The main casino workers union of Atlantic City, the Local 54, and the Trump Taj Mahal have been at war for the past few months. The union feels as though workers have been treated unfairly due to pension and health insurance cuts by Carl Icahn, the businessman set to take ownership of the property. In retaliation, the union tried to discourage clients of the Taj Mahal from using the resort. The casino fought back, stating federal bankruptcy law was violated with the actions of the union, but a judge has now ruled in favor of the Local 54.
The corporate parent of the Taj, Trump Entertainment Resorts, wanted to seek compensation for lost business due to the discouragement by the union in regards to event clients of the property. The group also wanted to ban the Local 54 from issuing similar communications in the future.
Kevin Goss, a United States Bankruptcy Judge, has denied the request of Trump Entertainment in an order he issued on Tuesday. The ruling was made public yesterday and showed that the Judge ruled the communications by the union are protected by labor organizing federal law. The President of the Local 54, Bob McDevitt, was happy with the ruling, stating the union was grateful for those who honored the boycott.
The CEO of Trump Entertainment, Robert Griffin did not comment on the ruling. The company was arguing that the calls and emails sent by the union to the clients of the casino were in violation of legal protections that would ban groups from interfering with the assets of a bankrupt company.