The off-Strip Virgin Hotel Las Vegas became the target of the first full-scale strike by Culinary Workers Union Local 226 in more than 22 years when some 700 non-gaming employees walked off the job Friday morning.
Picket lines were immediately formed at all entrances to the 1,500-room hotel-casino shortly after 5 a.m. Contract negotiations broke down on Thursday afternoon when the union and management failed to agree on a new multi-year contract.
The strike comes a week before the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix. Virgin, which sits less than a mile east of Grand Prix Plaza, has various sponsorship deals with the race. It is also a drop-off and pick-up point for race fans using a ride-sharing service.
The Culinary and its affiliated Bartenders Local 165 have been in negotiations with JC Hospitality, owners of the Virgin, on a new five-year contract. The previous deal expired last year.
Union leaders said the company has refused to offer raises comparable to other off-Strip and downtown resorts in Las Vegas, citing The STRAT Hotel, Casino and Tower, which gave its non-tipped workers $4 an hour in wage increases this year.