Strike Avoided: Are Ontario Casinos Secured For The Future?
Ontario workers at six land-based casinos recently threatened to strike if negotiations failed and a new agreement was not reached to improve workers’ wages, benefits and pensions. However, a tentative agreement was reached before the deadline between the Canadian trade union and the Great Canadian Gaming Corporation (GCGC), which averted the strike.
Plans to improve their wages and benefits are now in place, but what exactly does this mean for the workers? Are their jobs in the gambling sector secure for the future?
Casino employees threaten to strike
In mid-July 2022, around 1,500 employees from six of the eight casinos owned by the Great Canadian Gaming Corporation (GCGC) threatened to strike in a bid to improve wages, benefits, and pensions. If newly improved contracts were not agreed upon by Friday, July 22nd, the strike would have gone ahead.
The Canadian trade union, Unifor, represented the casino workers in Toronto, and they managed to enter into successful negotiations for land-based casino workers in a variety of roles, including table dealers, members who work in the slots area, security staff, cashiering, guest services, housekeeping and general maintenance, and food and beverage workers, among other roles.
The casino Ontario workforce rallied together and was very close to striking, but strike action was eventually avoided. Unifor also sought to get those in part-time positions (also known as casual positions) to be upgraded to full-time positions to distribute a fair amount of dependable jobs among the workforce.
Involved in the potential strikes were Shorelines Casino Thousand Islands, Shorelines Casino Peterborough, Casino Ajax, Pickering Casino Resort, Casino Woodbine, and Great Blue Heron Casino, all of which are owned and operated by Great Canadian Gaming Corporation (GCGC), which was purchased in September 2021 by an affiliate of Apollo Global Management.
Where did the problems begin?
A lot of the problems can be traced back to the first ever COVID-19 lockdown, which saw all land-based casinos having to close their doors to the general public, which meant that the workers also had to stay home. When the casinos eventually did reopen, business was extremely slow to pick up, and it took a while before employees could even return to ‘work as normal.’
What’s next for casino workers in Ontario?
Negotiations are still underway between the bargaining committees for Pickering Casino Resort and Casino Ajax and the GCGC until a proper deal is reached, and it’s hoped that an agreement will be made between the two parties. It looks as though the agreements that were recently made are a step in the right direction for employees, so the future definitely looks promising. Better wages, benefits and pensions will lead to an improvement in job satisfaction and a happier workforce, which will be great for business.
How to book a stay at a casino in Toronto?
If you’re looking to spend some time at one of these hotels & casinos to see what they have to offer, you can book directly with the hotel by visiting their official websites. In addition, there are lots of other trusted online booking vendors that are affiliated with the hotels where you can also reserve your rooms.
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