STATEMENT by Geoconda Argüello-Kline regarding increasing protections for workers (AB246):

ONLINE / TWEET

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

MEDIA CONTACT:

Bethany Khan: bkhan@culinaryunion226.org ▪ (702) 387-7088 

STATEMENT by Geoconda Argüello-Kline regarding increasing protections for workers (AB246):

The Culinary Union supports AB246 because all workers deserve to be safe at work, and strengthening workplace safety and contact tracing is the right thing to do during an ongoing global pandemic. 

Hospitality workers received protections similar to those in this bill during the 32nd Special Session in the historic SB4, also known as the Adolfo Fernandez Bill, named after a Culinary Union member who died after contracting COVID-19. 

Sadly 127 Culinary and Bartenders Union members and/or their immediate family members have died from COVID-19 and 1,260 workers/family members have been hospitalized due to the virus since March 1, 2020.

The state of Nevada must extend COVID-19 protections and effective contact-tracing procedures to all frontline essential workers, especially Black, Indigenous, and people of color who are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.  

AB246 will protect workers, put Nevada on a path to a full economic recovery, and help to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in workplaces. The Culinary Union urges the Nevada Legislature to support and pass AB246.

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 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 45% 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 for working families in Nevada for 86 years.

CulinaryUnion226.org / @Culinary226 

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