NO DEAL YET IN MARDI GRAS CASINO NEGOTIATION
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NITRO – The United Steelworkers (USW) Union, Local 14614-F8, will vote Friday, Oct. 2, on whether or not to accept Mardi Gras Casino and Resort’s most recent final offer regarding employee insurance.
“Contrary to recent reports, an agreement has not yet been reached,” Steelworkers Spokesman Ron Brady, Local 14614-F8 president, said. “Mardi Gras Casino and Resort told us Tuesday that they had modified their offer, and now our members will vote Friday on whether or not to accept that offer.”
The parties have been engaged in insurance negotiations since the first week of August.
“While one of our concerns has been addressed in their modified offer, our employees are still facing rising premiums,” Brady noted. “The Company is seeking to drastically increase the employee’s premium contribution by over 200%, which amounts to over $1,100 per year, while the employees there haven’t had a pay raise in over three years.”
After the union voted Friday, Sept. 25, to authorize a strike, the Company offered to address the union’s concerns over their proposed language that restricted the union’s ability to bargain insurance benefits. However the Company did not change their proposed premium cost sharing amounts.
“The Union had offered to share the premium increase 50/50 with the Company, but the Company rejected the offer,” Brady said. “The Company has stated that they can afford the increases, however, they are unwilling to do so.”
Brady added, “Mardi Gras Vice President Dan Adkins recently stated that ‘some employees make 50, 60, and 70 thousand dollars a year,’ but actually less than 10% of union employees at Mardi Gras make more than $50,000 a year. The average annual income for employees is approximately $35,000 a year and this amount is inclusive of tips.”
MEMBERS OF USW LOCAL 14614-F8 VOTE TO STRIKE AGAINST MARDI GRAS CASINO AND RESORT
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NITRO, West Virginia (September 25, 2015) — Members of the United Steelworkers (USW) Union, Local 14614-F8, voted Friday, September 25, 2015 to authorize a strike against Mardi Gras Casino and Resort, after rejecting the Company’s Last, Best, and Final offer during an insurance re-opener.
The parties have been engaged in insurance negotiations since the first week of August. The Company is seeking to drastically increase the employee’s premium contribution by over 200% and eliminate the Union’s ability to bargain over future insurance changes and costs to the employees.
The Union has offered to share the premium increase 50/50 with the Company, but the Company rejected the offer. The Company has stated that they can afford the increases, however, they are unwilling to do so.
Local Union President, Ron Brady, will be available on Saturday, September 26, 2015 from 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. in person at the local union hall located at 510 Main Avenue, Nitro, WV or by phone to answer any questions you may have.
USW Local 14614-F8 represents approximately 350 members employed at Mardi Gras Casino and Resort.
Cleanup/Disaster Relief Workers Needed
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Kanawha Valley Residents Asked To Help Stamp Out Hunger Saturday, May 9
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CHARLESTON -- Kanawha Valley residents can help fight hunger in the region by simply placing non-perishable food donations by their mailboxes on Saturday, May 9, that will be collected by letter carriers and distributed locally to those in need.
“Many of our neighbors, including seniors, veterans and children, go hungry every day,” noted Letter Carrier and Charleston resident Cathy Jones. “For 22 years, letter carriers across the country have organized this effort to help food pantries stock their shelves, and to increase awareness of this ongoing problem.”
Union sets W.Va. Workers Memorial Day ceremony
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wvgazette.com
HARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – The West Virginia AFL-CIO will hold a ceremony at the state Capitol to remember workers who died on the job last year.
The 27th Workers Memorial Day ceremony is set for noon Tuesday. Local and state workers and union representatives will attend the ceremony in front of the West Virginia Coal Miner Statue.
West Virginia AFL-CIO President Kenny Perdue says the event will honor 17 West Virginians who died at work in 2014.
We are a group of more than 575 affiliated unions joined together for the common cause of fairness for all workers.
The future of the working men and women of America depends on a strong, united labor movement. The strength of that movement is in our numbers: thousands of men and women united, striving for the same common goals
- fairness, justice, and equality in the workplace.
