Dressed in striped shirts and black pants, the students hail from Ethiopia, Nigeria, China, the Philippines. The classes at the Culinary Academy of Las Vegas are run by the Culinary Workers Union Local 226, the powerhouse labor union that dominates the Strip, with funding from casinos.
The Culinary Union has seen its membership rebound to 57,000 after dropping from a high of 60,000 to 55,000 during the depths of the recession, according to union spokesperson Bethany Khan.