Threat of strike looms for Virgin Hotels Las Vegas
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LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Virgin Hotels Las Vegas workers have yet to receive a new five-year contract, though every other property with team members represented by Culinary Union Local 226 has.
A negotiation extension averted a strike ahead of the valley’s first Super Bowl in February. Culinary Union Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge says history could be made as this property has never been the subject of a worker strike, even in the 2010s when a giant guitar on the roof of the then Hard Rock-branded hotel welcomed guests.
“Virgin has said from the get-go, ‘No raises at all for the first three years,'” Pappageorge said during a Thursday morning picket outside the property on Harmon. “We’re willing to work
with them to some extent, but at the end of the day, workers are going to have to see raises.”
Though on-the-job security and protections from human workers being replaced by technology and machine learning remain part of the negotiation priorities, raises are apparently the sticking point in talks that have been ongoing since the fall of 2023.
By February, all other Strip and Downtown Las Vegas properties had agreed to a new contract, and several independent hotel workers were seeing hourly raises of around $9 to $10.
“We haven’t made any progress with this company—just zero,” Pappageorge said. We’re trying to give them time, but time’s running out.”
Virgin Las Vegas is owned by an LLC called JC Hospitality, though the Mohegan Tribe operates the casino portion while Hilton operates the hotel portion.
The tribe, for one, does not report revenue at its individual properties across the United States, but it does report cash flow or the amount of money going in and out of the casino. Through the last reported period in 2023, over $3 million in cash flow was recorded, more than a 430 percent drop from the prior year.
Pappageorge acknowledged the downturn but said they’re calling the LLC out on their bluff.
“There’s a couple of big hedge funds, private equity folks that are sitting on a pile of money that we’re negotiating with,” Pappageorge said. “The company’s investing hundreds of millions
of dollars into the property and the building. They’re going to have to invest money in the workers.”
Virgin Hotels Las Vegas did not respond to questions about this contrast in financial perspectives but instead said, “Virgin Hotels Las Vegas is committed to bargaining with Culinary Workers Union 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165 in good faith. While it is unfortunate that we do not yet have an agreement, we remain optimistic that continuing negotiations will result in a positive conclusion for all parties. Virgin Hotels Las Vegas appreciates the patience and support of our team members, guests, and the public during the negotiation process.”
The hold-up affects workers, as several said they’re already juggling multiple jobs to keep up with Las Vegas inflation. Pamela Holmes, a lead usher at the casino’s entertainment department, says she has three jobs.
“I do hair, I take care of my mom full time, and I work here full time,” Holmes said. “My mom doesn’t have any money coming in, and I’m the sole supporter of my family.”
Holmes added that officials from Virgin Hotels said they had no money and nothing to give, saying that “they’re broke.”
Jovani Guerrero Lopez, a kitchen steward for the hotel, said they’re prepared to pack up.
“If you don’t have workers, your whole place is going to topple down,” Guerrero Lopez said while holding a sign reading ‘No justice, no peace’ on the front. “We don’t need to dig in the
dirt just to have those common necessities.”
Culinary Union officials meet with Virgin Hotels property owners next week. Depending on the result of those talks, a strike deadline could later be set. Pappageorge said the next cycle of expiring contracts, including those for the Venetian Las Vegas, Fontainebleau Las Vegas, and Sphere, are either in negotiation or will be soon.
