FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, September 13, 2019
Media Contact:
Bethany Khan ▪ BKhan@culinaryunion226.org ▪ (702) 387-7088
Workers at Station Casinos’ Fiesta Henderson unionize
LAS VEGAS, NV – Workers at Fiesta Henderson Hotel & Casino, which is owned and operated by Station Casinos, voted to unionize on Friday, September 13, 2019, through a secret-ballot election supervised by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
During the one-day NLRB election, 295 workers voted and 57% voted “YES” for the union. Over 300 Fiesta Henderson workers will be represented by the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE.
“We call on Station Casinos to immediately to negotiate and settle a fair contract for the workers at Fiesta Henderson, Fiesta Rancho, Sunset Station, Palms, Green Valley Ranch, Palace Station, and Boulder Station,” said Geoconda Argüello-Kline, Secretary-Treasurer and leader of the Culinary Union.
Fiesta Henderson is the seventh Station Casinos Las Vegas property to unionize since 2016. Station Casinos, the third-largest private-sector employer in Southern Nevada, is the operating subsidiary of Red Rock Resorts, Inc.
Workers at seven Station Casinos’ Las Vegas properties are now unionized and fighting for a contract: Boulder Station (September 2016), Palace Station (March 2017), Green Valley Ranch (November 2017), Palms (April 2018), Sunset Station (June 2019), Fiesta Rancho (June 2019), and Fiesta Henderson (September 2019).
“I voted YES to unionize because I want to have better health insurance, job security, and a pension,” said Matthew Seevers, a bartender at Fiesta Henderson. “I have a family and I want to make sure that they are taken care of. I feel proud because with the union, we will finally have a voice, and finally have someone in our corner to fight for what is right.”
Station Casinos has said many times that they would respect their employees’ right to hold an NLRB election:
- “We have said all along that if a fair and lawful election is held we will abide by the results.” - Richard Haskins, president of Station Casinos (Las Vegas Review Journal – September 1, 2016)
- “We…support their right to join a union if they so choose as that decision is theirs, not ours, to make.” – Lori Nelson, Station Casinos spokeswoman (Las Vegas Sun - February 12, 2016).
- “We’ve always respected our employees’ right to join a union if that’s what they want to do.” – Lori Nelson, Station Casinos spokeswoman (Las Vegas Sun - January 20, 2016)
- “Station Casinos officials have said they are willing to allow a secret-ballot vote” (Las Vegas Review Journal - October 7, 2014)
- “The decision to join a union belongs to our team members, and we respect that right.” – Lori Nelson, Station Casinos spokeswoman (Las Vegas Sun – August 29, 2014)
- “We’ve made it really clear that the door is open for a secret-ballot election.” - Lori Nelson, Station Casinos spokeswoman (Wall Street Journal – March 22, 2013)
- “Station saying a secret-ballot election is allowed and welcomed.” (Las Vegas Sun – January 22, 2012)
- “If the employees choose they wanna be in the union, then that’s their choice.” – Lorenzo Fertitta (Heavy MMA – September 2, 2011)
- “We have always recognized our team members’ right to be represented by a union if they so choose.” – Lori Nelson, Station Casinos spokeswoman (Las Vegas Review Journal – February 17, 2011)
The latest unionizing victory at Fiesta Henderson follows a May 2019 NLRB decision and order finding that Station Casinos’ Palms Casino Resort has unlawfully refused to recognize and bargain with the Culinary and Bartenders Unions.
In 2010, workers at Station Casinos started a public organizing drive. A majority of workers in the classifications that Culinary and Bartenders’ traditionally represents (which includes most of the hotel and food and beverage workers in a casino hotel) signed a public petition to demand a fair process to exercise their right to choose whether to unionize. Changes to NLRB rules in 2014 created new opportunities for workers to choose whether to unionize through NLRB-supervised secret-ballot elections despite Station Casinos’ management interference, intimidation, bullying, and litigation.
Red Rock Resorts (NASDAQ: RRR) became the parent company of Station Casinos through an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 2016. The company is controlled by Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, billionaire supporters of President Donald Trump. In addition to the unionized Boulder Station, Palace Station, Green Valley Ranch, Palms, Sunset Station, Fiesta Rancho, and Fiesta Henderson, the company’s other casino-hotels in Las Vegas include: Red Rock Resort, Santa Fe Station, and Texas Station.
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ABOUT THE CULINARY UNION:
Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including at most of the casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip and in Downtown Las Vegas. UNITE HERE represents 300,000 workers in gaming, hotel, and food service industries in North America.
The Culinary Union, through the Culinary Health Fund, is one of the largest healthcare consumers in the state. The Culinary Health Fund is sponsored by the Culinary Union and Las Vegas-area employers. It provides health insurance coverage for over 130,000 Nevadans, the Culinary Union’s members and their dependents.
The Culinary Union is Nevada’s largest immigrant organization with members who come from 178 countries and speak over 40 different languages. We are proud to have helped over 18,000 immigrants become American citizens and new voters since 2001 through our affiliate, The Citizenship Project.
The Culinary Union has a diverse membership -- approximately 55% women, 54% Latinx, 19% White, 15% Asian, 10% Black, and less than 1% Indigenous Peoples — and consists of guest room attendants, cocktail and food servers, porters, bellmen, cooks, bartenders, laundry and kitchen workers. The Culinary Union has been fighting for fair wages, job security, and good health benefits for workers in Nevada for 84 years.
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