Culinary Workers Union 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165 picket outside of Virgin Hotels Las Vegas . The Culinary Union called for a 48-hour strike at Virgin Hotel, the first time in over 22 years beginning Friday, May 10th at 5:00 am - Sunday, May 12th at 4:59 am in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Wednesday, May 22, 2024 | 6:57 p.m.
Virgin Hotels Las Vegas has made its “last, best and final offer” in ongoing contract negotiations with the Culinary and Bartenders unions, the business announced Wednesday.
The union has not bargained in good faith, has made misleading statements to employees of the hotel and casino and to the press and has engaged in “take it or leave it bargaining,” Virgin Hotels alleged in a news release.
“Their tactics have made it impossible to negotiate a complete agreement,” the release reads. “Their tactics are hurting our team members. Due to this, we have made a Last, Best, and Final Offer in an effort to reach a fair resolution.”
The announcement of a final offer comes on the heels of hundreds of Culinary Union members striking for the first time in more than two decades, picketing for 48 hours this month outside Virgin and causing a work stoppage at the property.
Union officials at the strike cited a lack of wage increases as the biggest holdup in the five-month contract negotiation.
“Right now, the ball’s in the company’s court,” Culinary Union Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge said at the start of the strike earlier this month. “They’re saying zero for the next five years when it comes to wages. That’s unacceptable.”
Virgin is the last one standing in a long string of Las Vegas properties that have recently come to new contract agreements with Culinary — which the union has said included historic raises, reduced workloads, technology protections and more.
“We deserve that economic package that the rest of the city got, because right now the things are really hard,” Virgin employee Yuniel Acosta said at the strike. “It’s really hard right here in Las Vegas.”
Ahead of the strike, Virgin Hotels filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board that accused the union of engaging in unlawful bargaining tactics, threatening to retaliate against employees who did not join or support the organization, failing to meet at reasonable times or respond to the property’s proposals and more.
The Culinary Union did not immediately comment on Virgin’s statement about its final offer Wednesday, though officials have previously decried that the resort did not include a five-year wage increase plan in any of its proposals, despite significant investments from private-equity firms.
Virgin sent its final proposal to the union Tuesday, and looks forward to the bargaining committee’s response, per the property's release.
“We have made every effort to negotiate in good faith, prioritizing the well-being of our team members and continued operation of our property,” it reads.
