Wynn Resorts is Determined to Investigate Sexual Misconduct Allegations Against Chairman

Wynn Resorts Ltd, the American casino operator is ready to conduct an investigation into the sexual misconduct allegations against Steve Wynn, its chairman and founder.

The company recently announced that it was looking to create a separate committee for the investigation. This committee would comprise only of the independent company directors, with Patricia Mulroy as its chair. She is a corporate governance committee board member and also an ex Nevada Gaming Commission member.

This announcement was made soon after a Wall Street Journal article was released with details of the sexual misconduct allegations against Mr. Steve Wynn. It was the employees of Wynn Resorts who had pressed these charges.

Wynn Macau Ltd., based in Macau, is the owner of Wynn Resorts. The article referred to in the Wall Street Journal article highlighted accusations made by a beautician who had supposedly received a massive sum of $7.5 million as settlement after she lodged a complaint against Mr. Wynn in 2005. Wynn denied these charges when addressing the media in the United States. He reportedly said that the idea of him sexually harassing a woman is simply outrageous. He added that in today’s world, people end up making allegations, irrespective of the actual truth. In the end, one has only two choices; either to deal with negative publicity or get stuck in lawsuits that go on for years.

Announcements have been made by both the Nevada Gaming Control Board and the Massachusetts Gaming Commission that they would perform separate investigations into the charges brought up in the WSJ article. A new casino property is being developed by Wynn Resorts in Boston, Massachusetts, with gaming operations happening in the Nevada state (Las Vegas). In the meantime, Mr. Wynn has stepped down as the Republican Party’s finance chair in the U.S.

Union Gaming’s Grant Govertsen was reported saying that the brokerage would be downgrading Wynn Macau Ltd.’s shares due to various reasons, including the “uncertainty” around the sexual harassment allegations against its chairman and the upcoming investigation announcement made by the board members. Another factor influencing the downgrading decision was the possibility of a Wynn Resorts review in the backdrop of the recently announced monitoring reviews in America.

Although Mr. Wynn did not directly refer to the misconduct allegations, he did say that continuity of the management is important. The resort (Wynn Macau Ltd.) has always been applauded for its corporate structure and steady management, but its reputation could be at risk if things changed in the future.