Last week we warned you of the impending mess headed for Las Vegas Strip casinos and the city. Over the weekend, that mess began to unfold. Just a glimpse of what may be to come if the Culinary Workers Union doesn’t have their demands met. And the timing could not be worse… or better, depending on which side you take.
Thousands of the culinary workers lined up outside of eight Vegas Strip casinos to picket, hold up signs, and shout their demands. Wearing their bright red T-shirts and chanted “No contract! No peace!”, which may seem a bit melodramatic, but still conveyed their point just as well.
These gatherings are just the clouds on the horizon as workers have not been able to reach an agreement with MGM Resorts, Caesars, and Wynn Resorts. And if those clouds do form into a storm, it may be devastating for the city ahead of the big Formula One race next month.
It’s been nearly twenty years since this sort of thing has happened with the Culinary and Bartenders Unions. However, if things don’t change quickly and dramatically, over 50,000 of these Vegas Strip casinos workers may soon walk off the job and join their brothers and sisters on those growing picket lines.
Contracts for the workers expired on September 15th, and with no new contract in sight the unions authorized a strike. That strike could come at any time, although many (including us) believe this is a lead up to a walk out just before the Grand Prix. That could throw the city into utter chaos.
If a strike does take place, expect to see impacts at over twenty resorts, and not just at the big Vegas Strip casinos either. Visitors will feel the impact with a lack of bartenders and wait staff, cooks, housekeeping, porters, bellmen, laundry services, and kitchen workers.