The labor dispute at the Wilton Rancheria-owned and in California spotlights a broader conflict between tribal self-governance and organized labor’s efforts to unionize gaming operations. A collective bargaining agreement signed in 2017 is now at odds with a subsequent 2019 tribal ordinance establishing new certification procedures for union recognition. The tribe contests an arbitrator’s decision that the 2017 agreement governs, claiming it undermines the tribe’s sovereign right to dictate its labor relations.
