MGM Resorts International’s union members recently voted to approve the new five-year contract, according to a local report in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Union workers approved the deal by a vote of 99% during two sessions of ratification votes held by Culinary Local 226.
Close to 25,000 workers participated in the vote, according to the local report.
The vote followed a similar outcome involving Caesars Entertainment workers, who also approved a new contact earlier in the week by a 99% vote.
Under the terms of the agreement, culinary workers will receive a 10% boost in wages during the first year, which will build to a 32% raise throughout the life of the contract, the local report said. The initial wage increase will be retroactive, going back to June 1.
On average, casino workers earn nearly $26 per hour. Workers can expect that average to reach $35 an hour at the end of the five-year contract.
Culinary Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge told the Review-Journal that the union negotiated for “stronger protections against job-replacing technology.”
He said in a recent statement, “After seven months of negotiations, we are proud to say that this is the best contract and economic package we have ever won in our 88-year history.”
Under the new contract, the union and its workers must have six months’ notice “before new tech introductions and involvement in picking prototypes and vendors.” Additional training opportunities must be provided for workers affected by the new technology as well.
Another aspect of the contract establishes a $2,000 severance per year of seniority for workers who are laid off because of new tech. The package would also include an additional six months of health and pension benefits, Pappageorge said.
