WATCH: Virgin Hotels Accuses Union Of Bad-Faith Bargaining & Coercion
WATCH: Virgin Hotels Accuses Union Of Bad-Faith Bargaining & Coercion
Las Vegas' Culinary Union called workers out on a 48-hour strike after Virgin refused the union's demands.
By Peter List, Editor | May 12, 2024
As the Culinary Workers Union (CWU), one of Las Vegas’ most powerful unions, wraps up a 48-hour strike on Sunday morning against Virgin Hotels, the company has accused the union of bad-faith bargaining, as well as coercion including “statements and violence.”
Last week, JC Hospitality—a company taking over casino operations for Virgin, filed two separate unfair labor practice (ULP) charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Phoenix.
One ULP charge (view here), according to KVVU Las Vegas, accused the union of threatening to retaliate against employees if they did not join or support the union.
The other charge (view here) accuses the union of failing to “bargain in good faith.”
KVVU Las Vegas has more details.
WATCH:
In addition to the charges filed, though the strike lasted a mere 48 hours, Virgin Hotel chose to continue its operations.
“The ‘strike’ at Virgin has effectively proven the union’s point—that a casino can function just fine during a strike,” noted the Vital Vegas account on X (formerly Twitter).
During the strike’s early hours, Virgin Hotels officials said the property was able to operate like normal with the company’s support departments such as human resources, accounting and IT stepping into vacated shifts, reported the Las Vegas Review Journal.
In a Friday afternoon interview, Virgin Hotels Las Vegas President Cliff Atkinson said he was surprised by the strike call and said nothing had changed their position. Virgin management is awaiting a counterproposal from Culinary and hopes to reach a deal during the next bargaining session Tuesday, he said.
But Atkinson said he felt the union needed to adjust its expectations given the property’s size and performance in the market.
The Culinary Union is one of the largest unions in Nevada, with over 50,000 members in Las Vegas alone.
Virgin Hotel is considered a “off Strip” property. Earlier this year, the Culinary Union successfully negotiated contracts—both on Strip and off Strip—without the need to strike.
