Posted on: September 12, 2024, 08:39h.
Last updated on: September 12, 2024, 08:39h.
Two Aria Resort & Casino employees who were sacked for allegedly stealing millions of dollars have taken the Las Vegas gaming property and parent company MGM Resorts International to court for wrongful termination.
Erendira Dominguez and Allison Lopez deny they stole the money and filed the legal action in Las Vegas federal court on Monday.
In the lawsuit, they claim they were discriminated against due to their gender and Hispanic heritage. They also allege they suffered “mental anguish, emotional distress, pain and suffering, humiliation, [and] harm to reputation,” because of the actions by their employer.
Baseless Speculation
The two started working at the Aria in 2009. On August 30, 2023, both were suspended from their jobs. They were fired in December 2023.
Dominguez was a coordinator and Lopez was a manager in the resort-casino’s marketing department.
Between 2021 and 2023 their jobs had them book hotel rooms for Las Vegas Golf Adventures, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. It provides golf packages for guests staying at the hotel.
In 2023, a new vice president of national marketing at the Aria claimed that Lopez had been booking rooms for her personal use. It was estimated that “millions of dollars” was unaccounted for, the report revealed.
But the lawsuit calls the claims baseless speculation, the Review-Journal reported.
Lopez and Dominguez contend they didn’t have access to the relevant company account and were unable to withdraw money or transfer funds from that account.
In addition, MGM Resorts and the Aria were “unable to determine” what happened to the missing money, according to the legal action. Nor was either woman ever charged by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD).
In their lawsuit, both Lopez and Dominguez are seeking compensatory and punitive damages, as well as lost wages.
Beyond that, they claim the false allegations have hurt their reputations and they are now “blacklisted” from getting another job in the casino sector.
Adverse Treatment
In their jobs, the two women reported to senior executives at the Aria. The senior executives were men.
None of the male senior managers were suspended, according to the lawsuit.
Only the Hispanic female plaintiffs had to endure that adverse treatment,” the lawsuit stated.
One male executive eventually was reassigned to an MGM Resorts property in Ohio, the report revealed. A second male executive quit his job. He was given severance pay.
A trial date for the lawsuit has yet to be set. There could be motions filed before a trial begins.
The two women have asked for a jury to hear the trial. If the case proceeds to trial, both sides will present evidence and the jury will then be asked to make a ruling.
No word if the case could be resolved by a pre-trial settlement.
Casino.org reached out to MGM Resorts for a statement on the lawsuit. A company spokesperson said MGM had no comment.
