ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — As Atlantic City’s casinos work to recover financially from the coronavirus pandemic, the workers who keep those casinos operating are trying to do the same, according to AP.
The main union representing casino workers in Atlantic City tells The Associated Press it is seeking “significant” wage increases in talks that are currently under way.
The goal is to keep workers from falling behind in an economy where labor shortages are increasing salaries in other industries, yet inflation is eating away at consumers’ purchasing power.
Existing contracts with eight of the nine casinos expire on May 31; the Ocean Casino Resort has been working without a union contract but has been adhering to its terms.
Bob McDevitt, president of Local 54 of the Unite Here union, said that casino workers – like their employers — are looking improve their finances in the third year of the pandemic.
“It is our intention to move our workers more firmly into the middle class,” he said. Union workers began wearing buttons on their uniforms last week that say “Casino Workers Need A Raise.”
Bill Callahan, general manager of the Ocean Casino, said he is “hopeful to have a ratified agreement in the upcoming days” that will result in wage increases for many employees.
Executives of four other casinos did not respond to requests for comment.
The union also plans to address what it says is a shortage of key workers at the casino resorts, including housekeepers, a job that McDevitt said has at least 500 openings in the city.
The emphasis on higher wages represents a switch for the union, which over the decades has prioritized comprehensive health insurance and pensions over big pay raises, McDevitt said.
He said the casino industry is showing strength in the third year of the pandemic, aided by strong performances in the internet gambling and sports betting industries. Last year, according to the state Division of Gaming Enforcement, the casinos won over $4.2 billion in combined casino, online and sports betting revenue.
But casino executives have long said the online and sports betting revenue streams are not what they seem because the casinos only keep about 30% of that money, with the rest going to third-party providers.
They argue that money won from in-person gamblers on their premises is a truer indication of the health of the industry. Last year’s in-person revenue figure was $2.5 billion, which is below the level of 2019, before the pandemic hit.
McDevitt said he is optimistic that new contracts can be reached quickly with the casinos, and Lupo echoed McDevitt’s assessment of the working relationship between the union and the casinos as a positive one.
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