Workers at the Caesars Windsor in Ontario, Canada have shut it down in a strike involving all those working at the casino, hotel and concert venue. More than 2,300 are involved in the strike.
The strike began shortly after midnight on Friday, April 6. Picket lines soon formed, with striking workers braving cold, stiff winds. Portable toilets and propane heaters were soon brought in.
Officials for Unifor Local 444 said they didn’t have plans to go back to the bargaining table. The union rejected a three-year agreement last week at a vote taken in the evening, with 59 percent voting against.
This formed casino and hotel managers to move quickly to get the public out of the buildings and close them.
The casino, which is owned by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp., was forced to cancel all concerts and hotel reservations through the end of April.
The rejected contract included $1,150 in signing bonuses for full-time employees, $900 for part-time and $500 for casual employees; a 75 cents-per-hour raise on signing and 50 cents each April in 2019 and 2020.
Union President James Stewart told the Windsor Star “I did have a conversation with the company earlier today and at this point they are not prepared to talk.” He added, “We are trying to get our arms around meeting the needs of our members. There were a lot of good things in the collective agreement but ultimately our members wanted more in terms of wages and there were issues regarding respect.”
The regional president of Caesars Entertainment, Kevin Laforet said in a statement, “We expect this strike will have a negative impact on our business in this very competitive market. I would like to personally acknowledge our valued customers and on behalf of myself and our management team, apologize for the inconvenience this labor disruption causes.”
The strike forced a cancellation of the rest of the April concert schedule at the Colosseum, including concerts by Country artist Johnny Reid and Blues guitarist Buddy Guy, David Foster and Terry Fator. All Total Rewards promotions, conventions, events and meetings for the rest of the month, as well as all hotel reservations, were also cancelled.
Laforet stated, “It was a very difficult decision to postpone the remainder of April concerts and events and cancel hotel reservations. Ultimately our commitment to customer service means being proactive and giving our patrons and clients advance notice in the event they need to make alternative plans.”
He added, “We have been in regular contact with union leadership and we are open to returning to the bargaining table. However at this time, there is no new information to discuss.”
The contract the union rejected included $1,150 in signing bonuses for full-time employees, $900 for part-time and $500 for casual employees; a 75 cents-per-hour raise on signing and 50 cents each April in 2019 and 2020.
Union members say they are ready for a long strike. “As long as it takes,” Doug Boughner, the union’s third vice president, told the Windsor Star. “The mood is good right now. The members are in good spirits. Everyone is assigned a gate and a time.” The last labor strike at the casino, in 2004, took 42 days to resolve.
If Caesars is looking at a bleak week, the three casinos in Detroit, across the river, could get a windfall. That 2004 strike hurt Caesars’s market share and helped the three American casinos: The MGM Grand Detroit, MotorCity Casino Hotel and Greektown Casino-Hotel.
The problem with long strikes is they hit at customer loyalty. If a casino loses a customer to a strike, sometimes the customer doesn’t come back.
Gaming consultant Jake Miklojcik told the Detroit Free Press: “Loyalty is very important. That’s why you have all these fancy point systems and cards. If people who prefer Windsor start testing other places, maybe Detroit, it could have an effect.”
Alex Calderone, of Calderone Advisory Group, tempered that: “I don’t think that someone who is a die-hard Total Rewards member is going to look at something like this and decide he wants to be loyal to a different property,” said Alex Calderone, managing director of Birmingham-based Calderone Advisory Group.
Increased times at crossing the international border and a smoking ban that went into effect last year at Caesars has made it less of a competitive threat to the Detroit casinos, according to Moody’s Investors Service.
The strike is proving to be a windfall for other Ontario casinos, including the Gateway Casinos in Dresden and Point Edward.
Gateway spokesman Rob Mitchell said, “We’re just seeing very large volumes that are out of the ordinary for us, especially for a weekday.” He estimated an up to 40 percent increase in customers. “There’s no question that people who enjoy gaming as entertainment in the Windsor area are looking for alternatives and we’re there to offer that alternative. We have sites that are not that far away.”
