The strike at the Ruhl casino in Nice continued until Tuesday, January 3rd. Between hope and determination, the Management and the CGT express their diverging feelings on the situation.
“Everything has almost returned to normal. The strike is over,” said Pierre Compagnon, the marketing director dressed in a black jacket and blue tie, sounding optimistic.
“Each day, the duration of the strike decreased. If on Friday, it lasted all day and all night, on the last evening, it lasted only two hours.” In a calm manner, he also assures that the gaming room, closed since December 29th, the first day of the strike, has even reopened. However, this positive assessment of the situation is not shared by the CGT union representative, Fabrice Mione.
According to him, “only three croupiers worked the last evening of the strike because they are on fixed-term contracts. And if no negotiations are concluded, it might continue.” Fabrice Mione, who has been a croupier at the casino for 17 years and loves his job, is worried, “Since last year, we no longer benefit from the guaranteed minimum wage. We are paid almost solely on tips. This does not allow us to earn a decent salary. Especially since the cost of living in Nice is higher than in other cities. We want the return of the guaranteed minimum wage.” However, the management of the Ruhl does not see things the same way.
According to the marketing director, the 5 to 15% increase, decided by the company as part of a mandatory annual negotiation, is more than adequate. Specifically, the Management has proposed to the croupiers a compensation higher than the national minimums guaranteed by the table games profession in France. “Given that the Ruhl is a significant casino, our initiative is normal and fair. But this did not seem sufficient to them.”
The words are clear. Since the beginning of the strike on December 29, the parties involved met only once unofficially. Since then, no negotiations had been opened except very recently. However, Fabrice Mione guarantees that there are plenty of proposals. The CGT even considered the introduction of a “fixed” system, in other words, setting up a fixed salary for the croupiers. A glimmer of hope appears in recent days. The CGT and the Casino have made contact.
Uncertainty thus reigns over the outcome of the case. Already, positively, the Casino has agreed to open negotiations, and the croupiers have therefore returned to their posts from Wednesday. So, place your bets…!
*It was the collective of employees who voted for the conduct of the strike.
Barbara D
