Casinos have been in appears for many years. Casino gaming has experienced extreme growth in Canada over the past several decades. That attracted the attention of many casino investors, who rolled the dice on Canada’s gambling market.
Last September, the iconic Parq Vancouver casino opened to crowds. The resort is the largest private development in British Columbia, offering a whole range of gambling and non-gambling products and services. The much-touted Parq urban casino is often described as the crown jewel of Vancouver.
The C$640 million development has become the engine of Vancouver’s robust economic development. Among all other things, the opening of the casino provided more job opportunities for local employees. Downtown’s only casino spreads over 72,000 square feet of space occupied by 75 gaming tables and 600 slot and video poker machines. The gambling property also features 11 exclusive salons for VIP players.
With such a rich assortment of amenities, it comes as no surprise that Parq casino is one of the largest employers in Vancouver. Needless to say, keeping employees happy is a key to business success. It seems that the company behind Parq Vancouver shares the same stance on the matter. Yesterday, it was announced that workers at the Parq Casino represented by Unifor Local 3000 (a Canadian union of workers involved in the private sector) have inked a new contract that is valid for three years.
Casino Workers Reach Tentative Agreement with Parq Vancouver
The new contract secures unionized jobs, makes important gains in wages and addresses problematic issues such as harassment. The new collective agreement includes a wage increase of no less than an average of 27.5% in the first year and a 2% increase in each of the following two years.
The casino workers have started to negotiate the new terms of the contract in November last year. Another important aspect of the agreement is the new protection system against abusive casino patrons.
In addition to that, the new agreement also settles some food and beverage issues, returning all gaming floor food and beverage services to unionized positions with Unifor (a general trade union in Canada). Deb Tveit, Assistant to the Unifor National President commented that Parq Casino is in the list of best employers in British Columbia casino gambling sector.
It is interesting to note that the news for the renewed collective agreement came shortly after River Rock Casino workers announced that they plan to embark on a strike fighting for fair wages and improved working conditions. The potential strike will result in significant losses for the company behind the casino, and more precisely Great Canadian Gaming Corporation.
