More than 1,300 workers at Encore Boston Harbor went on strike Friday morning at the resort and casino in Everett.
The workers, who are represented by UNITE HERE Local 26 and Teamsters Local 25, overwhelmingly voted last month to authorize a strike if a new labor contract with casino owner Wynn Resorts wasn’t reached by Aug. 31, the contract’s expiration date.
“About 100 workers walked off the job this morning,” said Seth Ogilvie, communications director for UNITE HERE Local 26. “We deserve a contract that allows us to live in the city. We deserve a contract that’s on par with the hotels downtown. If we’re a five-star worker, we should at least get what a Hampton Inn employee gets.”
Workers are seeking a wage increase of $10 over three years for non-tipped employees and $5 for tipped employees. Currently, wages for hourly employees range from $15 to $32, according to the union, which says the across-the-board increase would put Encore employees level with other five-star hotels in and around Boston.
Both unions are also pushing to continue job security protections and healthcare benefits that were established in their previous contract. This includes a provision that guarantees a set number of staff members a minimum amount of working hours — something workers say Encore is trying to eliminate. (Contacted by GBH News, Encore denied that it was trying to eliminate the minimum number of hours).
“They just want to ensure that their benefits continue as is,” said Ogilvie. “These are very modest, very reasonable demands, and Wynn has not come to the table. Encore has not come to the table and even gotten remotely in that area.”
In 2025, Encore took in $847 million in Boston, according to Wynn Resorts’ filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The resort and casino also acts as the fourth highest-grossing casino in revenue outside of Nevada, according to the American Gaming Association.
“There is no reason why workers at a five-star casino should make less than workers at a Hampton Inn,” said Laura Moye, executive vice president of UNITE HERE Local 26. “This casino was built for the community benefit. The community is out here on the street today. We want to see the benefit.”
Ogilvie said most of the workers at Encore can’t afford to live in Boston under their current wages.
“A lot of these workers have to commute in from the suburbs and from various areas because the wages that they’re being paid are just not enough to live in Boston and in Everett,” he said. “A lot of the money that goes to shareholders, goes to investments overseas, that money is just gone. That doesn’t help us at all.”
A spokesperson for Wynn Resorts told GBH News on Thursday that “the unions have chosen to initiate a strike despite our continued efforts to reach an agreement through negotiations.”
The statement went on, “We are committed to finding common ground that is fair, financially sustainable and protects jobs for the long term. Encore Boston Harbor remains open and operational, and we stand ready to service our guests while we continue negotiations.”
Kathy Woodard, who works in Encore’s public areas department, said they work very hard and that they deserve the same pay that other workers at Boston-area five star hotels receive.
“I don’t think we’re being greedy. I think we just want to survive out here,” she said. “I hope that we can resolve this sooner rather than later. But we’re prepared to be out here as long as it takes for us to get the demands that we’re asking.”
