Unite Here Local 54 in Atlantic City has reached a “tentative agreement” with Borgata, Caesars, Harrah’s and Tropicana that will avoid pending strikes that were scheduled for today. The union reached a deal early this morning with four of the five Atlantic City casinos where it had planned to strike.
A possible strike at Hard Rock for July 3 is still pending if a deal with the casino cannot be reached.
The Unite Here Local 54 union recently gave the green light to a strike next month if new wage contracts are not reached by the beginning of July. According to Local 54’s President, Bob McDevitt, nearly 96% of the union’s members pulled the lever in favor of the authorized strike. Workers’ contracts ended May 30, which prompted the union to push for negotiations.
The union sought substantial wage increases for its workers, due to ongoing financial hardship resulting from the pandemic and because prices are on the rise.
Unite Here Local 54 President Bob McDevitt told the Associated Press that Atlantic City workers were able to negotiate a contract for what they wanted.
He commented: “This is the best contract we’ve ever had. We got everything we wanted and everything we needed. The workers delivered a contract that they can be proud of for years to come.”
A recent report published by the union estimated that Caesar’s three casinos could collectively lose $1m per day. The union reports also projected that MGM Resorts’ Borgata could lose up to $1.6m a day if the pending strike caused its net revenues to fall by 25% when compared to last year’s third quarter figures.
Unite Here Local 54 union in Atlantic City has been representing workers in the hospitality industry for the past 100 years and is the biggest private sector union in the region. The union has more than 10,000 members who serve in the casinos and hospitality industry of South Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania.
Its members work as housekeepers, bartenders, cocktail servers, cooks, bellmen, doormen and other service jobs.
As a whole, the Unite Here international labor union represents 300,000 workers throughout North America.
