In an emerging labor dispute, employees from prominent Detroit establishments – Hollywood Casino Greektown, MGM Grand Detroit, and Motor City Casino – initiated a strike on Tuesday. The workers have launched their industrial action due to their union’s inability to secure an improved contract with management.
The strike was announced by the Detroit Casino Council, the labor union representing employees across several professions. Amid a backdrop of casino dealers, food and beverage staff, valets, cleaners, engineers, and more, picketing has commenced outside the three major casinos, under the banner of the five unions that form the DCC.
Extensive negotiations have unfolded over months, with the union’s primary objective being a new contract that provides significant upgrades for the workforce. Faced with resistance from the casinos’ management to meet the proposed terms, the workers are primarily advocating for enhanced wages, comprehensive healthcare benefits, appropriate workloads for housekeepers, among other improvements.
The plea for improved employment perks comes as the business of gambling has rebounded to its pre-pandemic volumes, largely on the back of online gambling’s prevailing growth. Yet, the DCC highlights that the overall compensation for Detroit’s gambling employees last year alone was a staggering $34 million short of the total from 2019.
Countering the union’s claim, the Michigan Gaming Control Board contends that the casinos’ revenue has yet to recover fully from the economic backlash of the pandemic. Notably though, these figures do not incorporate the earnings from digital gambling.
The implications of the strike hold significant potential to derail the financial balance. According to the DCC, the ongoing strike puts an estimated daily revenue of $3.4 million in jeopardy, and could cost the local and state authorities approximately $738,000 in tax earnings per day.
