Encore Casino Employees Vote in Favor of Strike

Summary:

• Room attendants, cocktail servers, cooks, cleaners, and drivers are among those involved.
• Unite Here Local 26 and International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 25 are working together.
• The contract expired on April 19.

Encore Boston Harbor Casino is a popular casino located in Everett, Massachusetts. The casino has seen great success over the past few years, having first opened in 2019. Today, the casino may face an employee strike if negotiations are not ramped up involving a new five-star contract with the operator.

A New Contract Is Needed Now

When the casino opened in 2019, local unions banded together to ensure the employees were cared for. This included the United Here Local 26 and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 25. The original contract between the unions and the casino expired on April 19, and it is already almost July, with no new contract in place.

Casino workers have now voted to go on strike, hoping to sign the new contract as quickly as possible. The operator now has until June 30 to set a new five-star deal, or the employees go on strike. This would include cocktail servers, room attendants, drivers, public area cleaners, cooks, bar porters and dishwashers.

Negotiations began on a new contract on March 9, but no headway has been made. Employees are tired of waiting and are prepared to act if the negotiations are not settled by the end of the month.

Moving Ahead with Action

A news release with details of the strike stated that the majority of union members voted in approval of the strike. Only 13 voted no, while 963 were in favor. The union workers are seeking better wages, benefits, and job security.

Employees spoke out, stating that living in Massachusetts especially Boston is expensive. A lot of people work at Encore and must have more than one job to survive. Less time is spent with families as more work time is needed to pay the bills.

Employees say that the casino calls its workers a “Five-Star Team” but does not maintain that status among its members. The employees are doing all the work so that the casino can maintain a 5-Star rating.

If the negotiations continue to stall, the strike will begin. Picket lines would run constantly, and union leaders have said that delivery drivers will not cross the picket line to deliver items the casino needs. All the essential workers and items needed will be halted, which should direct the casino officials to get to work, creating a new contract for union members.

It will be interesting to see if a deal is made before June 30 or if the strike will take place to get het ball rolling.