The series of events surrounding Wynn Resorts Ltd. never ceases to provide food for thought and the latest piece of information is related to two of the directors of the gambling operator. This Wednesday brought the news that Ray Irani and Alvin Shoemaker, both on leading roles in the company, have decided respectively to file in a resignation and to retire from the company’s board of directors.
No details regarding the reason for their resignations have been given up to this point, but it is not a secret to anyone acquainted in the casino world that the lawsuits against the company’s founder Steve Wynn are piling up. The whole scandal erupted in the last days of January and ever since then the brand Wynn and its founder have been in the spotlight of international attention. There was a public announcement of numerous allegations of sexual misconduct by employees of the gambling developer. The information was reported by Macau’s gambling regulator which then resulted in a wave of investigations into the business of Mr. Wynn which took the field by a storm.
This turn of events has led to numerous changes in the management of the casino developer, one of them being the appointment of Matt Maddox to the position of CEO. Mr. Maddox has been on a leading position in the company since 2013. He might be able to take the company on a different path and introduce a more innovative way of management to the company. Analysts in the industry stated that Mr. Maddox is already well-acquainted with the operations of Wynn and will be able to sustain the policy.
Leading Individuals to Leave
The more recent two happenings around individuals on leading roles for the company, came after the state of Oregon came out with the official announcement that there is a lawsuit against Mr. Wynn and the company’s board of directors on the grounds of allegedly failing to act in the best interests of shareholders by putting an end to sexual misconduct at Wynn Resorts. Mr. Irani is going to resign, whereas Mr. Shoemaker has opted for retirement and he will not run for re-election after his current term expires in 2019.
At the moment they are defendants in the numerous lawsuits which were filed in by shareholders in the company. There are also several lawsuits filed in by current and former workers in the casino developer and all accusations are aimed at the management of the company. According to the claims, board members have closed their eyes to the harassment practices which have been going on in the workplace. As a result of the legal actions against the brand, it was confirmed that Oregon’s pension system owns 8,506 shares of Wynn Resorts and is currently suffering the consequences amounting to investment loss.
Within the information listed in the lawsuits against the company members, it is stated that the board of directors had the notion of the sexual misconduct that was happening and they not only did not take action to put an end to it but also allocated considerable company resources to cover up the alleged misconduct. At the moment lawsuits have been filed by New York, Oregon, as well as more than four other shareholder groups.
