Culinary Union to sue Station Casinos over alleged violations of "Right to Return" law

The Culinary Union is set to file a lawsuit against Station Casinos alleging multiple violations of the COVID-19 “Right to Return” law. SB386, which was signed by Governor Sisolak in June last year, ensures Nevada’s casino, hospitality and travel-related employees laid off due to the pandemic are able to return to their former positions.

“The Culinary Union announces that hospitality workers will file a mass action lawsuit against their current and former employer, Station Casinos, alleging violations of the “Nevada Hospitality and Travel Workers Right to Return Act” (SB386),” the union announced in a press statement.

According to the Culinary Union, SB386 creates a cause of action against employers “who fail to abide by the process the law lays out” for the orderly recall of hospitality workers to position with their former employers for which they are qualified.

📢 BREAKING: Culinary Union announces hospitality workers will file a mass action lawsuit against #StationCasinos alleging multiple violations of the SB386 “Right to Return” law -

📍Press conference: Tuesday, March 29 at 11am at the Culinary Union.https://t.co/aY7mp0RhBK $RRR pic.twitter.com/jQxYVxAySQ

— Culinary Union (@Culinary226) March 28, 2022

The union will be holding a press conference on the details of the lawsuit today, at 11 am PT. The meeting will be held at Culinary Union’s John Wilhelm Hall, 1630 South Commerce Street Las Vegas, Nevada. Former and current Station Casinos workers will join Culinary Union officials, including Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge and President Diana Valles.

Through the complaint, the Culinary Union alleges that Station Casinos, Nevada’s third-largest private employer and owner and operator of nine casinos in Las Vegas, “has operated in flagrant violation of its obligations as an employer” and has not recalled hospitality workers back to work as mandated by SB386.

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, 98% of Culinary Union members were laid off and currently 80% are back to work, the union claims. “While a majority of unionized workers already have extended recall protections in their contracts, a majority of workers protected by SB386 are not unionized,” a press release says.

🗣️ Culinary Union announces that hospitality workers will file a mass action lawsuit against #StationCasinos alleging violations of SB386. WATCH the livestream of the press conference - TOMORROW - Tuesday, March 29th at 11am Pacific.
📽️ https://t.co/MNZ8XGlRWT $RRR pic.twitter.com/DkmA34FDeU

— Culinary Union (@Culinary226) March 29, 2022

The law mandates that workers laid off after March 12, 2020 for economic reasons due to the pandemic are eligible for Right to Return, with protections beginning July 1, 2021, and expiring August 31, 2022. The union describes its provisions as the result “of a 13-month intensive effort by the Culinary Union” to ensure workers are not left behind as the economy recovers.

“The Culinary Union is proud to have won the Right to Return for over 350,000 hospitality workers in Nevada,” the union claims. “SB386 gave hundreds of thousands of union and non-union casino, hospitality, stadium, and travel-related employees, who were laid off, through no fault of their own, the Right to Return to their jobs as business returns. Every Republican member in the 2021 Nevada Legislature voted to not support SB386.”

The announcement builds upon the ongoing conflict between the Culinary Union and Station Casinos. Earlier this week, Yogonet reported that the union called the company’s license suitability into question and urged Nevada regulators to investigate it for “failing to adhere to federal labor law.”

📢 PRESS RELEASE: Culinary Union has officially asked the Nevada Gaming Control Board to investigate #StationCasinos’ suitability in connection with its properties’ privileged Nevada gaming licenses for failing to adhering to federal labor law.https://t.co/iZXPpOp8lU $RRR pic.twitter.com/kOXS0dBbo9

— Culinary Union (@Culinary226) March 24, 2022

“The Culinary Union is confident the State’s gaming regulators will want to take action against Station Casinos after they have reviewed the ample documentation and evidence of the company and its affiliates’ disregard of federal law, including the current allegations before the NLRB,” said Ted Pappageorge, Secretary-Treasurer for the Culinary Union, in a statement last Wednesday.

The union has long maintained that the gaming operator has violated federal labor laws in its alleged opposition and interference with unionization efforts at its properties. The company has been accused of wrongdoing, by improving pay and benefits ahead of elections to sway voters.