The array of unions hoping to cash in at casinos couldn’t be more aptly illustrated than at Hard Rock Casino in Rockford, IL. On Dec. 4, poker dealers and sportsbook hosts voted against (90-38) joining the UAW, but Shawn Fain’s union is only one of six that have pursued these workers. Additionally, IATSE won an election to unionize their production workers and event ushers, and the Teamsters unionized valet and slot attendants and warehouse workers. Other unions that have been circling include SEIU, UNITE HERE, and International Union of Operating Engineers.
We’ll roundup more recent casino organizing drives below, but first, it’s worth looking at an ongoing case in which the NLRA and tribal law must both be navigated while countering union antics. In short, this case involves a union attempting to override Native American sovereignty.
Sky River Casino: Defending Tribal Legislative Authority
Tribes operate as sovereign nations that can enact their own labor laws, which can protect workers by guaranteeing secret ballot elections to resolve campaigns. That’s the case near Sacramento, CA, where the Wilton Rancheria tribe is fighting to uphold 2019 tribal labor code during a UNITE HERE drive at Elk Grove Sky River Casino. Unsurprisingly, the union wants to enforce an outdated 2017 card-check agreement.
The Ninth Circuit is currently reviewing whether an arbitrator improperly disregarded tribal sovereignty by deferring to the 2017 agreement, which would subject workers to the coercion and intimidation that’s inherent with the card-check process. Wilton Rancheria’s attorney is arguing that the tribe’s democratically-enacted code should be allowed to govern at a tribally-owned casino, which opened its doors in 2022, years after the card-check agreement would have been rendered obsolete.
As promised, here are more casino organizing odds and ends:
Horseshoe Indianapolis: This past weekend, workers at the Caesars Entertainment casino voted to unionize with the Teamsters after a nearly two-month strike. Previously, a federal court upheld a decision to move the picket line away from the entrance where it was disturbing operations.
Rio Las Vegas: In November, Teamsters members authorized a strike at the off-strip hotel-casino after two years of contract renewal negotiations went nowhere. No date for the strike has been set yet.
Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa: The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has heard oral arguments in NP Red Rock LLC vs. NLRB with judges leaning toward using the Gissel standard rather than Cemex to issue a bargaining order for a Las Vegas casino. Stay tuned for more there.
Conclusion
Organizing drives always involve navigating the NLRA while unions maneuver to interfere with employers’ right to run their own business. When tribal law is involved, Big Labor’s heavy-handed tactics grow arguably more apparent, as unions can seek to undermine tribal self-governance.
That is, unions will stop at nothing to infiltrate a workplace do not see tribes’ legislative authority as an obstacle to pushing workers to live under a union constitution. Such cases underscore the importance of making sure that unions never get their foot in the door, no matter who owns a business.
