Unifor Local 444 President James Stewart says there were some ups and downs heading into day five of a labour dispute with Caesars Windsor.
The casino announced the cancellation of all events, hotel reservations, and shows for the month of April on Monday — but the cancellation may have had a silver lining — Stewart says management has expressed interest in coming back to the table.
Casino Update
— Local 444 Unifor (@LOCAL444UNIFOR) April 10, 2018
In light of the recent and new announcement that Caesars Casino has cancelled all bookings for April but are willing to return to the bargaining table, your bargaining committee will be meeting... https://t.co/bsnfvyYFKw
"We had a meeting with one of their vice presidents in the afternoon and we conveyed to him that we want to get back to the table. It was shortly after that when they made that announcement," he says. "I'm not sure exactly what they're trying to convey by their message. When you cancel all the shows in April and all the bookings for April, then out the other side you say we want to get back to the table, I'm not sure how to read that."
Manager of Communications Jhoan Baluyot tells AM800 News, the decision to was made in the name of customer service.
"It was the right move to make for our guests and clients by allowing them enough notification to provide refunds and discuss alternative options depending on what they were coming here for," she says. "At the end of the day when we do reopen it's about retaining our customers and making sure that they come back, and when they come back, that it's a good experience for them."
Despite a move that could be seen as an attempt to entrench the casino's position, Stewart says the bargaining team is focused on getting everyone back to work.
"We knew it would happen, we just didn't know when, put that all aside, put the emotions aside, our job now is to get to the table and see if we can find a result and fast," he added. "We've had some time to put together concerns raised at the ratification votes, as soon as that's done we will reach out to Caesars and ask them to return to the table and go from there."
He hopes a proposal will be ready by the end of the day Tuesday so both sides can return to the table this week.