John Locher / AP
People wearing face masks visit the usually crowded “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas Nevada” sign amid the coronavirus outbreak along the Las Vegas Strip, Tuesday, April 7, 2020, in Las Vegas.
Published Thursday, April 9, 2020 | 8:21 a.m.
Updated Thursday, April 9, 2020 | 12:24 p.m.
The Culinary Workers Union is calling on all casino companies to pay employees while businesses are closed due to COVID-19 concerns.
UNITE HERE, the Culinary Union’s international parent union, estimates that all of its 100,000 union members in the gaming industry worldwide are not working because of the pandemic. In Nevada, Gov. Steve Sisolak has mandated properties remain closed until at least April 30, leaving tens of thousands of employees out of work.
Last month, the Culinary Union presented a proposal for casino companies to minimize negative impacts on workers during the closures. The union asked for pay for all workers for the duration of the closure and a promise that they would be able to safely return to work after the pandemic was over, said Debra Jeffries, a 40-year employee of a Strip casino.
Only one casino company that employs unionized workers, Wynn Resorts, has agreed to the proposal, with the company pledging to pay workers through May 15.
“(Wynn) may have saved homes, lives and workers’ integrity,” Jeffries said.
Most other companies have only offered employees two weeks of closing pay and some have not compensated workers at all during the shutdown, she said.
“This is not going to sustain us,” Jeffries said.
If casino companies do not immediately pay their workers, UNITE HERE and the Culinary Union are asking state lawmakers to step in.
“Both the states should insist they pay people through the shutdown, and frankly, the conscience of these casinos should do the same thing,” said D. Taylor, president of UNITE HERE.
In addition to leaving workers without sustained pay, some casino companies have laid off managerial employees who could help workers navigate resources during the shutdown, such as unemployment benefits. This has left many workers with nowhere to turn but their union for guidance, said Jason McKnight, a casino employee in Atlantic City.
In Las Vegas, some Culinary Union members have family who have lost their housing over the last several weeks, said Geoconda Argüello-Kline, Secretary-Treasurer of culinary union. Some union members have family who’ve died due to complications from COVID-19, she said.
“We feel the casino companies right now have left their workers alone,” Argüello-Kline said.
The Culinary Union is providing health insurance through its health care plan for its 60,000 union members and their families until Nov. 1, spokesperson Bethany Khan said. The union is also helping members apply for unemployment and assisting them with rent, mortgage and utility payments as needed, Arguello-Kline said. Last week, the union provided 9,000 food baskets to workers and it plans to deliver another 6,000 soon.
Some casino companies have stepped up to help workers during the pandemic as well.
In addition to paying employees, Wynn Resorts CEO Matt Maddox is forgoing the rest of his salary for the year. Las Vegas Sands — whose workers are not represented by the Culinary Union — will pay full-time employees as well as third-party restaurant workers in Las Vegas through May 1. MGM Resorts International announced Wednesday that it raised $11 million for workers impacted by the pandemic.
But the support has not been universal, union leaders say. Caesars Entertainment has furloughed 90% of its U.S. workforce with two weeks pay and health insurance through June 30, and other properties have “paid zero” to their employees, Taylor said. “An industry that relies on frontline workers needs to step up now,” Taylor said.
Once properties are able to safely reopen, union leaders say the companies must enact policies to protect workers, starting with a commitment to rehire laid off and furloughed employees. UNITE HERE will insist on cleaning protocols at hotel-casinos that meet standards set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Taylor said.
Given that the gaming industry enjoys relatively low taxes in states in which it is prominent, including in Nevada, casino companies could afford to better support their workers during this time, Taylor said.
“The question of money is not the issue. The question of will is the issue,” he said.
Casino employees aren't the lone workers who are struggling. Almost 80,000 more Nevadans filed jobless claims last week, the U.S. Department of Labor reported. Officials have acknowledged the Nevada jobless office was overwhelmed by the record 93,000 applications filed the week after the governor ordered businesses closed. Another 71,400 Nevadans sought unemployment the following week.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
