Nevada Legislature OKs Limits on Picketing in Casino Strikes

A controversial bill sought by Nevada hotel-casinos to limit picketing during strikes won approval Saturday in the state Senate despite arguments that it is unconstitutional and anti-labor.

The measure, which had won approval earlier in the week on a 26-15 vote in the Assembly, was spawned by a 1984 labor strike that hit resorts on the Las Vegas Strip.

State Sen. Joe Neal (D-North Las Vegas) said the bill bolsters an “anti-labor philosophy” in the state. He said most of the tourists who come to Nevada are “the working people,” and the bill clashes with the state’s efforts to attract such tourists.

State Sen. Bob Robinson, chairman of the Commerce and Labor Committee, noted that the bill does not prevent picketing but only requires that picketers “behave themselves.” Robinson (D-Las Vegas) said he saw pickets during the 1984 Las Vegas Strip strike pounding on tourists’ cars, swearing at tourists and forcing them off sidewalks. The strikers’ activity was not good for the state’s tourism industry, he added.

The bill bars picketing on private property without permission of its owners and limits the number of pickets in front of the property or at entrances and exits--even if the property is a hotel-casino open to the public. Also prohibited are acts such as threats, use of a vehicle to block traffic or harassment. Violators could be punished by fines up to $500.