Gateway Casinos and Entertainment is one of the leading casino operators in Canada, but the company was recently involved in a new controversial situation. Casino Rama Resort workers recently found out that their employer does not plan on covering their benefits come April 30. This notion is concerning for them, as the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 grows on a provincial level.
The province of Ontario is among the regions that have reported a higher number of confirmed COVID-19 cases over the past couple of weeks. The past 24 hours witnessed 170 more confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, ultimately increasing their overall number to 858 individuals across the province. As for the death toll of the highly contagious virus, it managed to reach 15 individuals since the beginning of the outbreak.
Gateway Casinos Layoffs
Most of the new cases hail from Toronto, the York regions, as well as the Durham region. In this growingly uncertain situation when the health authorities are recommending social distancing, as a way to flatten the curve of outspread, Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation decided that the casino locations across Ontario should remain closed for the foreseeable future. Casino Rama Resort is one of the popular tribal locations.
Casino staff members learned that March 15 saw a memo from Gateway Casinos making it clear that their benefits are going to be covered while the casino closure is in progress. This was good news for them, even though the duration of this closure remained unclear mid-March. This week saw more news on the subject, making it clear that some changes have been made by the casino operator.
It became clear that April 30 is about to see the end of this benefits coverage, a situation that workers define as unfair. Individuals associated with the largest tribal casino resort of Ontario would no longer be eligible for benefits past that date. Shortly after finding out that change of plans, unionized workers expressed their anger and disappointment with the way things go.
Unifor Protects Workers
Casino staff members with decades of experience have expressed their feelings of being left out when social distancing is in progress but also betrayed by their employer refusing to support them in a situation of uncertainty and pending global financial crisis. Workers expressing their opinion have decided to remain anonymous, as this could potentially affect their job. Unifor executive Deb Tveit pointed out that the labor union continues protecting workers.
It should be taken into account that the casino operator is legally obliged to cover the employee benefits for the time window of six weeks following a temporary layoff. This is what Gateway Casinos is planning on doing by the end of April. However, the labor union would like to see some flexibility and potential change of the approach in this particular situation of COVID-19 outspread, as the circumstances are far from predictable or ordinary.
One of the most important things after a temporary layoff is the appropriate coding of the records of employment. Individuals should have their records coded “shortage of work”, as to ensure that the benefits would be allocated in a timely manner. Ontario Public Service Employees Union is another labor union seeking fair conditions in there trying times. Unifor sides with it and Public Service Alliance of Canada on this matter.
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