No, not the e-mails S&G gets from readers (like the one offering an informative dissent on my view that Harrah’s would try yet again to cut The Rio loose) but rather ones that are meant for third parties but are kindly shared with us by the readership.
After an ugly wrangle with irate casino dealers, Nevada Labor Commission spokeswoman Amanda Penn sent the following account to various colleagues, including Labor Commissioner Michael Tanchek. Ms. Penn has confirmed the authenticity of the following …
I don’t know; you saw the part I missed. I was mostly outside attempting to calm down the dealers who thought that tip pooling was being heard today and even with me, the SDAG and the deputy commish telling them that tip pooling wasn’t going to be heard, because the legislature was addressing it, they did not trust us, thinking the LC was going to sneak some language into the min wage hearing when they left. About 30 of them accosted me in the hallway and Capitol Police came up and stood by me and stayed with me until they all left the building. The only thing missing was peasants with pitch forks and torches screaming "Kill the monster!!!"
They were angry that the LC overturned the DLC’s opinion. ( I went through the fact that what the paper reported initially was not what the DLC ultimately determined.)
They were angry that the LC did not know or even "care" to keep records and data on "how may tip earners there are in Nevada who were losing their homes, etc." (I told them that was DETR’s job, not the LC’s)
They were upset that the LC and S. Wynn were in cahoots. (I disputed that — they came back that DLC Gail Maxwell had purportedly told someone that Michael had spoken with Steve. I disputed that and they chose to believe hearsay over me.)
They were unhappy that there was nothing in the media announcing the "secret" workshops. (I told them that I had personally done the press releases and told them about the Web postings. See below.)
They were unhappy that the state was not their advocate. I told them that we remain neutral and they all but collectively yelled "Bull—-!" and on and on and on in that same vein.
They’d claim something, I’d explain the circumstances, and they were still suspect, though more calm the more I talked.
Basically, if this were the pilot for SURVIVOR - State Government, the dealers would have voted me off the island in the first 10 minutes by shoving me out to sea with only two coconuts as a flotation device and a cocktail sword in case I wanted to do a little light spear-fishing on my way to Antarctica.
I tried to address all the rumors and, for the most part, they listened but many of them just wanted to grandstand. Some were shoving documents in my face. I kept telling them that I was the wrong person to tell this to and showed them an 8×10 glossy of Michael Tanchek and gave them his home
address and phone number saying "Here’s the guy you really want!" **
I said I was just attempting to help set the record straight and get them where they need to be at this time: That they should support Assemblyman Beers’ bill (with an emphasis on Assembly) and told them how they could get involved.
The one harmonious point was when I explained that the reason the LC was not going to continue with tip pooling workshops was because the statute is mightier than the regulation. I explained that we did not want to frustrate them further, waste their time and the state’s resources by having workshops, and adopting regs only to have them overturned by statute during the session, then potentially having to start the reg process all over again.
The skepticism was so bad, at one point, I asked who the representatives were in the crowd and had about 7 people follow me into my office. I showed them the press releases on my hard drive that I did announcing the workshops, my media distribution list, the sign in sheets for the events (and printed them copies of all the documents), and I took them on the LC and LCB Web sites to show them how to watch for stuff.
As Rodney Dangerfield said, tugging at his collar, "Whew! Tough crowd."
Actually, in the end, the Magnificent 7 were most cordial and rational and eager to get their peers together to testify on Beers’ bill. They thanked me, we shook hands and everything was amicable when the reps left.
I did witness the last 45 minutes of the min wage hearing. There was nothing controversial or exciting during that time. After nearly being thrown over the 4th floor balcony by croupiers, I didn’t really focus too much on the rest of the hearing. There was just some low-key commentary. The proposed regs, if you want to send them to DC, are attached. I’ll talk with Michael to get the salient changes resulting from the commentary and get them to everyone as soon as possible.
FYI — There was a reporter for the LV Business Press outside with me in the thick of the dealer action, and a Fox 5 cameraman in the hearing room. I had him interview the SDAG after the hearing, since the questions were technical.
**Just kidding, Mike
OK, so I added the link to the Gail Maxwell story. But the text itself is The Real McCoy.
Now, we have a letter from a resident of Strafford, N.H., to state Sen. Mark Amodei, one of the solons Steve Wynn has targeted from pressure, to preserve his tip-confiscation arrangement. Our Granite State correspondent takes a different view, however. (Full disclosure: The letter writer insisted on touching up his/her text as a condition of publication.)
Dear Senator Amodei,
I have been following, with interest, the issue of tip sharing in its latest embodiment as proposed by Mr. Wynn. Obviously this goes far beyond traditional, voluntary, tip pooling. In tip pooling, all members of the pool are, more or less, pulling the same weight in shared duties, and there is certain fairness in the concept. I don’t see this in Mr. Wynn’s, obviously self interested, proposal. I see this as nothing more than a way for a rather wealthy man to be able to defray payroll responsibilities he does not wish to provide from his own bottom line. It is the height of greed.
More to the point however, when I provide a ‘tip’ to a Nevada worker in the service industry, it is my intent that the total amount I am providing go to that person. I am providing it as a token of my thanks for good service, courtesy, and maybe just a warm smile. Should that service worker wish to, voluntarily, share that token with someone else at a later time, that is fine with me. I am happy just knowing that I have provided a gift of gratitude, and that my intended recipient benefits fully from it.
I come to your fair, if somewhat harsh and hardy, state from the east coast three to four times a year. As I like to tell friends, I go to Las Vegas to see Nevada. I really love it out there. I was with you folks in March and will be there again next month. I consider myself a generous tipper; a ‘George’ in the parlance of the casino industry. I gain satisfaction in expressing my appreciation in such a manner. From the poker dealer who is friendly and humorous, to the cocktail server who is warm and prompt, to the kid at the valet, with the knee brace, who is still willing to run to get my car, I appreciate all those hard working people do for me and reward them appropriately. But it is them only to whom my gratitude is directed. Not some managerial type in a suit and tie I never even see.
To sum it up, if this issue has not been resolved, or has at least not progressed, in a somewhat favorable manner from my point of view when I am in Nevada next month, I will be quite vocal to all service folks I interact with in regard to it. I will make it clear that if Mr. Steve Wynn gets what he wants, he will be setting precedent which threatens their livelihood and financial well being. I will go as high as the baccarat dealers at Bellagio, down to the teenaged kid or working mom at the Starbucks counter at Sunset Station. I tip them all, and do so happily, for I know they appreciate it. It must be understood, this is not only a Wynn Las Vegas matter. This is a potential problem for the State of Nevada and thousands of her residents.
And if, again from my point of view, the worst case scenario occurs and Mr. Wynn has his way with Carson City, I will have to rethink future visits to the Battle Born State. The taste in my mouth would be that bad.
Thank you.
Perhaps our New Hampshire friend should share his views with the Sun’s Jeff Simpson. Just a thought.
