Casino, union set time to talk with mediator

Gateway staff voted last week 93% in favour of strike action

A week after its members voted in favour of a strike, the union representing casino employees in the Okanagan has a mediation date with its employer.

In a vote held between June 4 and 6, more than 88 per cent of Gateway staff, totalling more than 675 people, at casinos in Kelowna, Penticton, Vernon and Kamloops voted 93.1 per cent in favour of taking strike action.

In a statement, Gateway Casino said it was “very frustrated and disappointed” the union had taken a strike vote.

“The fact is, we have made extensive efforts to meet with the union to get a deal for our employees for many months now,” it said.

The last collective agreement expired in Sept. 2017, and the first bargaining dates were set for early 2018.

Talks broke off on May 11 after the union and the employer could not agree on wages. Gateway said it was shocked by the union’s proposal to increase wages by an average 62 per cent, with some positions increasing by 80 per cent.

“Proposing a 60 per cent to 80 per cent wage increase is not reasonable for any business,” Gateway's Tanya Gabara wrote in a letter to the editor.

Wage increases are to bring employees up to the industry standard level, Stephanie Smith, president of the BC Government and Service Employees’ Union, said Wednesday.

“Some of the positions at the four Gateway casinos in the Okanagan earn minimum wage,” she said. “Eighty per cent on minimum wage to bring them up to industry standards is, in our view, not unreasonable. The last offer that the employer provided in terms of a wage compensation package wouldn’t have kept our members up with the planned minimum wage increases of the NDP government.”

A mediation date between the union and Gateway has been set for June 15.

“We’re looking forward to getting back to the table and trying to get an agreement,” said Smith. “The casino industry is a profitable one, and those profits are reliant on the workers who provide the experience for casino clientele and . . . and all we’re asking for is that casinos recognize workers’ contributions.”

Gateway said it is “committed to having respectful discussions with the union to achieve a mutually agreeable contract that is reasonable and responsible” for both it and its employees.