Thursday, Jan. 3, 2002 | 11:19 a.m.
More than 100 casino dealers gathered in the hall of Teamsters Union Local 995 Wednesday night, expecting the launch of an organizing campaign under the Teamsters flag.
But they found that will not happen, at least not any time soon, because of a handshake agreement between Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa and the head of the Transport Workers Union -- the union that launched an organizing drive aimed at Las Vegas casino dealers a year ago.
"We would love nothing more than to have each and every one of you become members of the Teamsters Union," said Jim Santangelo, an international vice president with the Teamsters. "But at this time, that's not going to be possible. Right now, the TWU has jurisdiction over organizing dealers in this city."
But proponents of a Teamster-led organizing drive haven't given up. Instead, they plan to plead their case to the nation's top labor leader, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney.
"If we go to Sweeney, who can be an independent mediator between the two (Hoffa and TWU General President Sonny Hall), perhaps we can get this moving," said New York-New York dealer Jim Seminara, who helped initiate talks with the Teamsters in November.
Asked whether the TWU would relinquish the effort to the Teamsters, TWU organizer Frank Trotti said that was up to Hall and Hoffa.
"Sonny Hall's in charge of this right now," Trotti said. "I'm just a soldier out here. I'm doing what I promised I'd do.
"This is about dealers, not the TWU or the Teamsters. No one in this country wanted them, and we stepped in."
Dealers at 11 casinos voted on whether they wanted to be represented by the TWU in elections early last year. Three of the 11 voted in favor of organization -- the Stratosphere, New Frontier and Tropicana. So far, no contract has been negotiated, though Trotti says the TWU is "very close" to a deal with the Stratosphere and New Frontier.
But several dealers who headed TWU organizing committees at Strip properties became disenchanted with the union, contacted the Teamsters, and asked them to proceed with an organizing campaign of their own. It was a possibility that intrigued Santangelo.
"If there was no agreement made (between the TWU and the Teamsters), I was very interested in doing this," Santangelo said. "You are people who need representation. You needed to be represented 35 years ago. Everyone looks at you as a statue behind a table. No one respects what you do."
Santangelo suggested to dealers Wednesday night the Teamsters would handle an organizing campaign differently, saying the union was more than prepared to picket casinos that refused to budge during contract talks.
"And there wouldn't be a Teamster in this city that would cross that damn picket line, I can tell you that," Santangelo said.
But there was an agreement made between Hoffa and Hall -- one where Hoffa agreed verbally that the TWU had exclusive jurisdiction over the Las Vegas organizing effort. Under the AFL-CIO's constitution, unions cannot attempt to organize workers represented by another AFL-CIO-affiliated union -- and the TWU has made it clear to the Teamsters they plan to enforce that provision if the Teamsters proceed with an organizing campaign aimed at Las Vegas dealers.
TWU officials have also been pointing to a resolution passed by the AFL-CIO's national convention, which expressed the organization's "full support" for the TWU's efforts at the three Strip casinos and "TWU's long-term goals of organizing table game dealers in Las Vegas."
A furious Hall, upon learning about talks between Teamsters officials and Las Vegas dealers from a Las Vegas Sun article, fired off a letter to Hoffa, calling it an "unexpected and unacceptable situation" that was damaging the TWU's efforts to negotiate contracts. After a Wednesday conversation with Hoffa, Santangelo said he could not proceed with efforts to organize dealers separately from the TWU.
"We are there to assist them (the TWU) in any way we can," Santangelo said. "But when an agreement's made between two general presidents, that's where the buck stops."
Santangelo urged the dealers to think about giving the TWU "a second chance," and said he hoped to discuss the Las Vegas organizing campaign with Hall in the next several weeks. But many dealers, frustrated with the Teamsters' shift, weren't interested.
"They won't win any contract in this town," one dealer told Santangelo. "Please accept this as a plea. The TWU cannot win."
When asked what they could do to open the way for a Teamster campaign, Santangelo refused to answer directly -- but hinted the TWU might still be convinced to voluntarily step aside.
"If I keep asking you out, and you say no all the time, what am I going to do?" Santangelo said.
But many dealers didn't appear interested in cooperating. Instead, a number of them called for a drive to decertify the TWU at the Stratosphere, Tropicana and New Frontier, which would forcibly clear the way for the Teamsters. Such a move would have to be approved by a majority of dealers at all three properties.
Seminara said he would discuss decertification with organizers at the three properties.
"That's a strong possibility," Seminara said. "This is not over by far."
Trotti blasted those who were talking decertification, saying it was a "union busting" tactic that was not being discussed at any of the properties.
"Any dealer that says that is not pro-union," Trotti said. "No one's talking about decert(ification) at the three properties. (If the TWU is decertified), what guarantees they (the Teamsters) will win an election then?"
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