Caesars Windsor workers vote to strike

UniforLocal 444 members working at Caesars Windsor have voted down a tentative deal and began a strike at midnight.

"As of now, our members have voted to go on strike. Forty-one per cent in favour of the tentative agreement so that is a strike position," said union president James Stewart

• Casino workers will vote on new contract Thursday

Minutes after the vote, crowds of casino customers were herded out the doors to waitingtaxis.

Wayne and Mary Charlton have been coming to CaesarsWindsor twice a month for the past decade.

"They shut her down and out the door we went," said Wayne, who added the couple was headed back to their home in St. Thomas.

He said it was "peace and quiet" inside the casino when the announcement telling guests to leavecame over the loudspeaker.

"I went up to my room, got my bag and I'm on my way."

Stewart said he believes the failure to ratify is based on frustration from employees who have accepted less and less over the past four of five agreements with Caesars.

"A lot of what we heard was respect issues. But on top of that there was a real sense that they wanted more in terms of the financial gains. Wages were important," he explained. "They were very clear that they want some of that back in this agreement."

I personally wantto apologize for any inconvenience this causes our customers.- KevinLaforet,CaesarsEntertainment

Kevin Laforet, regional president forCaesars Entertainment, said he was disappointed by the outcome of the vote.

"We felt the agreement was fair and sustainable," he said."We will be meeting with Unifor to discuss next steps. I personally want to apologize for any inconvenience this causes our customers."

What this means for the casino

Uniformembers are walking off the job at 12:01 a.m.

After midnight, Stewart said they will "secure their assets" so they can leave without losing their license with the AGCO.

"When that's done they will exit the building," he said.

What this means for hotel guests

Stewart said the workers' fight is with their employer, not customers.

"The problem in it all is we do have hotel customers staying in the hotel. We're not going to hinder that process and we're going to allow our members tied to that up until 6 a.m," he explained."The hotel guests will continue unhindered to exit the building up until theirregular checkout time of 11 a.m."

When will bargaining resume?

Stewart said Caesarsdid not "immediately say there was any interest in getting back to the table."

He added his focus is on helping members set up picket lines.