The four-month strike of unionized workers of Gateway Casinos has been one of the hot topics in the gaming field of Canada for quite some time, as employees reached the end of heated debates and a tentative agreement meeting their expectations. In the aftermath of this prolonged debate, the City of Kamloops will now have to estimate the real impact of this strike when it comes to gaming revenue.
Throughout the gaming field not only of Canada but also of the US there are employees unions seeking to protect worker’s rights and make sure their expectations are met. Such was the case with the British Columbia Government and Service Employees Union protecting as many as 700 individuals currently employed by Gateway Casinos.
Spanning over the facilities in Kamloops, Kelowna, and Vernor they were more than content with the results achieved and the contracts which are expected to be inked in the foreseeable future.
Casino Patrons Find a Way
When it comes to Kamloops, there are two casino venues in operation, the Cascades Casino and Chances Casino Kamloops, offering riveting gaming to their patrons. Concerns have been expressed regarding the financial impact of this four-month strike on the gaming field and whether or not it is going to hit the city. Potential revenue loss could have deprived Kamloops of chances for reinvestment and community boost.
As it has been recently confirmed by Director of Corporate Services Kathy Humphrey, such concerns should be scrapped, as the City was able to bag some CA$2 million through the operation of the two gaming venues. It should be taken into account that the this is the 10-percent slice reserved for the city coffers. She stated that this amount reaches 2017 Q3’s performance and there is a very simple reason for this seemingly unlikely turn of events.
#Kamloops card players, please note that our table games are open once again albeit under new temporary hours. We thank you in advance for your patience. pic.twitter.com/DO4VLYBtqg
— CascadesCasino (@KamloopsCasino) November 15, 2018
Cascades Casino continued welcoming casino patrons throughout the entire strike, but Chances Casino appeared to be more attractive for people interested in giving its gaming offerings a try. Such was the case back in September, but now it has been officially confirmed, that Chances Casino was indeed able to attract more individuals. When all is said and done, this compensated for the slow period for the rival gaming venue which had many of its workers picketing on a daily basis.
Upcoming Months Set to See More Development
The community is able to benefit from the said amount of money on a regular basis and more often than not the 10-percent boost is utilized for additional funding of community reconstruction and improvements often including refurbishing. This makes it easy for Kamloops to remain appealing for both its residents and tourists from near and far.
Mrs. Humphrey stated that local parks are also able to see improvements as a result of the funding. Projections are that the end of 2018’s fourth quarter will not witness much improvement compared to 2017’s total CA$2.6 million. Up until this June, the area managed to bag some CA$985,000 providing solely through Cascades Casino’s operation, providing a significant boost to the region.