Workers union to strike several Atlantic City casinos
June 25, 2022
The main casino workers union at the Atlantic City casinos locations has warned that a strike may result in daily losses of $2.6 million for all four casinos combined. They issued a warning one week before it was scheduled to begin a strike against several casinos in Atlantic City.
A report was released on Friday by Local 54 of the Unite Here union, which estimated that the Borgata casino could lose an additional $1.6 million per day in revenue in the event of a strike. In addition, the three casinos owned by Caesars Entertainment — Caesars, Harrah's, and Tropicana — could collectively lose an additional $1 million per day in revenue.
The union based its estimations on previous casino revenue and earnings statistics submitted to the state, assuming that a strike would result in a 25 percent drop in income in the current year's third quarter compared to the same period in 2021.
The union to strike four casinos
Contracts with the nine casinos in Atlantic City ended on June 1, 2022. If no new agreement is reached by July 1, the union has authorized a strike against these four casinos. It has also set a strike deadline of July 3 for Hard Rock, whose finances were not included in Friday's estimations.
The union's president, Bob McDevitt, had no immediate reaction to the Friday report. MGM Resorts International, which owns the other three casinos, did not immediately reply to messages seeking comment Friday.
With so many variables at play, Jane Bokunewicz, director of the Lloyd Levenson Institute at Stockton University, which monitors the Atlantic City casino sector, said it is difficult to correctly predict the financial impact of a strike. These include the number of casinos targeted by a strike and the public's willingness to patronize them in such an event.
"The casino floors at all properties would remain functioning as normal because they are not part of Local 54," she said.
Casinos that have been struck would use non-union personnel and management to keep the hotel and food and beverage outlets working at an acceptable level in order to attract consumers. Revenue losses or profits would be determined by how good they are at this, as per Bokunewicz's statement.
The strike may affect Caesars casino
Bally's and Ocean Casino Resort have signed "me-too" agreements with the union vowing to adhere to the contracts with the city's larger casinos. Consequently, the union has said that they would not go on strike due to the agreement.
According to the union assessment, a strike might significantly impact Caesars Entertainment, which received 15 percent of its earnings from Atlantic City in the third quarter of last year.
Furthermore, a union report says that Caesars' New Jersey properties generated 33.2 percent of their net revenue and 42 percent of their gross operating profit in the third quarter of 2021.
The union also mentioned that the timing of a strike could be problematic for the casinos since it would begin at the beginning of the Fourth of July weekend, which is typically one of the busiest times of the year for Atlantic City's casinos.
Reports estimate that it would come at a time when all nine casinos are experiencing an ongoing shortage of workers. Workers from Local 54 are responsible for various tasks, including cleaning hotel rooms and public facilities, such as the casino floor and restrooms, and working in food and beverage operations.
