Negotiations fell through again earlier this month
After months of failed negotiations with their employer, employees of Gateway Casinos in Kelowna, Vernon, Penticton, and Kamloops will be headed to the picket lines this Friday.
93 percent of the 675 employees voted in favour of the strike in hopes of raising their wages to the industry standard. On Tuesday, June 26th, they gave their employer a 72-hour strike notice.
Talks between Gateway Casinos representatives and a bargaining committee have been on and off since this past January, but both sides were unable to agree on a new contract on several occasions, most recently during an attempt at mediation earlier this month.
Stephanie Smith, President of the B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union, says she’s confident that the strike will motivate Gateway Casinos to meet the demands of their workers.
“These are the people who provide casino attendees the experience that they have,” says Smith. “It’s going to be very difficult to provide that when all of those workers are not on the job.”
In the meantime, Smith noted that the bargaining committee is still happy to speak with Gateway Casinos reps to work out a new contract.
One of the four Gateway Casinos locations in the Okanagan is the Playtime Casino in Kelowna, where workers are planning to walk off the job on Friday afternoon.
