'Major disruptions': Churchill Downs valets demand contract as Kentucky Derby Week begins

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — About 50 union workers and supporters stood in the rain outside Churchill Downs Saturday afternoon, demanding the racetrack agree to a fair contract with its valets as it heads into Kentucky Derby Week.

Members of SEIU Local 541, the racetrack employees union, say the track's valets have been working without a union contract since November after the previous five-year agreement expired.

A statement from the group said the situation "could result in major disruptions during Kentucky Derby Week."

David O'Brien Suetholz, union attorney, said Churchill Downs canceled negotiations Thursday after the valets unanimously rejected their last best offer. 

"This is a corporation that just take, takes, takes, and we're asking — for members of our community who are essential to the races — we're asking for just a semblance of justice in their contract," he said. 

The crowd, which included city workers, Teamsters and members of the Greater Louisville Central Labor Council, carried signs that said "Don't bite the hands that feed your billion $$$ greed" and demanded a "fair contract now."

The valets are responsible for saddling the horses and preparing them to race, which the union says is critical to the success and safety of the Kentucky Derby operation.

"There is no Derby without the valets," Suetholz said. "... These are skilled workers who have worked here for decades, and there is no Derby without these essential workers."

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The 13 valets, who are paid about $16 an hour for their work at the Louisville track and n Northern Kentucky's Turfway Park, which Churchill Downs Inc. also owns, are asking for a raise that would cost the company $27,000 between the two tracks, Suetholz said.

"That's insane for a corporation that has posted over a billion dollars in revenue — who pays their CEO $10 million a year, 400 times the median wage of Churchill's employees," he added.

The workers also are pushing for a guarantee the company will stick to its current minimum staffing levels, which is 13 for the live meets, but Churchill Downs has refused, Suetholz said.

A spokesman for Churchill Downs did not respond to an email from The Courier Journal asking for the company's response and if it is willing to negotiate beyond the last proposal.

Churchill Downs saw a net revenue of $1.054 billion for 2020, a 21% dip from the $1.3297 billion in revenue from the year prior. The first quarter of 2021 saw a net revenue of $324.3 million, up 28% over same quarter last year.

Ronnie Shelton, chief steward for the union who's been in the industry for 45 years, said he sent his first proposal for a new contract in November and didn't hear back from racetrack officials until March.

"They're the ones that have drug it on this far," he said.

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Shelton said the union has avoided using the word "strike" as tensions rise over the negotiations, though they're leaving nothing off the table as Derby nears.

"No one truly wins if there's any kind of a strike situation," Shelton said. "No one wants this. It puts a cloud over the whole weekend and this great race. ... I'd rather not have it, but they forced us into a corner."

Reach Emma Austin at eaustin@gannett.com or on Twitter at @emmacaustin.