Starbucks tips case gives hope to Vegas dealers

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/mar/26/starbucks-tips-case-gives-hope-dealers/

A California court rejects sharing, but that may not apply in Vegas

By Liz Benston

Wed, Mar 26, 2008 (2 a.m.)

Serving coffee is a lot different from dealing cards. But not to casino dealers in Las Vegas, who are cheering a landmark ruling last week by a California court against a tip-sharing policy at Starbucks they hope will build public support for a similar lawsuit filed by dealers at Wynn Las Vegas.

Despite the similarities between the two lawsuits, the case underscores significant differences between the legal landscape in California and Nevada, a state with nearly 30 years of case law supporting casino employers in tip disputes.

For Wynn dealers, the Starbucks decision is a ray of hope in an uphill, 18-month legal battle attempting to reverse a casino policy of splitting dealer tips with supervisors. That policy costs dealers at least 15 percent of their tips — most of their total pay, which before the new policy could reach more than $80,000 a year.

The lawsuit is part of a multiprong strategy by Wynn dealers, who also voted to be represented by the Transport Workers Union and filed a state ballot initiative to fight the policy. Nevada’s labor commissioner is expected to rule on the matter this year after a state court determined that, absent a formal decision by the agency, the courts had no authority to hear the case.

“Our whole point was this wasn’t about a bunch of spoiled dealers at a high-end property but the principle of the thing,” said Kanie Kastroll, a Wynn dealer and union organizer.

“Maybe people don’t understand what we do but they understand the barista who makes their coffee just the way they like it every morning, with a smile. This (tip dispute) could happen to someone who makes less money and with less to spare. It’s like a light has been turned on and people now will get it.”

FULL story at link.