By Cy Ryan
Fri, Aug 9, 2008 (11:11 a.m.)

CARSON CITY -- The president of the International Union of Gaming Employees said the potential cost of fighting for its tip ballot petition caused the union to drop the effort.

Tony Badillo, president of the union, said they faced the possibility of being assessed “hundreds of thousands of dollars” if the union did not withdraw the petition to change Nevada law and stop casino owner Steve Wynn from requiring his dealers to share tips with superiors.

“We’re ordinary citizens and we haven’t got that kind of money,” Badillo said.

Wynn’s policy requires dealers in the casino pits to share their tips with their supervisors. A bill was introduced in the 2007 Legislature to allow casino employees to decide who gets a part of their “tokes.” The bill died.

The union then started to gather more 58,000 signatures by Nov. 11 to force the 2009 Legislature to consider the proposed law. Had the Legislature not acted, it would have gone before the voters.

After the gaming employees filed the petition with the Secretary of State’s Office to begin its circulation, Wynn Las Vegas, the Nevada Restaurant Association, the Nevada Tavern Association and other groups filed a lawsuit to stop it. A federal court dismissed the action and it went back to the state District Court in Carson City.

Bob Crowell, attorney for the Wynn organization and other groups, confirmed the petition was being shelved. He called it a victory for not only Wynn, but for the Culinary Union. There was concern that waitresses might not be able to share tips with busboys.

Badillo said the Wynn group and others were going to ask the federal court for attorney fees. And that could add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Kermitt Waters, attorney for the union, said “They threatened us with attorney fees if we didn’t withdraw it.” His clients don’t have that money to cover the judgment if it was awarded, he said.

The initiative petition said employees receiving the tips would decide how they are to be shared. It said it would be illegal for an employer “to determine which employees are eligible to receive an allocation of tips from the shared pool of tips or gratuities…”

The Wynn group complained the petition was illegal because it covered more than one subject. Waters complained that law was a restraint of free speech. And he said he would challenge that law in another case.

A previous petition that sought to impose a tax and then direct where the proceeds would go was declared improper, said Waters.

Badillo said it’s been the practice for 50 years that the dealers in the pit share the tips among themselves and don’t include supervisors.

He said an initiative petition was the only way to get the law changed. The Legislature refused to pass the bill last year and “the court turned us back,” Badillo said.