{"id":22330,"date":"2018-08-24T06:26:52","date_gmt":"2018-08-24T14:26:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/?p=22330"},"modified":"2018-08-24T07:56:54","modified_gmt":"2018-08-24T15:56:54","slug":"intransigence-at-station-money-madness-in-illinois","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/intransigence-at-station-money-madness-in-illinois\/","title":{"rendered":"Intransigence at Station; Money madness in Illinois"},"content":{"rendered":"

Station Casinos<\/strong>‘ response to overwhelming pro-union votes at the Palms<\/strong> and Green Valley Ranch<\/strong> has apparently been not to negotiate but to go into a corner and sulk. Last week, the National Labor Relations Board<\/strong> wrote,\u00a0\u201cRespondent has been \"\"failing and refusing to bargain collectively and in good faith with the exclusive collective-bargaining representative of its employees \u2026\u201d Mind you, these aren’t bleeding-heart liberals left over from the Obama administration but Donald Trump<\/strong> appointees, who drop-kicked one Station appeal, saying only it\u00a0\u201craises no substantial issues warranting review.\u201d<\/p>\n

Station demanded secret-ballot elections. It got them. It said repeatedly it would honor the results. It has not. The Fertitta Brothers<\/strong> evidently think they can run out the clock on unionization but, if anything, they are only likely to roil their workforce further. After seeing with what forked tongue Station speaks, casino workers at un-unionized properties are hardly likely to vote for the status quo.<\/p>\n

* \u201cThe idea of saturation is inaccurate. There\u2019s room to grow,\u201d said addled-pated\u00a0Rockford<\/strong> Mayor Tom McNamara<\/strong>, who’s obviously never read a monthly revenue report from the Land of Lincoln. Illinois<\/strong> lawmakers are mulling a near-suicidal expansion of gambling, especially in light of the fact that casinos now have to \"\"contend with competition from 30,000 machines in slot routes and growing<\/a>. (The cannibalization isn’t confined to Illinois; Indiana<\/strong> casino revenues have fallen from $2.8 billion to $2.1 billion in 2017.) The Christmas tree bill, being pushed by state Rep. Robert Rita<\/strong> (D) is a doozy: a 20% increase in slot-route allocations, full casinos for Arlington International Racecourse<\/strong>, Hawthorne Race Course<\/strong> and Fairmount Park<\/strong>; slot lounges at Midway<\/strong> and O’Hare<\/strong> airports; five new casinos in Chicago<\/strong>, Danville<\/strong>, Rockford<\/strong> and two other municipalities to be determined. The Chicago casino would be owned by the city. (Other cities are not happy with that.)<\/p>\n

Even the reality of rampant cannibalization seemed to be sinking with Rita. \u201cThere\u2019s no doubt video gaming has filled in a lot of areas,\u201d he conceded. As though he doesn’t have enough on his plate, Rita is trying to move Internet<\/strong> gambling, sports betting and DFS<\/strong> legalization forward.\u00a0\u201cThere\u2019s definitely a cannibalization impact any time you add new casinos,\u201d testified \"\"Eric Noggle<\/strong>,\u00a0senior revenue analyst for the Illinois Commission on Government Forecasting\u00a0& Accountability<\/strong>. That fell on deaf ears with the horsey set. Arlington International General Manager Tony Petrillo<\/strong> complained,\u00a0\u201cOur industry is in dire straits.\u00a0Wagering on horse racing has decreased from $1.2 billion to $586 million.\u201d While it’s refreshing to hear a representative of the sport of kings admit that it’s in a tailspin, bolting casinos onto horse tracks hardly solves the underlying problem.<\/p>\n

While the Lege dreams that it can grow the Illinois gaming industry it was sobered up by projections that only $12 million in additional taxes would be raised<\/a>. Since this is clearly a stalking horse for the revenue man, that estimate might cool solons’ ardor for an overwhelming gambling increase.<\/p>\n

Coming to a casino near you … ?<\/strong><\/p>\n