Tribe extending 80 more hours of PTO to its employees

By Dean Rhodes

Smoke Signals editor

With the partial closure of the Grand Ronde Tribal government and total closure of Spirit Mountain Casino guaranteed to stretch into May, the Tribe announced on Thursday, April 23, that it will grant all employees another 80 hours of paid time off.

After a third meeting between the Grand Ronde Tribal Council and Spirit Mountain Gaming Inc. Board of Directors held Wednesday, April 22, it was decided to grant more hours to ensure employees continue to get paid into May.

Tribal Council initially authorized 120 hours – three weeks – of paid time off for all casino and government employees. For casino employees, the Tribe is paying their standard rate with additional consideration for tips.

On Wednesday, April 1, it was announced that all Tribal employees would receive another 120 hours to compensate for the continued closure of the casino and partial closure of the Tribal government.

With the additional 80 hours, employees have been granted a total of eight weeks of paid time off since the closures started in mid-March.

Tribal Council members and Tribal administrators have consistently stated that the Tribe will take care of its Tribal family, which includes casino and governmental employees, through the trying economic times caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

"We continue to work closely with our board of directors and Grand Ronde Tribal Council to monitor the ever-changing situation and have begun the process of preparing a detailed re-opening plan," said Spirit Mountain Casino General Manager Stan Dillon. "This plan will include extensive sanitation best practices while ensuring the outstanding guest service we are known for is intact for all aspects of the guest experience in all venues once we are able to open our doors."

Tribal General Manager David Fullerton announced the additional PTO hours to employees in an e-mail on Thursday, April 23, and added that the goal is to open the Tribal government sometime in May. There has been no announced target date for re-opening Spirit Mountain Casino.

In an unprecedented move, the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde announced an initial two-week closure of its primary economic engine, Spirit Mountain Casino, beginning at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, March 18, to help combat spread of the coronavirus in Oregon.

Preliminary estimates projected having the casino and its approximately 1,100 employees being idle beginning at midnight Thursday, March 19, through Wednesday, April 1.

After a meeting between the Grand Ronde Tribal Council and Spirit Mountain Gaming Inc. Board of Directors on Wednesday, March 25, it was decided to keep the casino closed until at least Thursday, April 9. After another meeting, it was announced the casino would remain closed until it was safe to re-open.

However, the number of coronavirus cases in Oregon and the United States continues to increase unabated and suggested national social distancing guidelines were extended through the end of April by the federal government. Government estimates say that hundreds of thousands of Americans could die from the virus if stay-at-home and social distancing recommendations are not followed. The nationwide death toll is currently approaching 50,000.

Spirit Mountain Casino opened in October 1995 and has been the primary funding source for Tribal governmental operations and myriad benefits to Tribal members, including health care, Elders’ pensions, per capita payments and educational funding. It also was Oregon’s No. 1 tourist destination for a time and became one of the largest employers in Yamhill and Polk counties.