Grosvenor Casinos across London to be hit by strike action
Staff across Grosevenor’s eight London venues will strike between 9 and 12 September over pay as Unite promises to back workers
Grosvenor Casinos across London face closures this weekend after its staff voted in favour of strike action over pay.
An overwhelming majority of staff at the Rank Group-owned casino, who are represented by trade union Unite, voted in favour of the strike, with 91% of members giving it their support.
The striking staff include croupiers, dealers and food and beverage personnel.
Around 150 workers also voted to reject two retention bonuses of £600 and £800, commenting that the figure was “totally inadequate amid a grave and growing cost-of-living crisis”.
The strikes will commence at 18:00 on 9 September and run through until 06:00 on Monday 12 September, hitting the following Grosvenor venues: The Victoria, The Rialto, The Gloucester, The Park Tower, The Golden Horseshoe, The St Giles and The Barracuda.
In a statement, Sharon Graham, Unite general secretary, said: “Here we go again: Grosvenor Casinos is another big money company that is raking it in but refusing to pay its workers a wage that they can live on. It’s just not acceptable, and this huge vote for action underscores the sense of anger across this workforce.
“Our members at Grosvenor Casinos will have Unite’s full backing in this fight for a fair deal.”
EGR understands that Rank has increased staff pay by an average of 11.1% across all of Grosvenor casino’s London-based roles on a like-for-like basis over the last 12 months.
A spokesperson for Rank said: “We are disappointed that the Unite union has brought about strike action over the coming weekend among a small number of colleagues in four of our eight London casinos.
“Against the backdrop of an extremely challenging trading environment for Rank, and for the sector as a whole, we have made a strong offer which we believe fairly addresses the current cost of living crisis. We expect all of our casinos to be open for business as usual this weekend.”
Last month, Rank Group recorded a 98% year-on-year jump in net gaming revenue, reaching £644m.
Elsewhere in the Netherlands, trade unions secured a 3.25% wage increase for Holland Casino staff to stave off strike action.