Culinary Union urges Nevada regulators to investigate Station Casinos over alleged pandemic 'mud lists'

At the start of the Nevada Gaming Commission meeting on July 24, members of the Culinary Workers Union and unionized employees addressed commissioners in public comment, urging the commission to investigate Station Casinos over what they described as evidence of unlawful anti‑union actions.

Ira Dyanin, speaking for the Culinary Union, cited material introduced in a federal unfair‑labor‑practice trial, naming emails between senior corporate officers and property managers that the union says show executives asked for "mud lists" that categorized employees by union sentiment. Dyanin said the federal agency handling labor enforcement obtained text messages and emails in one of the largest labor law enforcement actions in U.S. history; he described examples in which a Station Casinos chief operating officer asked whether a property had prepared a "mud list" and proposed meetings to discuss next steps.

Union speaker Castiano Corpus, who said he has worked at the company’s Powell Station location for 33 years and is a union committee leader, described fear among employees and urged the commission to use its authority to probe whether Station Casinos is meeting Nevada’s fitness standards for gaming operators. "Every day I go to work, I'm afraid because I don't know which day might be my last day," Corpus said, asking the commission to consider the evidence and investigate whether Station Casinos continues to meet the "high standards necessary to operating a gaming enterprise in our state."

Why it matters: The comments raised an enforcement question for a company regulated by the commission. The speakers pointed to documentary evidence being used in ongoing federal litigation — including alleged directives to supervisors to track employees’ union views during pandemic layoffs — and urged state regulators to consider whether that conduct bears on a licensee’s suitability.

What the speakers said: - Ira Dyanin (Culinary Union) summarized emails entered as evidence in the federal trial and urged the commission to investigate whether Station Casinos "is adhering to the high standards necessary to operating a gaming enterprise in our state." - Castiano Corpus, a Powell Station employee and union committee leader, said the union seeks a bargaining table and a contract; he described job insecurity for employees.

The commission did not take action on the public comment; commissioners listened and then proceeded to the agenda. Public comment period rules were reiterated at the meeting start that such comments generally cannot be acted upon immediately but may be considered for future agenda items or referrals to staff.