For some longtime gaming industry observers, it was a jaw-dropping moment that signaled the end of an era and the beginning of a new chapter on the Las Vegas Strip.
For the throngs still caught up in the frenzy of the Vegas Golden Knights’ Stanley Cup victory, especially the many thousands who converged to celebrate at the T-Mobile Arena, the news was easy to miss.
With little fanfare, and less context in some parts of the local press, Culinary Local 226 and three other labor organizations this week announced an agreement with operators of The Venetian and Palazzo to organize workers at The Venetian and Palazzo.
The reconciliation comes 16 months after the sale of the properties and The Venetian Expo center by Las Vegas Sands Corp., and more than two years after the death of the unions’ pugnacious nemesis, casino king and Republican mega-donor Sheldon Adelson.
Adelson spent millions on litigation and media messaging to block the Culinary and other unions from organizing at his Strip properties. The standoff was withering. Adelson once claimed “we own the sidewalks” and litigated to keep Culinary from protesting in front of his property. He bragged about his workers’ wages and benefits, and punished politicians and others who dared to disagree with his mercurial methods.
The labor organizations were temporarily thwarted, but they didn’t give up and go away. They waited. Now their patience has paid off.
Although much work remains, after decades of denial, Culinary, Bartenders Local 165, Operating Engineers Local 501 and Teamsters Local 986 have a neutrality agreement. An open door has replaced a team of security guards and attorneys. It will be up to the labor representatives to make their case to the nongaming employees at the resorts.
The victory is especially prized for Culinary, long at odds with Las Vegas Sands. Local 226 Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge, a veteran of decades of organizing, negotiating and taking to the streets, says, “We are very proud of this moment.”
“Workers at The Venetian are going to have the opportunity to decide whether they want union representation for the first time in their history, over 20 years, without the anti-union idealogue Sheldon running the company. So that’s what this does. The reality is that we’ve had two huge enemies of the union in this community for a while now: The Venetian (under Las Vegas Sands ownership) and Station Casinos. It was clear that a lot of folks have had history with Sheldon, right? He was willing to do whatever it takes to try to deny these workers to try to have the right to have the union.”
I had some history with Adelson myself. He sued me into bankruptcy before the litigation was dismissed with prejudice. Being sued by Sheldon hardly made me unique. He kept so many attorneys on retainer that someone should name a law school after him.
But all his angry litigation didn’t stop the hands of time. For Culinary’s part, Pappageorge says, “We have a different view of time than most folks or most other companies. We viewed this dispute as something that, at the end of the day, we’re going to do whatever it takes so that those workers have the right to choose.”
Whether that day takes a week, a month or two decades.
Longtime Las Vegans will remember the Frontier strike, which lasted six years, four months and 10 days. It ended Feb. 1, 1998, with a change of ownership of the casino resort.
Others will recall a confident, anti-union CEO-president Bob Maxey opening the MGM Grand as a nonunion property and promising to keep it that way. After two years of protest and picket lines, Maxey was out and the union was in.
For Venetian-Palazzo operator Apollo Global Management, a private equity firm, removing the metaphorical ramparts to the service workers’ union and others clearly wasn’t personal, just good business.
“Las Vegas Sands is gone,” Pappageorge says. “We’re dealing with The Venetian owned by Apollo now. Workers are dealing with that. That company has made the decision to honor the workers’ wishes. That’s the key.”
Given this latest news, and Culinary’s own history, I am left to wonder what executives at Station Casinos are thinking these days. They have long been at odds with the union and have shown no sign of backing down even after some workers sought to organize. They’re tough customers, the Fertittas.
“Most people can’t fathom the idea that we would take on a fight [like the Frontier strike], but it’s not just about those workers,” Pappageorge says. “It’s those workers making the decision for themselves, but it also affects the entire community and the standards in this town. It’s the same thing with Stations. At Station Casinos the workers have decided that they want union representation. It’s just a matter of time before they win, and we have that opportunity. But don’t look at time the same way as a lot of other folks, honestly.”
In January, the union launched a website, MyStationsWatch.org, in its long battle to organize service workers inside locals gaming giant Station Casinos. It also offers its version of the company’s development “and gives locals the avenue to have their say about the company’s actions in Nevada.”
In case you were wondering if this was some sort of civics project, it adds, “Station Casinos is owned by Red Rock Resorts, the only publicly traded Nevada gaming company whose board is all-white and all-male.”
Back at T-Mobile was the scene of a madhouse following the Stanley Cup victory for the Golden Knights and, on Thursday, a gathering of an estimated 3,000 Culinary members protesting in support of workers at Levy Premium Food Service, who are seeking a union contract.
At this point in Culinary’s nearly 90-year history, its numbers are well-known: more than 60,000 members serving the hotel-casino industry and, when necessary, walking a picket line on the sidewalk outside.
The union has proven once again that with enough tenacity and staying power, anything is possible. Even organizing The Venetian.
As Pappageorge will remind you, time is on their side.
John L. Smith is an author and longtime columnist. He was born in Henderson and his family’s Nevada roots go back to 1881. His stories have appeared in Time, Readers Digest, The Daily Beast, Reuters, Ruralite and Desert Companion, among others. He also offers weekly commentary on Nevada Public Radio station KNPR.
Striking an optimistic tone and urging bipartisanship, Gov. Joe Lombardo delivered a State of the State address Wednesday night with proposals to finish vote counting on Election Day, make more thefts qualify as felonies, and get more homes and apartments built.
“The state of our state is steadily improving,” he said. “We are certainly headed in the right direction and the outlook is positive.”
“Combining the collective will of the 63 of you and me, we can build more than houses; we can convert Nevada’s promise into reality, a place where every family can thrive, every community can grow, and every dream can find a home,” Lombardo said, referencing the number of state Senate and Assembly members. “That’s the Nevada way.”
The Republican governor’s desire to work together this year comes as no surprise given that in 2023, the majority-Democrat Legislature called Lombardo’s bluff by passing bills the governor said he wouldn’t sign. He delivered a record 75 vetoes.
After November’s election, he still faces a Legislature where Democrats dominate but do not hold a supermajority, making his veto pen a real threat in negotiations. Bipartisanship will be required to get approval for significant bills.
His remarks were greeted with punctuations of applause from lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle. Along with frequent water-bottle breaks, he got looser as he went along, smiling, addressing people in the gallery and going off-script to make a few jokes.
He announced a $12.7 billion budget that he said would make teacher pay raises permanent and extend them to charter school teachers.
The next legislative session starts Feb. 3 and officially lasts 120 days.
Lombardo, a former Clark County sheriff, summarized five priorities he plans to push in the Legislature.
Before announcing them, he told the gallery of lawmakers at the Nevada Assembly, “I would ask that before some of you say ‘No,’ work with me, collaborate with my agency heads, ask questions, give input, offer alternatives and set aside partisan politics.”
• Nevada Housing Attainability Act: Lombardo said this proposal would streamline permits, reduce building fees and prioritize state funding that will support $1 billion in new “attainable” housing units across Nevada, rather than the buzzword of “affordable.”
He blamed Nevada’s housing crisis on the federal government’s reluctance to release some of its land — it controls more than 80% of the state — and said that he expects President-elect Donald Trump to help make that happen “but, while we press for federal action, we’re not waiting.”
Also highlighted was the recent approval of a $200 million public-private partnership to provide homeless services called the Campus for Hope.
• Nevada Healthcare Access Act: Lombardo noted that, “With some of the lowest provider-to-patient ratios in the nation, far too many Nevadans are left waiting for care or worse, going without it.”
To partly address this, he said, he would propose that by 2028, all health insurance plans in Nevada will be required to adopt standardized and digitized prior authorization plans, reducing delays for patients and providers.
He said he would double the state’s investment in graduate medical education and incentivize providers to set up in underserved areas. The plan would also create an Office of Mental Health to expand access to behavioral health services and improve coordination of care.
• Nevada Accountability in Education Act: Lombardo said he would revisit his efforts to expand school choice, after noting he’s unsatisfied with Nevada consistently ranking near the bottom nationally on education measurements.
“No child should be trapped in a failing school because of their ZIP code or held down because of how much their parents or grandparents earn,” he said.
He added his bill proposal would include “transportation support” to help families choose other schools for their children.
• Nevada Safe Streets and Neighborhoods Act: This would reduce the amount of a theft that would trigger a felony charge and increase penalties for repeat offenders.
It would also prohibit the use of diversion courts for offenders who commit crimes against children or the elderly.
• Economic Development Policy Reform Act: Earlier in his remarks, Lombardo mentioned Nevada’s highest-in-the-nation unemployment rate of 5.7%. His economic plan would give tax credits to childcare facilities so that they could potentially charge lower rates and help more people enter the workforce.
• Creating More Government Effectiveness: He vowed to evaluate each of the state government’s more than 300 boards and commissions to see which ones have outlived their usefulness.
Speaker of the Nevada Assembly, Democrat Steve Yeager, gave a recorded response to Lombardo’s State of the State.
“This past November, Nevada voters again overwhelmingly voted for Democrats to lead our state Legislature,” he said.
Asking the governor not to break his veto record from the previous session, he urged that Lombardo work with Democrats while also emphasizing differences with Republicans.
Democratic legislators, he said, will:
In response to Lombardo’s crime proposal, Yeager said, “We must not backtrack to the failed ‘tough on crime’ legislation of the 1990s that was expensive, wasteful and ineffective without making us any safer.”
Democratic groups also released statements criticizing Lombardo.
Nevada State Democratic Party executive director Hilary Barrett sent out a lengthy, detailed memo criticizing Lombardo’s first two years in office.
“When it comes to housing, health care, education and public safety, Nevadans are measurably worse off due to the actions of Lombardo and his commitment to prioritizing powerful special interests and his own political self-interest,” she said.
Laura Martin, executive director of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, said corporate landlords are artificially inflating housing costs and that the governor’s proposal to use federal land for more housing will make things worse.
“Lombardo’s plan that promotes urban sprawl as a solution to the housing crisis will only exacerbate the existing climate crisis, when we should be prioritizing infill,” she said.
“We should be investing in the future of Nevada by making sure our aging communities and schools are climate resilient, not with another stadium, movie studio, or mass deportations.”
Mark Robison is the state politics reporter for the Reno Gazette Journal, with occasional forays into other topics. Email comments to mrobison@rgj.com or comment on Mark’s Greater Reno Facebook page.
This evening, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo will provide the 2025 State of the State address ahead of the incoming 83rd legislative session, which begins Feb. 3, 2025.
Lombardo is anticipated to cover a number of topics including the economy, inflation, education, housing, and more.
In addition, Carson City 5th grade choir students will be performing at the address, and a Seeliger Elementary student will be singing a solo.
Watch the full address here, which will begin at 6 p.m.
CARSON CITY — Gov. Joe Lombardo will give his 2025 State of the State Address at 6 p.m. today in Nevada’s capital, where he will share his goals and priorities ahead of the upcoming legislative session.
“I look forward to sharing the progress my administration has made since my inaugural address, and I’m excited to outline my common-sense vision for our state ahead of the upcoming legislative session,” Lombardo said in a statement, highlighting efforts to keep taxes low, balance the state budget and bring investments to education and the workforce.
“As we look ahead, I’m eager to build on our progress in education, economic development, healthcare, housing, and public safety,” he said.
Every biennium, two weeks ahead of the legislative session, the governor delivers a State of the State Address that outlines his agenda and provides a framework for what lawmakers can expect over the course of the 120-day session.
In last November’s election, Lombardo successfully fended off a possible Democratic supermajority in both chambers that would have allowed Democrats to override any of his vetoes, greatly reducing his power. While Democrats still hold majorities in both the Assembly and Senate and can set their own agenda, any bill they pass must ultimately be signed into law by Lombardo, who is accustomed to wielding his veto power — having vetoed a record 75 bills in the 2023 session.
Ahead of the governor’s address, the Nevada State Democratic Party launched an ad titled “Expensive,” accusing Lombardo of raising costs for families due to his 2023 vetoes. The party pointed to housing bills that would have capped rent increases for seniors and would have established a new summary eviction procedure for tenants, as well as bills that would have guaranteed school meals to public school students and lowered the price of Medicare-negotiated prescription drugs.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Contact Jessica Hill at jehill@reviewjournal.com and McKenna Ross at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jess_hillyeah and @mckenna_ross_ on X.
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