The owners of the Foxwoods Resort Casino, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, is overseeing an election among workers wanting to join a labor union.
The workers, part of the Environmental Services Department, will vote on April 20 whether to join the New England Joint Board of UNITE HERE. UNITE HERE represents hospitality and casino workers in New England and across the country.
The election will take place under tribal labor law, which it enacted more than ten years ago—and enforced by the Mashantucket Employment Rights Office.
Several hundred maintenance and cleaner workers will vote. The union said 300 signed a petition saying they want the union. It said employees have concerns about job security and fair wage increases.
They have been bombarded by months of blandishments from the casino manager. Some have testified to the state legislature about the casino’s anti-union activities. Some said they have been required to meet with supervisors one on one to be grilled about their union support. Several have been suspended.
The union says that the threat of outsourcing is the number one complaint that led the workers to organize.
