Nevada: Unions, Casino Workers Seek to Improve Their Odds
According to the Wall Street Journal Online:
Several large unions are rushing to organize dealers and other casino workers, trying to shore up their dwindling ranks by tapping a growing industry.
This year, casino workers in Las Vegas contacted several unions, including the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the Transport Workers Union of America, and the United Auto Workers, saying they wanted to organize, largely over the issue of tips.
Traditionally, dealers have pooled tips, counting and distributing money themselves. Last fall, Wynn Las Vegas, operated by Wynn Resorts Ltd., began distributing a portion of tips to supervisors who oversee dealers. Hunter Dhue, a 54-year-old dealer, said his income fell to $83,000 from $93,000 a year as a result of the arrangement.
Wynn declined to comment.
A solid majority of the roughly 600 dealers at the Wynn casino voted in May to join the Transport Workers, largely because they believed the union allowed autonomy. "We liked the TWU's idea that the union locals are self-governing, so we get to control what we do here," Mr. Dhue said. The TWU is trying to organize an estimated 25,000 Las Vegas dealers, steering clear of thousands of dishwashers, waitresses and cooks, who are members of Unite Here, the main union for the hotel industry.
'Becoming More Corporate'
While hotel and casino workers have supported union representation, card dealers, who typically make more money than other casino workers through tips, have been resistant to join groups. What's changed, dealers say, is the consolidation of resorts and casinos under massive corporate banners, like MGM Mirage. "The industry is becoming more corporate; you're not dealing with the guy who owns the casino anymore," said Leon Paesani, a UAW union steward and blackjack dealer at MGM Mirage's Detroit casino, the MGM Grand. "Now you're dealing with human resources people, managers, and lawyers. So you need to be part of a team that also has resources."
The industry has surged as more states allow casinos and as bottom lines have been fattened by international expansion. In the second quarter, 31 gambling companies in the Wilshire 5000 index posted net income from continuing operations of $814.5 million, up 18% from a year earlier...click to continue.
