ToCasino.net Online Casino

By WAYNE PARRY, Associated Press

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Workers at many of Atlantic City's casinos are preparing themselves for a possible strike later this summer against most of the city's gambling halls.

Members of Local 54 of the Unite-HERE union began voting Thursday morning on whether to authorize a strike against Bally's, Caesars, Harrah's and the Tropicana. The union has already authorized a strike against the Trump Taj Mahal.

Even if the union votes yes — and each of nearly a dozen workers interviewed at the polling place said they voted to approve a strike — members would not walk out immediately. The vote lets the union call a strike at some future date against five of the eight casinos.

The remaining three — Borgata, Golden Nugget and Resorts — have been given an indefinite extension by the union, which says talks with them have been making progress.

The union says workers made painful sacrifices that need to be reversed now that Atlantic City's casinos are regaining their financial footing.

The vote comes at a precarious point in Atlantic City's future as it just begins to stabilize from the loss of four of its 12 casinos in 2014, grapples with a $100 million budget shortfall and tries to fight off both a state takeover and the prospect of in-state competition from two proposed casinos in the northern part of the state.

"These five employers clearly are not in touch with what their employees are feeling," said union president Bob McDevitt. "What is happening at the table is an insult. The day before a strike vote, Tropicana offered a five-year wage freeze. The day before!

"To me the most insulting thing is that in 2011, this union gave up part of its package to help the casinos when they were struggling," McDevitt said. "Now that they're doing well, there's been no offer to give some of that back as a gesture of good faith. It's like lending your neighbor your pickup truck, and then he never gives it back."

Tony Rodio, president of Tropicana Entertainment, which runs the Tropicana and the Taj Mahal, said the company has invested $160 million at the Tropicana since 2011.

"Our employees have benefited from increased hours, increased gratuities and job security while 33 percent of the market's 12 casinos have been forced to close and thousands have lost their jobs," he said. "It should also be noted that since emerging from bankruptcy in 2010, current ownership has not withdrawn one penny of investment from Tropicana Atlantic City while continuing to risk millions in an uncertain market."

Kevin Ortzman, president of Caesars and Bally's, said parent company Caesars Entertainment's "goal remains to negotiate a fair resolution to keep our employees at work for their sake and to continue supporting Atlantic City's revitalization, which has our full commitment."

Irma Dominguez, a housekeeper at Harrah's for 24 years, is ready to walk out if necessary.

"Since 2004, I've only gained 80 cents an hour on my salary," she said. "In 2011, we gave them back a week of vacation to help keep them in business. Now that they're making money, we want that back. We deserve it."

Elaine Malloy, a cocktail server at Bally's, called the casinos' current offer "horrendous."

"They're not willing to give anything back that they needed from us in 2011, when we agreed to help them," she said. Remaining on the job under current conditions would be almost as financially difficult as going out on strike, she said.

Voting was due to end around 8 p.m.

Follow Wayne Parry at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.