Union for striking casino workers hopes talks will restart next week
Just over 700 casino workers in Okanagan, Kamloops walking picket lines, holding out for better wages
Contract talks between striking casino workers and their employer could resume next Tuesday.
The union representing Playtime Casino staff has asked for bargaining to occur July 9-11.
“We’re ready to go,” union spokeswoman Gayle Furgala said Tuesday. “We’re just waiting to hear back from the mediator that, yes, he is available for those dates.”
Gateway Casinos was prepared to proceed with previously scheduled negotiations for July 4-6, but a scheduling problem prevented that planned resumption of talks.
Just over 700 casino workers in Kelowna, Vernon, Penticton and Kamloops walked off the job last Friday.
“Three days in, the mood (among workers) is very uplifting, still really happy,” Furgala said. “We’ve had quite a few different unions join us on the picket line.”
On Canada Day, strikers held a charity barbecue on Water Street in support of BC Children’s Hospital. About $2,200 was raised, and the union hopes Gateway Casinos will match that amount.
The union says the two sides are far apart on wages. The starting salary is the B.C. minimum wage of $12.65 an hour, but the union wants that boosted to $18.63 an hour, which it calls a living wage in Kelowna.
For its part, Gateway Casinos says there were no negotiations on salary before the strike began, and the company points out the hourly wages are supplemented by tips many casino workers receive from customers.
“We were surprised that the union decided to end mediation before there was a discussion on wages. The union’s decision to go on strike before wages were addressed is unfortunate for our business and for our employees,” the company said in a release.
“We also encourage our employees who disagree with a strike to make it clear to the union that they don’t want a strike and want to continue working to support their families,” Gateway said.
The company calls the union’s wage demands “shocking.”
“As you might expect, proposing a 60 to 80 per cent wage increase is not reasonable for any business,” Gateway says.
During the strike, the casino remains open, but on reduced hours. It’s closed Monday and Tuesday, and open Wednesday to Sunday from noon to 2 a.m., but services and games are limited.
Strikes by casino workers elsewhere have lasted for months, and Furgala hopes that won’t be the case at the four gaming centres now behind picket lines.
“But if it happens, we’re prepared to buckle down,” she said.
In the meantime, to put bargaining pressure on Gateway, the union is asking people to go to Chances gaming centre on Springfield Road in Kelowna instead of the downtown casino.