Hundreds of people carrying large signs tried to capture the public’s attention outside of Station Casinos’ corporate headquarters on Thursday.
Picketers from the Culinary union, partners from the Nevada AFL-CIO and current and former Station Casinos employees held signs that called the operator of Red Rock Resort, Palace Station, Green Valley Ranch Resort and other properties “unfair.” Meanwhile, banners on the company’s building touted it as a top gaming employer offering family health benefits.
The public push by Culinary Local 226 was meant to bring attention to its long-stalled effort toward having a first-time union contract for the casino company’s employees.
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Maria Balandran, a former buffet cook assistant at Green Valley Ranch Resort in Henderson, said she was laid off during the pandemic’s shutdowns and tried to reapply to her position through a job fair, but she was told there was nothing for her.
“I felt bad because I’m a single mom, and my family depends on me,” Balandran said through a translator. “I spent all these years working for them, and they didn’t care about us. They didn’t have a heart because they left all these people out. We just want to go back to our jobs. It’s not fair for the new people to start working and all the people who had seniority were left out.”
Other demands from the union include offering union and nonunion workers the same benefits, training opportunities through the Culinary Academy of Las Vegas, and a job security package that’s in line with other Culinary union members across the Las Vegas Valley.