Posted on: January 22, 2024, 01:59h.
Last updated on: January 22, 2024, 04:30h.
The Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino is the latest Las Vegas property to reach a tentative settlement with its hospitality workers, represented by the Culinary Union.
The resort casino, formerly known as the Las Vegas Hilton, agreed to a new contract with 1,000-plus hospitality workers over the weekend.
The contract likely will last for five years. It still needs to be approved by rank-and-file union members.
The union didn’t release details on the new deal, just saying in a social media post on Sunday that it was “the best contract ever.”
Negotiations Continue With 18 Properties
Even with this tentative settlement, the Culinary Union remains negotiating with 18 other Las Vegas properties. These establishments are independently owned or smaller casino hotels located on the Las Vegas Strip or downtown Las Vegas.
If some 6,000 union members don’t settle with these properties by 5 a.m. on Feb. 2, 2024, they have threatened to go out on strike, according to a union post on X, formerly known as Twitter. The union has begun informational picketing at several Las Vegas casinos.
Among the properties yet to reach a tentative agreement are Circus Circus, Hilton Grand Vacations, Rio, Sahara Las Vegas, the Strat Casino, Treasure Island, Virgin Hotels, Binion’s, Circa, Downtown Grand, El Cortez, Four Queens, Fremont, Golden Gate, Golden Nugget, Main Street, The D, and the Plaza.
Trump, Waldorf Astoria Settlements
Last week, the union announced a tentative settlement with the Trump International Hotel Las Vegas. The agreement was reached after 16 hours of closed-door negotiations. The five-year agreement will govern 350 hospitality workers after it gets approval by rank-and-file workers.
The Culinary Union recently announced settlements with hospitality workers at the Mirage, Tropicana, and Four Seasons. Previously, the union reached a tentative agreement with hospitality workers at the Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas.
In November, Culinary Union members reached agreements with management at three large casino companies: Wynn Resorts, Caesars Entertainment, and MGM Resorts International. A planned November 10 strike was averted with these settlements.
The agreements for Wynn, MGM, and Caesars will lead to a 10% salary increase for hospitality workers in the first year of the contract, according to the Culinary Union. They will earn a cumulative 32% increase over the contract.
Other noneconomic victories were won by workers in these agreements, including agreements regarding job security.
The Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and the Bartenders Union Local 165 represent some 60K bartenders, bellmen, cocktail servers, cooks, food servers, guest room attendants, kitchen workers, laundry staff, and porters.
