Harrah's responds to slowdown with labor reductions

Company makes layoffs, cuts employee hours

February 16, 2008 - Harrah's Entertainment has laid off workers and reduced hours at many of its properties around the country, citing the slowing economy, the company confirmed Friday.

The current round of layoffs includes nearly 100 workers at its eight local properties, 30 workers in Illinois and smaller numbers at its properties throughout the country.

"It depends on the property; it depends on how business is there," Harrah's Entertainment spokesman Gary Thompson said. "Hopefully, we'll be able to get those people back as soon as possible."

The gaming giant owns the Rio, Paris Las Vegas, Bally's, Bill's, Flamingo, Imperial Palace, Harrah's and Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

Harrah's owns four properties in Northern Nevada, one in Laughlin, and 20 more in eight states outside Nevada. It also manages three American Indian casinos around the country.

"If business continues to be less than optimal in some regions, we're going to have to adjust our costs there," Thompson said.

Harrah's confirmation follows similar reports by Station Casinos and MGM Mirage that the economic downturn is causing layoffs, work-hour reductions and hiring freezes of a few positions.

Both Harrah's and Station Casinos said the labor-cost reductions are not related to the recent buyouts of their companies by private-equity companies.

The economic slowdown in gaming comes as consumer confidence ebbs because of the local housing crisis, said Brian Gordon, a principal at Applied Analysis, a Las Vegas financial consulting firm.

"The soft economic conditions are impacting all business sectors and all geographies," Gordon said. "The Las Vegas gaming sector is feeling the downswing in the overall economy and is responding accordingly."

Boyd Gaming Corp., which owns nine casinos in Clark County and a few more in five states, declined to say if the company was making any labor adjustments, citing that it is a publicly traded company.