Las Vegas Grand Prix could be hit by strikes as 35,000 Americans to take action
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Plans for the Las Vegas Grand Prix have been thrown into uncertainty after tens of thousands of hospitality workers in the city voted to take industrial action this Friday. 35,000 members of the Culinary and Bartenders Union will go on strike if a deal is not reached with the 18 casinos, hotels and restaurants that employ them.

The union is said to be asking for “the largest wage increases ever negotiated” in its history. Currently, according to a union spokesperson, workers earn about $26 (£21) an hour, but as per the Associated Press, the union has declined to confirm the scale of the pay rise it is now pursuing for its members.

Hotel workers are also requesting better job security amid the fears of technological advancements, as well as calling for greater security protections such as more safety buttons.

The union says that while negotiations are continuing, around 40,000 of its 60,000 members have contracts that have expired, with some still working under the conditions of their previous contracts.

Friday’s planned strike will be the first walk-out by hospitality workers in Las Vagas for several decades and could become the biggest hospitality worker strike in US history.

The timing of the industrial action could not be much worse for Formula One, with the next Grand Prix on its calendar taking place in Sin City from November 16. Work is already well underway to convert the roads into a unique street circuit that is expected to bring thousands of tourists into Las Vegas.

But the Culinary Union has asked race-goers not to cross picket lines and to avoid hotels and casinos where the industrial dispute is continuing, which includes the biggest hotels in Las Vegas.

The union said it has been in talks with MGM Resorts, Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts for seven months but has still not reached an agreement that would prevent the huge strike from going ahead on Friday.

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As per the Independent, Culinary Union secretary-treasurer Ted Pappageorge said in a statement: “Their current proposal on the table is historic, but it’s not enough and workers deserve to have record contracts – especially after these giant corporations are enjoying their record profits.”

The Las Vegas Grand Prix is the third Formula One race to be held in the USA this year after meetings were held in Miami and Austin, Texas, with popularity of the sport continuing to rocket stateside.

Las Vegas will be holding its first Formula One Grand Prix since 1982.

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