Dive Brief:
- On Wednesday, Virgin Hotels Las Vegas and the Culinary and Bartenders Unions — jointly known as the Culinary Union — struck a deal on a new collective bargaining agreement.
- The five-year union contract was unanimously approved; the strike, which began Nov. 15, just ahead of Formula 1’s Las Vegas Grand Prix, ended after 69 days, making it one of the longest strikes in recent Sin City history.
- With the deal, Virgin hotel employees join fellow union members at other Vegas properties who have secured wage increases, reduced workloads and housekeeping room quotas and on-the-job safety protections.
Dive Insight:
Virgin Las Vegas, which had been the only remaining resort in the city yet to reach an agreement with the Culinary Union, has finally struck a deal.
In a joint statement, the union and casino said they were “pleased to be moving past their contract negotiations as each looks forward to fostering a positive and collaborative working relationship for the benefit of all team members at the property.”
The Virgin Las Vegas employees had been pushing for a new five-year contract that included wage increases, similar to those won by fellow union members at other Las Vegas properties including resorts operated by MGM Resorts International, Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts, along with the Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas, Downtown Grand Hotel & Casino and Circus Circus.
According to The Los Angeles Times, workers will see a 10% wage hike in the first year, with the rest of the pay increases coming over the remaining years of the contract. And FOX5 KVVU-TV reports that non-tipped workers will be paid $4.32 an hour and tipped workers will be paid $2.16. Workers will also reportedly get paid time off for the days they missed work due to the strike.
In May of last year, the Culinary Union held a 48-hour strike at the Virgin hotel. The walkout — the first strike at the property in 22 years — impacted housekeeping, food and beverage and unionized restaurants on the property, foreshadowing the most recent action that started in November.
The Culinary and Bartenders Unions are an affiliate of hospitality union Unite Here, which has threatened strikes across the country in response to the post-pandemic travel surge that hotels are experiencing.
The Culinary and Bartenders Unions comprise 60,000 hospitality workers across Nevada, 53,000 of which are in Las Vegas.
