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Workers Rally Against Props 94-97, Poor Working Conditions
Carrying signs denouncing working conditions at the Big 4 casinos, workers and their families rallied on January 29th against the Unfair Gambling Deals in front of the Emergency Entrance to County-USC Medical Center.
The measures on next week’s ballot, Propositions 94, 95, 96 and 97, are sweetheart deals for the Big 4 Tribes – Sycuan, Pechanga, Morongo and Agua Caliente – but workers said they are a bad deal for casino employees, California taxpayers and other tribes.
The rally was held at the hospital to make the point that taxpayer funded healthcare programs like those at County-USC were not designed for the benefit of tribal casino owners with multi-billion dollar enterprises – which is exactly what is happening today.
"These facilities should not be weighed down by full-time employees and their families who work for establishments gushing profits," Maria Elena Durazo, Executive Secretary – Treasurer of the Los Angeles County Labor Federation told the crowd.
“Propositions 94-97 do nothing to provide affordable health care for the workers for the rich and powerful Big 4 Tribes.”
The deals would allow the Big 4 to add 17,000 new slot machines, one of the largest expansions of gambling in U.S. history.
Making ends meet is a very real problem for workers at the Big 4 casinos according to Eric Nilsson, Professor of Economics at California State University, San Bernardino.
“Despite the fact their employer ranks in the top 1% of all profitable businesses in the state,” said Nilsson, “my study found that workers for Agua Caliente were working for less than California’s minimum wage (adjusted for inflation) and were often forced to take their children to taxpayer financed health care programs for lack of affordable insurance.”
Former employees from the Morongo Casino provided real world examples of the Big 4’s poor working conditions while workers for the Pala Casino in Northern San Diego County showed that tribal casinos can be good employers, when they choose to.
More information is available at www.nounfairdeals.com.
Among those urging a “No” vote are the California Professional Firefighters, California Federation of Teachers, California Alliance for Retired Americans, California Tax Reform Association, Orange County Taxpayers Ass’n, California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, Contra Costa County Taxpayers Ass’n, Stand Up for California! and the American Indian Rights and Resources Organization.
