FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 9, 2015
MEDIA CONTACT:
Bethany Khan: bkhan@culinaryunion226.org ▪ (702) 387-7088
Hundreds of Jobs to be Outsourced at Palms Casino
Culinary Union Calls on the Private Equity Owners to Retain Workers
Las Vegas, NV – Hundreds of jobs in the food and beverage departments at the private-equity owned Palms Casino Resort will be outsourced on November 2, 2015, according to a memo delivered to hotel staff last month.
“I was surprised to hear about the plans to outsource jobs,” said Juan Sanchez, a bar porter who has worked at the Palms for 5 years. “The news came after my coworkers and I delivered a petition to management two months ago announcing our intent to join a union and requesting a fair process free from management intimidation and interference.”
In June 2015, members of the Palms Organizing Committee (many of whom work in food and beverage departments) delivered a petition to Palms CEO Todd Greenberg and asked management to remain neutral and allow them to make their own decision about unionization. Greenberg refused.
This week, local faith leaders will join Palms workers to support them as they deliver a second petition signed by a majority of their coworkers asking for the resort to agree to a fair process which would allow workers to choose whether to unionize without management interference, intimidation, harassment, bullying, and litigation.
“We have fought for 80 years so that working men and women could have the opportunity to provide for their families,” said Geoconda Arguello-Kline, Secretary-Treasurer of the Culinary Union. “We urge private equity firms to create sustainable jobs in Las Vegas. The Palms decision to outsource hundreds of positions is disappointing and does not support a strong middle-class economy.”
Last year, the Blackstone Group, committed that they would retain all employees during its acquisition of the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Blackstone and the Culinary Union are currently working together to build the success of the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas after a prolonged labor dispute under previous ownership.
“We asked the Palms to be neutral like most other casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip,” said Rafael Tellez, a kitchen worker at the casino resort. “Instead they are now planning on subcontracting out my job. I’m worried about the impact on my family if I lose my job or my salary is cut.”
Although workers have been offered severance, they are not guaranteed a job. In the letter from Palms management, workers were told, “You can apply for other open positions at Palms or with Sodexo.”
The Palms subcontracting letter is online at: http://www.pecloserlook.org/tpgs-leonard-greens-palms-casino-to-outsource-hundreds-of-jobs.
The private equity industry has sought to make the case that private equity ownership leads to job creation. TPG and Leonard Green & Partners just provided a powerful counterexample when Palms management announced it was subcontracting food and beverage jobs to Sodexo. Over 220 Palms workers who work in the buffet, coffee shop, main kitchen, and bakery will be affected by the outsourcing.
Since 2011, the Palms has been owned by two private equity firms: TPG Capital with $67 billion in assets and Leonard Green & Partners with $15 billion in assets.
Letter from Clergy & Laity United for Economic Justice (CLUE) to TPG and Leonard Green & Partners:
###
Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent over 55,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including at most of casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip and in Downtown Las Vegas. UNITE HERE represents 270,000 workers in gaming, hotel, and food service industries in North America.
www.CulinaryUnion226.org / @Culinary226