are “less apparent than they could be.” These include various forms of bikini and ATV-ing, snowmobiling, skiing and hiking.
* Iowa regulators have a tough call to make regarding Penn National Gaming‘s Belle of Sioux City. Legal arguments could drag into late September but the boat has to close on July 1, by Iowa Racing & Gaming Commission order. If that fate is immutable, the IRGC might as 
well let its own order stand. If there’s a solid chance the Belle could be reopened, there are compassionate grounds for letting stay in business … although that means flying in the face of umpteen IGRC precedents. Although it doesn’t have the legally required nonprofit partner, Penn continues to behave as though it’s above the law. No matter how often it gets its comeuppance, Penn remains as brazen an operator as you’ll find.
