On May 27, the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. and the union representing the gaming floor employees at OLG Slots at Rideau Carleton Raceway agreed to end the labour disruption which began on December 16, 2015. Additionally, the OLG has announced that it has re-issued a Request for Pre-Qualification (RFPQ) for the Ottawa Area Gaming Bundle.

The slots facility at RCR returned to its regular 24/7 business hours as of noon on Monday, June 6. Officials with the OLG have stated that the corporation would like to thank its customers for their continued patronage throughout the labour disruption.

As an article by ottawacommunitynews.comexplains, the 124 workers that had been locked out were welcomed back to work on June 2 after their union, the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), broke the stalemate by agreeing to the decision of a third-party arbitrator regarding the matter.

Larry Rousseau, the regional executive vice president for PSAC, offered the following quote on the situation: “We agreed to agree on the stuff that we agreed on.” For more info on the matter, click here.

The OLG originally issued an RFPQ for the Ottawa Area Gaming Bundle in November 2012. The RFPQ was cancelled in December 2015 because OLG and the landlord were not able to finalize a lease for the one gaming site in the bundle – OLG Slots at Rideau Carleton Raceway. A finalized lease for the gaming site is required for OLG to proceed with the procurement process to select a service provider for the bundle, given that relocation is not a viable option at this time. The OLG and the landlord have now finalized a lease for the site and OLG is re-issuing the RFPQ for the bundle.

Re-issuing the RFPQ will enable OLG to pre-qualify the potential proponents that are eligible to receive the Request for Proposals (RFP) documents. RFPQ applicants are required to provide information on their experience in areas such as gaming and property development.

From the RFP submissions, OLG will select one service provider to run certain day-to-day operations of the gaming site at Rideau Carleton Raceway.

The RFPQ will close on August 4, 2016. OLG will begin the RFP process for the Ottawa Area Gaming Bundle in the coming months.

(With file from the OLG and ottawacommunitynews.com)