LAS VEGAS, NV — Workers employed by Encore, an audio-visual services provider for major resorts across the Las Vegas Strip, are launching a public unionization campaign backed by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE). Despite workers’ federal rights to unionize, Encore was set to begin hosting mandatory union-busting meetings intended to persuade workers from joining together to form a union.
Encore technicians and riggers are essential to ensuring smooth operations at 31 Las Vegas venues, including major properties such as Aria, Bellagio, MGM, and Caesars Palace (full list at the end of this release). These workers are responsible for setting up, operating, and breaking down audiovisual systems for events, as well as securing and inspecting rigging equipment in a hospitality setting.
These meetings, often called ‘Captive audience meetings’ are a known union-busting tactic, where an employer calls a mandatory meeting during work hours with the purpose of discouraging employees from unionizing. Several US states have laws that either ban captive audience meetings outright, or prohibit employers from penalizing workers for skipping such meetings, including California Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, and Washington.
Additionally, under Federal U.S. labor law, employees have the right to form or join a union, and it is unlawful for employers to threaten, intimidate, or retaliate against workers for exercising that right. Workers can find more information on their organizing rights in the Department of Labor’s “Know Your Organizing Rights” toolkit here.
This campaign comes on the heels of recent labor wins in Las Vegas, including the Culinary Union’s historic contract agreement with The Venetian Resort, marking the final casino resort on the Las Vegas Strip to secure union representation for culinary and bartending staff.
While IATSE Local 720 already represents most Encore employees, Encore has fought to exclude so-called “satellite” workers from a union contract with Local 720, prompting the workers to seek support from IATSE’s international headquarters.
IATSE International President Matthew D. Loeb expressed solidarity with the Encore workers, emphasizing the union’s commitment to supporting their campaign. “The workers at Encore have a fundamental right to join together and unionize, and they deserve the same rights and protections that unionized entertainment and hospitality workers in Las Vegas already enjoy. As a union, we fully support their efforts and will work to ensure they have the opportunity to secure fair treatment and safe working conditions.”
There are 31 properties which Encore services in Las Vegas, which include:
- Aria
- Bellagio
- Caesars Forum
- Caesars Palace
- Cosmopolitan
- Durango
- Flamingo
- Fontainbleau
- Four Seasons
- Golden Nugget
- Green Valley Ranch
- Harrah’s
- Horseshoe (Bally’s)
- Linq
- Mandalay Bay
- MGM
- M Resort Spa
- New York New York
- Palms
- Park MGM
- Planet Hollywood
- Red Rock
- Renaissance Hotel
- Resorts World
- Rio
- Springhill
- The Westin
- Venetian/Sands
- Virgin Hotel
- Waldorf
- Westgate
As Encore escalates its union-busting efforts, the workers are going public in their pursuit of union representation in response. IATSE is committed to supporting the Encore employees in their campaign to secure fair, just, and safe workplaces on the Las Vegas Strip.
