Union reaches deal with 4 hotel-casinos, 3 others still poised to strike at start of Super Bowl week

LAS VEGAS– A union representing hospitality workers has reached a tentative agreement with four hotel-casinos in downtown Las Vegas, as workers at three other properties remained ready to strike Monday as the city kicks off Super Bowl week.

On Saturday morning, the Culinary Workers Union had announced that it had signed a tentative five-year contract with Binion’s, Four Queens, Fremont and Main Street, covering approximately 1,000 employees.

The Golden Nugget, Downtown Grand and Virgin Las Vegas near the Strip have not reached an agreement with the union.

The Las Vegas Strip’s three largest employers — MGM Resorts International, Caesar Entertainment and Wynn Resorts — reached agreements with a 40,000-member union late last year, narrowly averting a historic strike.

The union then turned its attention to securing the same contract terms for work at other Las Vegas hotel-casinos.

As of early January, the union had settled negotiations with most of these properties, including Circus Circus, Sahara Las Vegas, the Strat, Circa Resort and the El Cortez.

But after negotiations with some of the remaining casinos hit a snag, the union announced last week that it would go on strike if tentative contracts weren’t drawn up by 5 a.m. Monday morning for casino workers at downtown casinos that haven’t yet reached an agreement reaches.

The NFL’s 58th championship game is expected to bring about 330,000 people to Las Vegas this week, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

The Culinary Union is the largest in Nevada with approximately 60,000 members statewide. It negotiates five-year contracts on behalf of its members.