Police arrested roughly two dozenCulinary Union Local 226 members Wednesday night after they blocked traffic at Tropicana Avenue and University Center Drive in a peaceful act of civil disobedience near Harry Reid International Airport, where labor negotiations with airport vendors are ongoing.
With Metro Police officers waiting, the union members started blocking northbound traffic on University Center at around 6 p.m. By 6:16 p.m., police had reopened traffic after moving the demonstrators into a nearby bus to the sound of supporters blasting vuvuzelas.
The arrests follow a strike authorization weeks earlier by roughly 400 airport workers at 10 companies with lapsed union contracts. The employers operate 21 airport shops, from national chains to local shops like Bagelmania and Village Pub.