NITRO, W.Va. — More than 300 union workers at Mardi Gras Casino and Resort in Kanawha County have voted to authorize a strike, union officials said Saturday. The dispute centers on health insurance benefits.
Members of United Steelworkers Union Local 14614-F8 have a contract with the casino through next year but negotiations reopened on health insurance last month. The company wants union members to pay a more than 200 percent increase in premiums, union local president Ron Brady said.
The union voted 236-1 to reject the proposal, which the company called its last, best and final offer, Brady said.
The union then voted 194-17 Friday to authorize a strike.
“Our members want to work, they have family, but they realize what’s at stake,” Brady said. “They’ve gone without a raise (since 2011). Gaming has had some (problems) and we’ve tucked our shirttails in too, tightened our belts too, but we can’t take all the brunt.”
There’s another part of a proposal that’s of concern to Brady and union members. It has to do with contract language.
“They have language in there that effectively removes the union’s right to bargain on the employees’ insurance in the future,” Brady said. “In the future all the company would be required to offer is the bare minimum under the law.”
The vote authorizes a strike but doesn’t guarantee one, Brady said.
“It would depend on the company’s response,” he said. “It’s our sincere hope they would be willing to resume negotiations and we can get something worked out. If the company maintains the same position, we will give them a notice and we’ll be out of there.”
The casino currently pays 90 percent of health insurance premium costs. It wants the workers to pay most of an increase, $20 more a week, Brady said. The union is willing to shoulder half of the increase but so far the offer has been rejected by the casino, Brady said.
“They said at the (negotiating) table they could afford our proposal but chose not to,” Brady said.
There are 350 members of the USW at the Nitro-based casino. The group includes table games dealers, slot machine attendants, hotel workers, dog racing staff and other personnel, with the exception of security and concessions.