Carpenters protest at Vegas timeshare

Monday, March 4, 2002 | 11:11 a.m.

More than 90 union supporters protested Friday against an alleged lack of health benefits and substandard wages being paid to a few hundred construction workers at the nongaming Cancun resort on Las Vegas Boulevard near Blue Diamond Road.

The Cancun Resort will be one of Las Vegas' largest timeshares, with 917 suites.

The protest, led by the Nevada Carpenters Union Local 1977, is aimed at forcing Pacific Monarch Resorts Inc., the Laguna Hills, Calif.-based developer of the $120 million resort, to hire subcontractors that provide health benefits and pay standard Las Vegas wages for its carpenters.

Dan O'Shea, local 1977's senior organizer and business representative, said several Cancun subcontractors including Precision Concrete and three drywall companies paid workers $10-$18 an hour compared with area wage rates of $24-$25 an hour.

Pacific Monarch could not be reached for comment on the Carpenters' claims.

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