“In my experience, the casino has a ‘guest over workers’ policy.” “As a slot attendant at Sycuan, I’ve faced harassment regularly on the casino floor,” said Cynthia Ramirez to one of our union organizers. Under the TLRO, if the union agrees to non-disparagement and labor peace, the tribe then must remain neutral about whether workers should unionize and let the workers decide. The TLRO is a key part of tribal gaming compacts in California and crucial for casino workers’ self-determination. In California, tribes negotiate gaming compacts - contracts between the tribe and the state about how the tribes will operate their casinos - with the governor for ratification by the legislature. Sycuan adopted the TLRO as a component of the gaming compact that it negotiated with former Gov. Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. In early January, the tribe appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and also filed motions in the district court and in the Ninth Circuit to stay the arbitration, both of which were denied.

10, 2020, the court granted UNITE HERE’s motion.

District Court for Southern California, and on Dec. UNITE HERE then filed a petition to compel arbitration in the U.S. In response, the tribe claimed that parts of the TLRO were preempted by the National Labor Relations Act and therefore did not apply. After weeks of delay from the tribe, UNITE HERE requested arbitration. Sycuan initially hedged and then refused to abide by the process laid out in the TLRO.

2, 2019, workers decided to exercise their rights under Sycuan’s TLRO by sending the tribe their official Notice of Intent to Organize and committing not to disparage the tribe and to maintain labor peace. The Sycuan workers’ organizing committee was ready to begin the process to organize their coworkers to join UNITE HERE Local 30, the hospitality workers’ union in San Diego County.

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