SEARCH NEWS:

 

Card Room Employees Protest in Washington State

Dave Bemis of Freddie's Clubs in Auburn and Renton, addressing a crowd of workers assembled on the steps of the legislative building, emphasized that a lot of good jobs are in jeopardy. "It's all about jobs," Demis said. "Living wage jobs; jobs that help support families; jobs with a future. Let's make the politicians understand that when they talk about shutting us down, or taxing us out of existence, they're talking about the lives of thousands of people who make their living in this industry."

Several busloads of workers were there to support mini-casino operators who testified before a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on gambling. Groups of card room employees, who dressed in their working uniforms and distributed cancelled playing card decks as their "calling card," visited legislative offices to meet with senators, representatives and their staffs.

"The recent rash of government and editorial attacks on the card room industry, supposedly over concerns about the proliferation of gambling in the state, is unfair and it hurts a lot of honest, hard-working people " said Steve Dowen, owner of the Riverside Inn in Tukwila and president of the Recreational Gaming Association. "We want legislators to have a clear picture of the fact that we're not just dealing with numbers here, but with the lives of an awful lot of good people and their families."

The rally was considered by protesters to be a success. "This is a first for us, but clearly the hundreds of individuals who brought their very personal, simple messages to the legislature today have had a bigger impact than we could hope to generate with an army of paid lobbyists or spin doctors," said Blake Dowen, who helped organize the logistics of bringing the busloads of workers from different mini-casinos to Olympia. "I think we've accomplished the goal of putting a human face on what is otherwise a contentious issue."

< Gaming News