Appeals court weighs Las Vegas labor case

Benjamin Grove

Monday, Jan. 13, 2003 | 11:14 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Federal judges heard arguments today in a New York-New York hotel-casino case over worker rights to organize under a union.

The case dates to 1997 when union activists and employees of Ark Las Vegas Corp. were allegedly punished by Ark for union activity. Culinary Union Local 226 has long battled the restaurant company, which operates eateries in the hotel-casino.

In one of numerous instances, it was originally alleged that employee Ron Isomura was issued a written warning for leaving chicken tenders out overnight.

In 1998 Judge James M. Kennedy generally ruled in favor of the employees and the union. Kennedy ruled Isomura's punishment was motivated by his union activities.

In September of 2001 the National Labor Relations Board upheld most of the judge's rulings. The NLRB ruled, in part, that the restaurant company should rescind its rules barring employees from wearing union buttons or pins on their uniforms.

The NLRB judgment was appealed by Ark, and is now in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

At issue before the court are NLRB charges that Ark illegally fired three employees and illegally suspended two others.

According to a brief filed by the NLRB, the court must decide whether the NLRB is entitled to enforce its findings; whether evidence supported the NLRB's findings that Ark had unlawful work rules and threatened and coerced employees who engaged in union activities; and whether evidence supports the NLRB's findings that Ark fired employees for union activity.

NRLB attorney Michael Carlin and Ark attorney Celeste Wasielewski declined to comment after the hearing, although Carlin said he expects the court to rule within one to three months.

Ark owns and operates three restaurants, a fast-food court, banquet facilities and room service at New York, New York. It said it owns 26 non-union restaurants nationwide, nine in Las Vegas, including eateries inside the New York and Venetian hotel-casinos.