As the Local 54 of UNITE-HERE continues to battle the Taj Mahal for worker benefits, the casino union is planning a massive protest effort for tomorrow. A display of ‘mass civil disobedience’ is planned for tomorrow with 2,000 casino workers, members of the community and additional union members planning on taking part in the demonstration.
According to Ben Beglieter of the Local 54, the protest will begin at 5pm on Wednesday by the Taj Mahal, along the Boardwalk. Beglieter was asked what the term ‘mass civil disobedience’ meant in his announcement, but has not yet commented on the plans of the protest.
Back in October of 2014, 24 people were arrested as part of a Local 54 protest when individuals block traffic at an intersection of the Atlantic City Expressway. Protestors sat down at the intersection and did not move when officers arrived on the scene and tried to remove them.
The Atlantic City Press has stated that 60 protestors will be directly involved in civil disobedience. The protests have taken place for months now in the area due to the battle between Carl Icahn and the main casino workers union of Atlantic City. 1,100 workers saw their health insurance and pension plan eliminated after the Trump Entertainment Resorts made cuts last year once a bankruptcy judge gave the go-ahead.
Icahn has exchanged $292 million in debt of the company for ownership and plans on investing $100 million to keep the casino going after bankruptcy. Icahn also is the owner of the Tropicana casino in Atlantic City. In a positive note towards the casino workers, the council of Atlantic City just passed a resolution last week in support of the workers in their efforts to have benefits restored.