In Ohio, Penn Entertainment and two unions—the International Steelworkers Local 1-346 and United Auto Workers (UAW)—reached a last-minute labor deal concerning about 900 unionized workers between two Penn venues, those being Hollywood Casinos in Toledo and Columbus.
The deal narrowly avoided a strike that was set to begin at midnight on December 22.
Per Eric Sweeney, a Steelworkers representative, the new deal is for four years. Pay rates were a focal point of negotiations, and Sweeney told the Toledo Blade that the agreement includes a “significant increase over any contract (workers have) seen since the casinos have been in Ohio.”
Of the 900 workers between the two venues, 400 came from the Toledo location, which are represented by UAW, whereas the Columbus workers are represented by Steelworkers. However, they are all grouped under the same new contract.
According to Tony Totty, the UAW representative in Toledo, talks didn’t advance much in the preceding days, but ramped up quickly once time became scarce. Sweeney told the Toledo Blade that “a lot of things kind of came our way at the last minute.”
Now that the terms have been agreed to, the workers will hold a ratification vote for the contract in the first week of January. If approved, the contract will be retroactive to December 1.
Over the course of negotiations, workers had been asking for a raise in base pay from $6.36 an hour to a minimum of $7.25, as well as more affordable healthcare options. Although exact details have not been released, Sweeney said that the raise will equate to about $1 per hour for tipped workers, subject to further increases in the future.
According to data from the Ohio Casino Control Commission, the venues have amassed nearly $500 million in combined revenue so far this year, with Hollywood Casino Toledo bringing in just under $210 million and Hollywood Casino Columbus tallying $241 million.
