Tentative Agreement Reached Between Culinary and Bartenders Union and Wynn Resorts

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Tentative Agreement Reached Between Culinary and Bartenders Union and Wynn Resorts

11/10/2023
LAS VEGAS, NV – The Culinary and Bartenders Unions are pleased to announce that a tentative agreement for a new groundbreaking five-year contract was reached on Friday, November 10, 2023 at 2:00am with Wynn Resorts covering over 5,000 of the company’s employees in Las Vegas. The new five-year contract covers two Las Vegas Wynn Resorts properties: Wynn and Encore.

The historic new agreement includes the largest wage increases ever negotiated in Culinary Union’s 88 year history, workload reductions for guest room attendants, mandated daily room cleaning, increased safety protections for workers on-the-job, expanded technology contract language, extended recall rights, and the right for unionized workers to support non-union restaurant workers seeking to unionize by respecting their picket lines.

Additional specifics of the new union collective bargaining agreement are not disclosed publicly at this time to ensure unionized workers have the opportunity to see full details of their contract first and vote whether to accept it. A ratification vote by the membership will be scheduled soon. Given the tentative agreement, the Culinary and Bartenders Union members will not strike Wynn Resorts properties on Friday, November 10, 2023 as previously announced.

“After 7 months of negotiations, we are proud to say that this is the best contract and economic package we have ever won for in our 88-year history,” said Ted Pappageorge, Secretary-Treasurer for the Culinary Union. “Workers have secured significant raises every year for the next five years, preserved our great union health insurance, union pension, and comprehensive union benefits, while gaining historic improvements in housekeeping workload reductions, substantial improvements for workers regarding safety at work, the ability to have a say in how technology impacts our work, and ensuring the union and members can support non-union hospitality workers who seek to join our union. With this new union contract, hospitality workers will be able to provide for their families and thrive in Las Vegas and we applaud Wynn Resorts for agreeing to a great union contract which will ensure workers are protected with the best health care benefits, highest wage increases ever, and union job security. Wynn Resorts has long been a tremendous partner and we are proud to see that workers will enjoy in the success they have helped build. Congratulations to Wynn Resorts workers on your new tentative agreement!"

“We strongly believe that only the most talented and empowered employees, working in an environment in which they feel valued and well compensated, can deliver our signature Wynn and Encore guest experiences,” said Michael Weaver, Spokesperson for Wynn Las Vegas. “Therefore, we are very pleased that we were able to reach an agreement with Culinary Workers Union Local 226 which fulfills our shared goal of providing outstanding benefits and overall compensation to our employees in a work environment that is second to none. Wynn has historically enjoyed a relationship with Unite Here that is based on mutual respect and a shared interest in doing the best we can for those most important to us – our employees. This year has been no exception. We look forward to ratification of our agreement soon, and to providing the legendary service for which our employees are known to the thousands of race fans about join us.”

“I feel accomplished that we won the best contract ever! I worked hard in negotiations to represent my co-workers and to win a better life for my family,” said Araceli Villa Lobos, a Kitchen Worker at Wynn and Culinary Union member for 16 years. “My favorite part of the contract is the successorship language, it’s important to me that we are secure and stable and that our jobs, seniority, and benefits are protected, no matter what the future might bring.”

“I feel absolutely great to call my co-workers and tell them how great the contract is that we just won,” said Darryl Barnes, a Bellman at Wynn and Culinary Union member for 20 years. “What I love about our strong union contract is the economic wage increases we secured and being able to preserve our amazing health benefits that we are so passionate about protecting and proud of.”

“I feel fantastic that we were able to get a tentative agreement after months of negotiations,” said Christine Cook, a Uniform Control Attendant at Wynn and Culinary Union member for 9 years. “It brings me great joy to able to call my co-workers in the morning and let them know that we got the best contract ever! My favorite part about the new contract is the wage increases and the retroactive pay because it will help my family and I have a better future and achieve our dreams. Yes we did!”

“I’m so proud that we were able to win a reduced workload for all guest room attendants at the Wynn, wage increases, and protecting our health insurance and pension benefit,” said Artemisia Orozco, a Guest Room Attendant at Wynn and Culinary Union member for 15 years. “I feel so happy that I am able to have a more manageable workload so that I can go home and have energy to spend time with my family, and with this new contract, I’ll have more money in my pocket.”

In negotiations, the Culinary and Bartenders Unions have won a greater measure of security for workers including:

*Winning the largest wage increases ever negotiated in the history of the Culinary Union.

*Reducing workload and steep housekeeping room quotas, mandating daily room cleaning, and establishing the right for guest room attendants to securely work in set areas.

*Providing the best on-the-job safety protections for all classifications, including safety committees, expanding the use of safety buttons to more workers, penalties if safety buttons don’t work, enforcing mandatory room checks for employee and public safety, and tracking sexual harassment, assault, and criminal behavior by customers.

*Strengthening existing technology protections to guarantee advanced notification when new technology is introduced which would impact jobs, require training for new jobs created by technology, health care and severance pay for workers who are laid off because of new technology, the right to privacy from tracking technology introduced by companies, notice of third-party data sharing workers have generated through their work, and the right to bargain over technology that tracks location of employees or messaging between workers.

*Extending recall rights so that workers have more job security and have the right to return to their jobs in the event of another pandemic or economic crisis for up to three-years.

*Making clear that the no-strike clause does not prevent the Culinary Union from taking action, including strikes, against non-union restaurants on the casino property, and gives casino workers the right to respect picket lines.

ABOUT CULINARY UNION
Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including at most of the casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip and in Downtown Las Vegas. UNITE HERE represents 300,000 workers in gaming, hotel, and food service industries in North America.

The Culinary Union, through the Culinary Health Fund, is one of the largest healthcare consumers in the state. The Culinary Health Fund is sponsored by the Culinary Union and Las Vegas-area employers. It provides health insurance coverage for over 145,000 Nevadans, the Culinary Union’s members and their dependents.

The Culinary Union is Nevada’s largest Latinx/Black/AAPI/immigrant organization with members who come from 178 countries and speak over 40 different languages. We are proud to have helped over 18,000 immigrants become American citizens and new voters since 2001 through our affiliate, The Citizenship Project.

The Culinary Union has a diverse membership which is 55% women and 45% immigrants. The demographics of Culinary Union members are approximately: 54% Latinx, 18% white, 15% Asian, 12% Black, and less than 1% Indigenous Peoples.

Culinary Union members work as: Guest room attendants, cocktail and food servers, porters, bellmen, cooks, bartenders, laundry and kitchen workers. The Culinary Union has been fighting and winning for working families in Nevada for 88 years.

Learn more at www.CulinaryUnion226.org

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