An artist’s rendering of the casino to be built by Mohegan Sun at Suffolk Downs in Revere. (Courtesy Mohegan Sun)

By Shira Schoenberg, The Republican

Mohegan Sun has signed agreements with two local unions to build its proposed casino in Revere.

The casino company announced Sunday that it signed agreements with the Metropolitan Boston Building Trades Council and the New England Regional Council of Carpenters to build the $1.3 billion resort casino that it has proposed at Suffolk Downs.

The casino has also taken steps toward allowing its permanent workforce to unionize. Mohegan Sun said it is entering into a memorandum of understanding to create neutrality agreements with several unions, agreements that require the casino to support unionization efforts by its employees.

“Mohegan Sun has a strong culture of taking great care of its employees, and we’re pleased to have reached this agreement,” said Mitchell Etess, CEO of the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, in a statement. “A Mohegan Sun resort casino in Revere will bring thousands of good union jobs and a boost in economic development and tourism to the area.”

The announcement comes less than two months before the casino faces a Feb. 25 community vote in Revere, which will determine whether the casino can proceed with the licensing process. In a previous vote, 60 percent of Revere voters approved of a casino at Suffolk Downs on both the East Boston and Revere portions of the racetrack. But East Boston voters rejected the casino, and Revere voters are now being asked to approve a version of the project that will only be on the Revere side of the border.

Unions, including the building trades, have been supportive of the project in Revere. Typically, unions can be a strong force in turning out their members to vote and doing the kind of grassroots organizing necessary to turn others out to vote. The announcement is likely to further energize the project’s union supporters.

According to the casino, the Project Labor Agreement requires that the building of the casino be done by unions. It is expected to create 2,500 jobs during construction.

The neutrality agreements, which would help the permanent workforce unionize, were made with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 103, Teamsters Local 25, United Automobile Workers and Laborers Local 22.

If it wins the February vote, Mohegan Sun and Suffolk Downs will compete with Wynn Resorts, which hopes to build a casino in Everett, for the lone casino license in eastern Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission is reviewing final applications for both proposals and plans to award the license in May.

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