LAS VEGAS (AP) 鈥� Tens of thousands of Las Vegas hotel workers fighting for new union contracts set a strike deadline Thursday, threatening major disruptions at more than a dozen resorts that could coincide with the Strip's inaugural Formula 1 races later this month.
The said about 35,000 members whose contracts expired earlier this year could walk off the job if deals aren't reached by Nov. 10 with casino giants MGM Resorts International, Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts.
Formula 1's Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend is scheduled to begin Nov. 15 with an opening ceremony and is expected to bring thousands of people to the Strip.
Nevada's largest labor union, with about 60,000 members statewide, hasn鈥檛 gone on strike in decades.
A walkout would be the latest in a series of high-profile labor unrest actions around the country 鈥� from to UPS' contentious negotiations that the nation鈥檚 supply chain 鈥� and would follow hospitality workers walking off the job last month at Detroit's three casinos, including MGM Grand Detroit.
In Las Vegas, the 18 properties that could be affected by a strike are Aria, Bellagio, Excalibur, Luxor, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand, New York-New York, Park MGM, Caesars Palace, Flamingo, Harrah鈥檚, Horseshoe, Paris Las Vegas, Planet Hollywood, The Cromwell, The Linq, and Wynn and Encore Resorts.
A spokesperson for Wynn Resorts declined to comment. Caesars and MGM Resorts did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment.
The union's deadline comes after yet another unsuccessful round of negotiations with the three casino companies that own and operate some of the most recognizable hotel-casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, including the Bellagio, Paris Las Vegas, MGM Grand, Luxor and Caesars Palace.
Negotiations have been underway since April over topics such as pay and working conditions.
Members currently receive health insurance and earn about $26 hourly, including benefits, union spokesperson Bethany Khan said. She declined to say how much the union is seeking in pay raises because, she said, 鈥渨e do not negotiate in public,鈥� but the union has said it is asking for 鈥渢he largest wage increases ever negotiated鈥� in its history.
Hotel workers 鈥� from bartenders and cocktail servers to kitchen employees and housekeepers 鈥� have also said they want better job security amid advancements in technology, as well as stronger security protections, including more safety buttons.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 feel safe on the casino floor,鈥� veteran Bellagio cocktail waitress Leslie Lilla told The Associated Press. 鈥淲e need enhanced security. We need emergency buttons in our service bars. We want to be protected, as well as for our guests.鈥�
The union said it had been patient with the casino companies amid months of negotiations that spurred large-scale rallies on the Strip, including one in October that brought rush-hour traffic to a halt and led to the who sat in the street in what they described at the time as a show of force ahead of any potential strike.
鈥淭his is our time. This is the labor movement鈥檚 time,鈥� Lilla said. 鈥淲e know that we can鈥檛 be a society where it鈥檚 just upper class and lower class. There鈥檚 got to be a middle. Unions create that middle class.鈥�
Rio Yamat, The Associated Press
