May 21

Interview w/ Prof. Kraft in Las Vegas Review-Journal

From the Las Vegas Review-Journal (May 21, 2018):

Thousands of unionized Las Vegas casino workers are expected to vote Tuesday on whether to go on strike.

A “yes” vote could potentially be costly for casinos — and for the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165. The unions represent about 50,000 affected workers combined, but not all are expected to vote, said culinary union spokeswoman Bethany Khan.

Las Vegas union workers have struck at several casinos over the years, but the last city-wide strike was in 1984. It impacted 32 resorts and lasted 67 days.

Las Vegas casinos lost as much as $100 million in revenue (about $250 million today) while city and state budgets lost millions in tourist-related taxes, said James Kraft, who authored the book Vegas at Odds: Labor Conflict in a Leisure Economy, 1960-1985.

Read the full article: https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/casinos-gaming/las-vegas-casino-workers-to-vote-whether-to-go-on-strike/