Tuesday, Sept. 30, 1997 | 10:05 a.m.
A courtroom confrontation between the Culinary Union and the yet-to-be-completed Venetian hotel-casino over picketing tactics was supposed to be a chest-thumping preliminary bout to an epic war of wills.
It didn't turn out that way.
In fact, there wasn't even a court hearing Monday because the opponents decided to play nice rather than fight -- or at least be reasonable while preparing for the bigger battle to come.
Rather than let District Judge Myron Leavitt set limits on the pickets outside the budding resort where the Sands once stood, each side gave a little.
The pickets are still there but the union agreed to limit the noise level of the bullhorns and amplifier system it has been using.
Venetian attorneys complained that the noise level has been measured at between the 110 decibels of a rock concert and the 120 decibels of a jet taking off.
Howard Cole said Monday that the level was higher than the union would permit its members to endure if they were exposed to that on the job.
The agreement limits the noise level to 100 decibels.
"That is sufficiently loud for the message to be heard over traffic, but not create a nuisance," Cole said, adding that for the moment the conflict should be settled unless there is a violation.
Cole conceded, however, that the agreement doesn't signal an end to the underlying conflict over whether the $2 billion resort will be a union shop.
The Culinary Union wants the resort to agree to a union deal before the first employees are even hired.
The Venetian, Cole said, will leave the question to the employees at an inevitable election after the resort is completed and workers are hired a year and a half from now.
He said he hopes Monday's settlement "turns down the volume" on the antagonism between the parties.
Leavitt indicated in July that he was leaning toward a similar resolution when he issued a temporary restraining order keeping the amplified union messages in check at least until a hearing to determine if the order should be extended into a preliminary injunction.
That hearing is unnecessary because of the settlement.
With 6,000 rooms, the Venetian would be a huge prize for the Culinary Union, but resort owner Sheldon Adelson isn't willing to make the resort a union property.
Since the resort is under construction, union efforts have been aimed at the Venetian's preview center.
Venetian attorney Rodney Jean has complained that the union's use of bullhorns and high-decibel amplifiers to harass potential customers visiting the construction site is a health hazzard.
The amplified music and chanting reached levels of 122 decibels -- above what OSHA permits in workplaces, Jean argued.
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