The main casino workers union in Atlantic City is being led by a woman for the first time in its 107-year history. Donna DeCaprio is president of Local 54 of Unite Here. She succeeds Bob McDevitt, who now manages the national union's pension fund. DeCaprio was the lead negotiator on contracts reached last summer that gave workers the biggest raises they ever received. Casino executives say they know and trust her. Sixty percent of the union's 10,000 members are women, often in housekeeping and beverage serving jobs. DeCaprio began her career in 1987 stocking bar supplies at the Tropicana casino.
