Dan Wade, COO of MGM Grand Detroit, said that his company will immediately recognize the DCC as the MGM Cast Members� collective bargaining representative. Recognition is based on signed authorization cards submitted by Cast Members.

The Detroit Casino Council includes the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union (HERE), the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE), and the International Union, UAW.
Wade said, �Many of our Cast Members have said that they want to be part of a labor union, and they have selected DCC. We want to respect their wishes, and we look forward to good working partnerships with all four unions in the Council.�

UAW President Stephen P. Yokich described the recognition agreement as �an excellent example of labor-management co-operation.�

�We�ve always said that when employers don�t interfere, when they respect the wishes of their employees, then workers are going to jump at the chance to join good strong unions,� said Yokich. �Dan Wade and MGM Grand are setting an example that other companies ought to follow.�

�This unique multi-union coalition is going to get the gaming industry in Detroit off to a great start,� said HERE President John W. Wilhelm. �MGM Grand Detroit workers told us they wanted to join a union, and they also told us they wanted to see unions working together.�

�It�s a winning team,� said IBT President James R. Hoffa. �These four unions have a great track record in this industry, in Detroit and in the state of Michigan. We�re looking forward to building on that record with MGM Grand Detroit and with our fellow unions in the Council.�

Co-operation between unions and between labor and management will set the stage for regional economic growth, said Frank Hanley, President of the International Union of Operating Engineers. �Now we�re in a position,� he said, �to create and preserve the kind of secure, family-wage jobs Detroit really needs.�