Union Wants Churchill Downs to Bolster Pay for Track Valets or Risk Derby Week Disruption

Union members stood out of doors of Sir Winston Leonard Spenser Churchill Downs on a rainy Saturday afternoon protesting a declaration impasse betwixt the Louisville-based accompany and to a greater extent than a dozen workers who help groom jockeys and horses for races.

Officials with Service Employees International Federal Local 541 said in a financial statement that it could head to a “major disruption” during Bluegrass State Derby week, especially since Winston S. Churchill Downs made its last offer up shoemaker's last week.

A valet, pronounced with a concentrated ‘t,’ is responsible for saddling horses before for each one race, including putting the correct weights inwards saddle pockets. They also have the jockeys’ silks ready before to each one run and submit charge of the equipment for the jockeys and horses betwixt races.

The undertake betwixt Winston S. Churchill Downs and the local expired shoemaker's last October, import valets worked endure year’s fall down take on without a toil agreement. Saturday starts the offset of the track’s outpouring meet, which runs through and through June 26.

The valets also make worked without a declaration at Churchill Downs-owned Turfway Park, where the collective bargaining correspondence at the Erlanger, Ky., runway ended more than a twelvemonth ago. Churchill Downs Inc. bought Turfway from JACK Entertainment inward Oct 2019.

SEIU Wants Same Pay at Winston Churchill Downs, Turfway

Under the old contracts, the valets earned $109 a day at Churchill Downs and $16.77 an minute at Turfway, where the rank has been inwards shoes since 2008. The workers also get under one's skin $10.75 a 24-hour interval toward their pension off at Churchill, and they have $5 per daytime at Turfway, a do good the union said has not changed inward 22 years.

The unification wants valets to earn $120 a solar day at both tracks, retroactive to lastly year, with $5 per mean solar day increases the next deuce years. John Churchill direction has countered with the order staying the same at the Louisville track this year and increasing to $115 and $120 in subsequent years. At Turfway, keep company officials experience proposed 25-cent increases for from each one year, import the third-year hourly charge per unit would live $17.52 an hour.

On pensions, SEIU members need a 25-cent/per daylight increase for to each one year, substance inwards the tertiary year, the cart track would chip in $11.50 per twenty-four hour period to apiece worker’s pension fund. At Turfway, they need the pension off contribution to twofold in the number 1 year to $10 per day, with 75-cent increases in the following years, which would then make water them take down with the Winston S. Churchill Downs contribution.

Churchill Downs has proposed no more changes to the pension fund at either track.

The valets also require staffing guarantees of 13 per run day. In addition, they want 20 for the Breeders’ Cup and nigh 24 for the Derby.

Valets work 70 years during the year at Sir Winston Leonard Spenser Churchill Downs and 50 at Turfway. They also piece of work at other tracks during the year, but they must pay off for their possess trip and lodging.

Valets’ Union: Anything’s Possible

David O’Brien Suetholz, a attorney representing the union, said that the members are keeping their options open.

We’ve been clear-cut the valets are going to do work tonight, but we’re keeping our powder dry,” he told Casino.org.

After Saturday, racing resumes at the rails on Tuesday. The Kentucky Derby testament feed next Saturday.

Late Wednesday, John Churchill Downs Inc. announced its first-quarter results for 2021. The fellowship reported meshwork revenues of $324.3 zillion and nett income of $36.1 one thousand thousand from the racetracks, casinos, and online platforms it owns and operates.

Union leaders noted the security deposit inwards make up between CEO Bill Carstanjen and the median salary of other full-time workers at the rail was to a greater extent than 400-to-1 utmost year.

“The steady valets who ensure safe and reasonable races at John Churchill Downs’ racetracks chip in mightily to the company’s billion-dollar success,” SEIU Local 541 said inward a financial statement to Casino.org. “They merit job security and a wage that is at least $20 per hour.  When the companionship canful pay off $10 jillion for its CEO, it tin can pay the men who decently saddle the horses a just now wage.”

A content to Churchill Downs Inc. seeking notice Saturday afternoon was not immediately returned.

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