Nevada-based UNITE HERE labor union affiliates Bartenders Union Local 165 and Culinary Workers Union Local 226 announced on Tuesday that a four-year agreement with The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas has been voted in favor of by CoStars. Under the terms of the agreement, more than 2,000 CoStars working in the food and beverage, housekeeping, and bell departments of the venue would be covered.
Claudia Zarate, a room stylist at the Las Vegas-based resort, commented that she is really happy about the contract as this has been something she has been looking forward to in the past four years. Ms. Zarate further noted that she is comforted by the fact that both The Cosmopolitan and the union share a common idea of providing workers with fair wages, safe workloads, and proper health benefits.
Commenting on the new four-year contract the Secretary-Treasurer of the Culinary Union, Geoconda Arguello-Kline, said that they applaud the hard work of the CoStars at The Cosmopolitan over the past four years. She further noted that the new leadership of Blackstone and President and CEO Bill McBeath proved to be “a positive turning point” in the partnership, which has been negotiated for years with former owners.
Mr. McBeath himself told media that the newly reached agreement is indicative of how lives can be changed when all involved parties are interested in achieving positive results.
The Blackstone Group bought The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas in December 2014 for the amount of $1.7 billion. Jon Gray, Global Head of Real Estate for the financial services giant, said that after it acquired the property, it made it a top priority to resolve the issue quickly and in a manner that would satisfy all interested parties.
CoStars members also commented that they are content with the four-year contract after prolonged negotiations with The Cosmopolitan’s former owners. Discussions about the signing of a union agreement were so heated at some point that those even resulted in union members being arrested for civil disobedience.
Generally speaking, Bartenders Local 165 and Culinary Workers Local 226 are UNITE HERE affiliates that represent more than 55,000 workers at Las Vegas and Reno casino resorts, including ones on the Las Vegas Strip. As for UNITE HERE itself, it represents more than 270,000 people employed in the hotel, casino, and food services industries across North America.
