Staff at Casino Montréal Threaten to Strike Days Before F1 Grand Prix

Earlier this week, at least 1,000 Casino Montréal employees demanded a strike which should last the entire work week up until the much-anticipated Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend. This action was triggered by their dissatisfaction with regard to their wages.

An official statement was made, specifying that 91% of the unionized task force at this casino including customer support agents, security, general casino staff and caterers have to an agreement that they shall perform a five-day long strike, purposefully planned just before this grand event.

It seems like plans for amendments to the current terms of employment for the casino's workforce are being discussed, but with little hope that the worker's demands will be met.

However, in this particular instant, Loto-Québec a prominent casino operator who is responsible for all of Casino Montréal's activity, rejected the strike and insisted on employees moving forward with business as usual.

The races incite massive activity and bring business to casinos across Canada and globally every year.

A series of races take place in different locations every year, with one of the most popular being the Gilles-Villeneuve track in Île Notre-Dame in Montréal.

This year’s Montreal race is taking place on Sunday 18th June. 

The races attract not only thousands of tourists to the city but make for one of the busiest times of the year for the sports betting scene during which casinos, both land-based and online, are bustling with players making bets on their favourite racers, peaking with excitement.

This time of the year obviously boosts casinos' revenue drastically, not only in the specific locations where the races are taking place but worldwide, especially now that online sports betting is successfully being regulated in so many different markets.

In terms of the strike, this was the best possible moment for unsatisfied employees to take their stand in the hopes of having their pleas heard and their situation improved. A smart move on behalf of the worker’s union which understood the pressure it would be putting the company under. 

Unfortunately, Casino Montréal management has displayed blatant disagreement with this strike, which is to be understood considering how soon the F1 races are scheduled to start and how busy the casino should be at this time.

What's unfortunate is that apart from insisting on the progression of the casino's activity as usual and has also been resistant to taking on its employees' requests.

The major request being made by employees is an increase in wages. 

This has been an ongoing discussion being had between Casino Montréal management and unhappy employees. However, management has continuously displayed uninterest in moving forward with raises in its employees’ paychecks. 

In reporting this, we wonder whether the after-effects of this disagreement are being taken into consideration by Casino Montréal. 

The company seems to be dismissing the fact that especially now that the news of the strike has reached a global scale, there may be dire effects on the casino’s success. 

The casino does risk losing customers at this point, especially after publicly rejecting the strike, and now more than ever considering this news made headlines just days before the F1 Grand Prix race in Montreal. 

Unfortunately, Casino Montréal demonstrates an unwillingness to protect its workers, which will not resonate positively with customers and global audiences. 

A recent report by the Montreal Gazette spoke about Casino Montréal’s alleged raise offers to its employees, on two separate occasions. 

In May 2022, Loto-Québec supposedly signed a new deal following a previous strike triggered by the same issue.

We can only deduce that if these offers were rejected and employees were forced to protest again, it is because the arrangements made did not satisfy their terms, which asked for a raise of only one dollar per hour, per employee. 

Tensions are high as the story unfolds. 

Unfortunately, this is not the first time we have heard of casinos underpaying their staff and not necessarily complying with their requests for a better employment situation which would lead to happy employees and as a result happy customers. 

We are curious to see how the situation will progress, especially as the Montreal Grand Prix race approaches, and also soon after its end.