Red Rock Casino Must Bargain With Union After Supreme Court Denies Stay
The U.S. Supreme Court has cleared the way for a union bargaining order against Red Rock Casino. Chief Justice John Roberts denied the casino's emergency application on Friday, September 4, leaving in place a lower court ruling that requires the Las Vegas property to recognize and bargain with Culinary Union Local 226.
The denial follows an August 31 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. That court ordered Red Rock to bargain in good faith with the union and to post notices informing employees of their rights under federal labor law. Red Rock, wholly owned by Station Casinos LLC, had asked the Supreme Court to pause the order while it pursues further review.
Station Casinos said it will comply with the order, but the company isn't backing down. "While Station Casinos will comply with any court order, we continue to object to the National Labor Relations Board decision," a company spokesman said.
The dispute traces back to a December 2019 union election at Red Rock Casino. Employees voted against union representation, but the National Labor Relations Board later concluded that Station Casinos had interfered with the process. The alleged interference: improved employee benefits rolled out shortly before the vote.
The company disputes that characterization. In its Supreme Court filing, Station Casinos said the benefits program was part of a broader strategy to strengthen its workforce across its 10 Las Vegas properties, not an attempt to sway the Red Rock election. According to the filing, the benefits rollout began on November 19, 2019. Two days later, the union representing workers at seven other Station Casinos properties filed petitions to represent certain Red Rock employees.
The election took place about a month later, and the union lost. The NLRB then pursued unfair labor practice allegations, arguing that the timing of the benefit improvements unlawfully affected the outcome. In 2022, the board determined that a fair election couldn't reasonably be held at the property given the alleged interference, and it issued a bargaining order.
That order is based on the Supreme Court's 1969 decision in N.L.R.B. v. Gissel Packing Co., which allows the NLRB to require an employer to bargain with a union even without a successful election. These so-called Gissel orders are rare, and Red Rock has fought this one at every step.
The D.C. Circuit denied the company's petition for review in June and enforced the bargaining order. A request for rehearing was denied on August 6, and the court rejected a stay of the mandate on August 24. Station Casinos then took its case to the Supreme Court, arguing that the mandate effectively overrides what it called a clear vote by Red Rock employees against union representation.
That argument didn't persuade Roberts. The denial means Red Rock must now begin bargaining with the union while its underlying challenge to the NLRB decision continues. The company has not indicated whether it will pursue further legal options, but for now, the bargaining order stands. Red Rock must also post the required notices for employees, per the D.C. Circuit's directive.