Bally’s Black Hawk Properties Mark Colorado’s First Casino Union Election with Teamsters Local 455
TL;DR — Bally’s Black Hawk casinos unionized **110 workers** with Teamsters Local 455 via card-check, the first such move for any Colorado casino. The step follows a November neutrality accord and adds to the union’s nearly **6,000** national casino members. Black Hawk hosts a dozen properties operated by multiple major firms.
SCCG Take — The vote supplies a concrete benchmark for labor organizing in one of the fastest-growing U.S. casino markets. Operators there now face the documented presence of union representation at a competitor site.
Bally’s employees at three Black Hawk casinos have become the first casino workers in Colorado to unionize. The card-check vote covers 110 workers across the East, North, and West properties and includes bartenders, cashiers, cooks, maintenance technicians, slot attendants, and slot technicians.
Tommy Blitsch, Director of the Teamsters Convention, Trade Show, and Casino Division, said: “The workers at Black Hawk Casino came together to secure a stronger voice on the job, and they’ve made history in the process.” The election follows a neutrality accord struck last November between Bally’s and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
Teamsters Add to Nearly 6,000 Casino Members Nationwide
The Teamsters maintain more than 1.3 million members overall and represent nearly 6,000 members at casinos and casino hotels across the country. Unionized gaming sites include Wynn Resorts’ Encore Boston Harbor and Hard Rock Casino Rockford in Illinois.
Bally’s holds existing ties to the union. In February, 66 bankers, front desk workers, and cashiers at the Bally’s Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi, voted to join. In January, Bally’s Twin River Casino in Rhode Island reached a new five-year agreement with the Teamsters covering 35 maintenance and valet employees.
Black Hawk Market Holds Dozen Casino Properties
Black Hawk ranks among the fastest-growing gaming markets in the United States and is home to a dozen casinos, including the three Bally’s venues. Other operators in the area include Caesars Entertainment, Monarch Casino & Resort, and Penn Entertainment.
Bally’s also runs a namesake racino in Aurora, Colorado. Its West segment includes the Colorado properties as well as Bally’s Lake Tahoe in Stateline, Nevada, and a development project on the Las Vegas Strip. As reported by Casino.org, the Black Hawk vote represents the state’s first unionization among casino workers.
Reporting: Casino.org News
Generated by SCCG’s automated editorial system from published source reporting. SCCG Management holds editorial responsibility.
Colorado's first casino union vote just set a labor benchmark every operator in fast-growing Western markets needs to track.
We've watched labor organizing accelerate across gaming for three years, but this is the first domino in a state market that doubled revenue since 2020. Every competitor in Black Hawk and every operator eyeing Colorado expansion now has a concrete case study on workforce expectations and bargaining footprint.
- 110 workers at three Bally's Black Hawk properties voted via card-check under November neutrality agreement
- Teamsters now represent nearly 6,000 casino workers nationally, including Encore Boston Harbor and Hard Rock Rockford
- Black Hawk hosts a dozen casinos operated by Caesars, Penn, Monarch, and Bally's in one of the fastest-growing U.S. markets
SCCG angle: We've placed HR leadership and advised on workforce strategy for clients entering high-growth Western markets. When labor dynamics shift this fast, SCCG connects you to the right legal counsel, compensation benchmarking partners, and employee engagement firms before organizing campaigns reach your door.
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