FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Monday, December 9, 2024
MEDIA CONTACT:
Bethany Khan: bkhan@culinaryunion226.org ▪ (702) 387-7088
Culinary Union releases “A Strike Song (VirginLV),” a parody of Shaboozey’s record-breaking song “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” calls on artist to stand with strikers by canceling December 11th Virgin Hotels Las Vegas concert during NFR -
Listen to new song: “A Strike Song (VirginLV)” on Instagram, Soundcloud, or Youtube
Las Vegas, NV – Nearly four weeks into the strike at Virgin Las Vegas, Culinary Union has released “A Strike Song (VirginLV),” a parody song of Shaboozey’s record-breaking hit, “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” and calls on the artist to cancel his Virgin Hotels Las Vegas concert on Wednesday, December 11th during the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas. Inspired by the record-breaking song that has been the longest-running No.1 hit of the decade, a Virgin Las Vegas striker and Culinary Union member recorded a parody version which has become a rallying cry for the hundreds of hospitality workers who are on strike to win a new union contract.
“Shaboozey’s music has inspired millions, but performing at Virgin Las Vegas would undermine the workers fighting for their livelihoods,” said Ted Pappageorge, Secretary-Treasurer for the Culinary Union. “We’re asking him to stand with working families on strike by canceling his December 11th show at the casino. As ‘A Strike Song (VirginLV)’ reminds us: ‘Don’t you know? When we fight, we win! Ain’t no power like the power of the union.’ Shaboozey’s support could send a powerful message to Virgin Las Vegas and its billionaire Canadian owners that workers deserve respect and a new union contract. Crossing a picket line is wrong and puts anyone who does on the side of a greedy corporation forcing workers to strike during the holidays in their fight for a better future. Culinary Union urges Shaboozey to show solidarity with the workers who keep Las Vegas running and to stand on the right side of history.”
“I’m on strike because workers at Virgin Las Vegas deserve better – we’ve worked hard for this company and it’s time they respect our value,” said Carly Greathouse, a hostess at the Commons Kitchen on strike at the Virgin Las Vegas who recorded “A Strike Song (VirginLV). “It’s not fair that workers on the Las Vegas Strip are getting higher wages while we’re expected to work and work, but not have any real wage increases. Virgin Las Vegas should invest in us – their reliable, loyal, and hardworking employees – instead of hiring scabs. Like the song says, ‘Solidarity, respect. We ain’t scabbin’ for a check…We’ll be out here ‘til we win.’ We’re strong, we’re powerful, and my message to customers and Shaboozey is to support us by staying out of Virgin Las Vegas while we are on strike. My co-workers and I will stay out here until we win because we believe in solidarity, respect, and winning a union contract so that one job is enough.”
LYRICS (Excerpt): “A Strike Song (VirginLV)” -
His baby want a Birkin, so the concert must go on
Bad luck to cross a picket line, we're out here all night long
Gotta feed our families, but Boozey's greed is strong
Las Vegas is a union town, fair contract’s what we want
“One, here comes the two to the three to the four
Tell ’em ‘Bring your coworkers,’ there’s always room for more
Party on the picket line, that’s our dance floor
Strike’s on, for sure!
Everybody walk out, street’s callin’
Don’t you know? When we fight, we win!
Ain’t no power like the power of the union
Hotel workers on strike at the Virgin
…
Solidarity, respect
We ain’t scabbin’ for a check
Tell Virgin we ain't forget (oh yeah)
A.M. to the P.M.
We’ll be out here ‘til we win
Tell your family, tell your friends (oh yeah)”
For the first time in over 22 years, the Culinary Union is leading its longest-lasting strike in more than two decades, taking workers at Virgin Las Vegas out in an open-ended strike that began November 15th at 5:00am as workers continue fighting for a new 5-year union contract for 700 hospitality workers. Since the strike began, hundreds of striking workers and union members have maintained 24/7 picket lines at every entrance and exit along Harmon Avenue and Paradise Road around the casino property.
The Culinary Union is Nevada’s largest Latinx/Black/AAPI/immigrant organization with Virgin Las Vegas strikers who hail from 23 different countries, including: Belize, Benin, Bulgaria, Cuba, Denmark, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Mexico, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Peru, Philippines, Romania, Rwanda, Serbia, Thailand, and Turkey.
One week into the strike, 57 Culinary Union members and striking workers from Virgin Las Vegas were arrested November 21, 2024 in an act of peaceful civil disobedience. The labor demonstration drew hundreds of striking workers and union members. During the Thanksgiving holiday, Culinary Union hosted food basket distribution and a holiday dinner on the picket line for strikers. Three weeks into the strike, hundreds of strikers marched to tell Virgin Las Vegas’s billionaire Canadian owners to take their 3 dimes back to Canada. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, Congressional representatives Dina Titus and Steven Horsford, Nevada Treasurer Zach Conine, and other elected officials have supported workers by walking the picket line and visiting with strikers.
The contract at Virgin Las Vegas expired on June 1, 2023. For months, the Culinary Union has been reaching out to locals, venue performers, customers, investors, company board members, gaming regulators, and community allies about the strike. As the strike continues, the Culinary Union is urging tourists, venue performers, elected officials, and community allies to stay out of Virgin Las Vegas and is actively encouraging customers to cancel their reservation, check out of the property, choose a union accommodation, and eat at union restaurants.
COMING TO LAS VEGAS AND PLANNING TO STAY AT VIRGIN LAS VEGAS? During Wrangler NFR Las Vegas 2024 (December 5-14), and ahead of Las Vegas Bowl (December 27), AVN Adult Entertainment Expo (Jan 22-25), 2025 Academic Surgical Congress (February 11-13), Exchange 2025 (March 23-26), and Directions North America 2025 (April 7-9), the Culinary Union is asking locals, elected officials, political candidates, conferences/conventions, and tourists to support hospitality workers by not patronizing the Virgin Las Vegas, which is in an active labor dispute.
CUSTOMERS DESERVE BETTER: Culinary Union condemns Virgin Las Vegas for hiring temporary scab workers - off the street - to clean guest rooms, work in the hotel, cook meals, and serve guests drinks during the strike. Customers deserve better - high quality service provided by trained and trusted professionals. Culinary Union encourages guests to demand that their rooms be cleaned by union professionals and to leave honest reviews online about their personal experience during the strike.
Culinary and Bartenders Unions strikers are from all major areas of operations at Virgin Las Vegas, including housekeeping, food and beverage departments, and the following unionized restaurants: Casa Calavera, Funny Library Coffee Shop, Juice Bar, The Bar at Commons Club, The Kitchen at Commons Club, and The Shag Room.
Virgin Hotels is a lifestyle hospitality brand that Sir Richard Branson's global Virgin Group has pioneered for over 50 years. Virgin Hotels Las Vegas is owned by the LiUNA Pension Fund of Eastern and Central Canada (LPFCEC), Fengate Asset Management, and Juniper Capital. LPFCEC, based in Oakville, Ontario, has over C$11 billion in assets; over 150,000 members in Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland & Labrador, and Prince Edward Island; and over 27,500 pensioners and beneficiaries. Fengate, with offices in Toronto and Houston, is a real asset and growth equity investor in North America. Juniper, headed by managing partners Jay Wolf, Alex Krys, and Armand Reale, makes direct investments in real estate and advises a variety of institutional clients with a focus on value creation. In August, Nuveen Green Capital, a subsidiary of Nuveen and a TIAA company, agreed to give Virgin Las Vegas $190 million in financing. TIAA serves non-profit institutions & their employees. Nuveen manages assets for clients including its parent company TIAA.
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ABOUT CULINARY UNION:
Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including at most of the casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip and in Downtown Las Vegas. UNITE HERE represents 300,000 workers in gaming, hotel, and food service industries in North America.
The Culinary Union, through the Culinary Health Fund, is one of the largest healthcare consumers in the state. The Culinary Health Fund is sponsored by the Culinary Union and Las Vegas-area employers. It provides health insurance coverage for over 145,000 Nevadans, the Culinary Union’s members, and their dependents.
The Culinary Union is Nevada’s largest Latinx/Black/AAPI/immigrant organization with members who come from 178 countries and speak over 40 different languages. We are proud to have helped over 18,000 immigrants become American citizens and new voters since 2001 through our affiliate, The Citizenship Project.
The Culinary Union has a diverse membership which is 55% women and 60% immigrants. The demographics of Culinary Union members are approximately: 54% Latinx, 18% white, 15% Asian, 12% Black, and less than 1% Indigenous Peoples.
Culinary Union members work as: Guest room attendants, cocktail and food servers, porters, bellmen, cooks, bartenders, laundry, and kitchen workers. The Culinary Union has been fighting and winning for working families in Nevada for 89 years.
CulinaryUnion226.org / @Culinary226
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