A MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT FOR ALL TIP EARNERS 

September 4, 2007

           Background Information: We would like to provide some background relating to the email we sent on August 28th concerning the Committee to Prevent Employers from Seizing Tips (PEST), and to explain our reasons and our intended purpose for forming this committee. A copy of this email is provided below.

            It’s time for tip earners, not only in Nevada but throughout the country, to pool their resources and speak as a group with a unified voice. By establishing this committee tip earners become a force to be reckoned with not only in their own state but on a national level as well.

There are thousands of tip earners here in Nevada and throughout the country--- not only in gaming but in the many service industries--- that should be coordinating their efforts to protect their income. If they speak with one loud and clear voice they could change the political landscape in their individual states, and eventually, across the nation.

            Once the Committee is established and has sufficient numbers, we will solicit political figures from both parties, both locally and nationally, to champion our cause. Our message is simple:

            Tips received by employees are their property. Tips do not belong to employers. Help us to protect our income.  

            To get started we need to compile an extensive grassroots email data base similar to what we had for the union and AB 357 campaign. We would like to confirm all those who are committed to support the Pest Committee so we may update the original mailing list.

Please send a quick email stating your commitment to PEST so we can compile an entire new email data base specifically for PEST. We would also ask that you send this email to friends and relatives both within Nevada and out of state, who you feel will support us in joining the PEST Committee even if they are not in a tip earning profession.

We are not asking for any financial support, just that you are committed to joining our effort in forming the PEST Committee. Please make your commitment by calling 702-474-9766 or sending an email to: dealers@iuge.net.

            One of the first things on our agenda is to achieve complete voter registration. True, there are many tip earners in Nevada already registered to vote, but we want it to be 100%. This will gain us more clout in the voting booth and will translate into increased political leverage for our cause. That is the name of the game. If you recall what one of the legislators said when we were doing our email and letter writing campaign for AB 357.

He said that he was receiving correspondence from citizens that were not registered to vote. What he was really saying is citizens who are not registered to vote have no voice in the decision making process. In the eyes of legislators, casino executives (i.e. Steve Wynn) and those in the business community, if you are not registered to vote, you have no say, you are basically a non-person because you cannot exercise any influence or pose any threat to whatever they want to do.

We cannot allow legislators, judges, people like Wynn or other business people and corporations to rob us of our property when we have the power to stop it. I don’t care what your view of voting was before; you now have a cause and a reason to be a voting citizen.

It doesn’t matter what your party affiliation is because PEST has a non-partisan agenda and that is to stop employers from taking employees tips. Voter registration is easy; you can go to the Clark County Website:

http://www.co.clark.nv.us/election/home.asp,

or to “Declare Yourself”  website no matter where you live:

http://www.declareyourself.com/?gclid=CPqX452Lno4CFSiaYAodqncoTQ

      Also, we ask that you email us to put your name on the new PEST Committee email data base and voice your support for this effort. Thanks for your time.

Tony Badillo, President

Jack Lipsman, Vice President

Al Maurice, Director

IUGE

***

Copy of the original PEST Committee email:
(To be released to the press on 9/4/07)

            The International Union of Gaming Employees (IUGE) is setting up a Committee to Prevent Employers from Seizing Tips, from now on to be known as the PEST Committee.

            This committee has nothing to do with union membership or labor organizing. It is simply a single issue campaign to insure that tips earned by dealers and other tip earners here in Nevada and throughout the nation are established as, and remain, the sole property of the employee who earns them.

            Steve Wynn’s recent move against the Wynn dealers is starting to spread. We received a report from Florida that dealers are losing 10% of their tips to employer confiscation. That is just the beginning.

            We intend to start a movement of all tip earners to exert public and political pressure to conclusively establish, for once and for all, that tips are the sole property of the people who earn them.

            We ask that representatives of tip earning employees at all casinos and other businesses contact us so we can schedule a rally to kick off this effort.

            All names and phone numbers will be held in strictest confidence. We have been helping dealers for over 18 years and not a single name has ever been given up without the permission of the individual.

            Please know that this is not a union organizing scheme or a money raising operation. Our purpose is only to stop the unlawful confiscation of employees’ tips.

            We ask that you call or write us at:

            (702) 474-9766

            Dealers@ iuge.net

            Tony Badillo

            Jack Lipsman

            Al Maurice

            IUGE

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