Hospitality Gaming

Members of Unifor Local 112 working in the hospitality industry in the Greater Toronto Area met during a day-long strategy session on July 17, 2023.

The session kicked of planning for the next round of bargaining at five hotels, expected to start in the late fall this year.

“The hospitality sector has recovered from COVID-19, and so has the employer’s financial stability. Our collective agreements must reflect the new normal, including recent cost of living increases,” said Greg Burton, Assistant to the Unifor National Officers who helped lead the meeting.

DELTA B.C.—Wage increases and improvements to scheduling are highlights of the first union contract ratified April 30 by workers at the new casino in Delta.

Workers at the Cascades Casino formed a union with Unifor Local 114 earlier this year.

VICTORIA—The membership of Unifor Local 4276 voted overwhelmingly today to ratify a new three-year contract with their employer at the Fairmont Empress Hotel.

“Unifor members at the Fairmont Empress have secured a strong collective agreement and have helped set the table for upcoming negotiations in the hospitality sector,” said Lana Payne, Unifor National President. “Congratulations on a job well done.”

VICTORIA—A lack of progress from the employer at the bargaining table has forced members of Unifor Local 4276 to give their bargaining committee a strike mandate.

“The Fairmont Empress is a top-tier hotel and its workers deserve respect and fair compensation. It is a leader in the industry and we expect the collective agreement to lead the way,” said Lana Payne, Unifor National President. “The employer must come to the table prepared to bargain a fair contract that reflects the critical contribution of hotel workers.”

VICTORIA—Unifor is back at the bargaining table with the Empress Hotel to negotiate a collective agreement that can serve as a template for upcoming negotiations in the hospitality sector.

“Unifor is a strong union for hotel workers,” said Lana Payne, Unifor National President. “Unifor members are leading by example and negotiating industry-leading contracts. What happens this spring at the Empress will help lead the way for our other negotiations.”

DELTA, B.C.—Workers at the Cascades casino in Delta became Unifor’s newest members after the B.C. Labour Board certified the unit on January 24, 2023.

“Unifor is very proud to welcome a new group of hospitality and gaming workers into our union, joining thousands of Unifor members in the sector. We thank the Cascades workers for choosing Unifor and I know they are eager to get started on having a say in improving their working conditions,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne.  

TORONTO—The strike at two Great Canadian Gaming Corporation (GCGC) casinos in Ontario could soon be over after tentative agreements were signed today.

“My sincere congratulations to the Local 1090 members who took on a powerful employer to fight for what was fair,” said Lana Payne, Unifor National Secretary-Treasurer. 

Unifor members at Pickering Casino Resort and Casino Ajax have been on strike since July 29, 2022. Details of the tentative agreement will be released following the membership ratification votes to be held on August 5.

A Unifor member of Local 1090 on a legal picket line at Casino Woodbine was struck deliberately by a car late on the evening of July 31, 2022.

Members of Unifor Local 1090 have been on strike at Great Canadian Gaming Corporation’s Pickering Casino Resort and Ajax Casino since Saturday, July 23, 2022 fighting for wage increases and to reduce the employer’s reliance on a precarious part-time workforce. 

In Canada, workers locked out or on strike may picket other sites owned by the employer, which is why a legal picket line was in place at Casino Woodbine.