OCEAN CITY – Dozens of Casino at Ocean Downs employees took a gamble on trying to pressure their employers to increase their pay by picketing in front of the casino on Thursday afternoon.
In recent months, a handful of employees have been seen handing out leaflets to incoming casino goers in hopes of gaining public support for ongoing wage negotiations with Ocean Downs’ management. This week, the leaflets turned to picket signs.
“This is the first time that workers have organized a picket line in front of Ocean Downs, and we think that our demands for better pay are very similar to the conversation that is happening nationally about income inequality and the disappearance of the middle class,” said Mishy Leiblum, lead organizer with UNITE HERE local 7, which is a national organization that represents workers in the hotel, gaming, food service, transportation, and manufacturing industries.
According to Leiblum, about 100 of the workers at Ocean Downs are unionized, and they’ve been increasing their call for better compensation, especially since the revenue numbers for the casino have grown since it opened five years ago.
The union contract expired last October and no new agreement has been finalized.
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4 comments:
Not getting paid what you want? Go find a job that will pay you what that is, or become worth that much. The job you have pays what it's worth.
As much money as that casino takes in, it surely can come up with more money to pay the employees a little more. Greedy, money hungry gambling establishments are disgusting anyway. People go there, hoping, but still knowing full well, that when they leave, more likely than not, they are going to leave most of their money right there. I really hate to see people go there that honestly cannot afford it at all, but think that maybe, just maybe, they will win something, then go home to their family without the paycheck. Stupid, really stupid, I agree, but the place just suckers them right on in. For those that work there, I hope they will give you more in your paycheck.
I agree with 6:32. The big question is how many of these casino employees get government entitlements. The politicians talked a good game (lying which is really all they know how to do good) as usual about how the casino would create jobs but what good are jobs when they pay slave wages. I am not against a business making money, but when the tax payers are supplementing the businesses employees that is not a business anyone can say is a good successful business. We see the same thing with Walmart and the chicken companies. There is nothing great about those businesses or their models. Quite the opposite. Anyone can succeed in business when they pay so many employees so little they have to rely on handouts to live.
The owners essentially invited the union in at the start. The union is just farming the employees and has no real leverage to increase the wages. Cynical side of me suggests that permitting the union in without a challenge was probably one of the silent quids needed to get the casino franchise award quo.
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