Boyd Gaming lays off at least 25% of workers
Boyd Gaming Corp. has laid off at least 2,500 Nevada employees as Las Vegas’ visitation numbers remain well below pre-pandemic levels.
On May 22, the casino operator issued Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act letters to workers at all 29 of its properties — including its 12 operations in Southern Nevada — warning of possible impending layoffs affecting anywhere between 25 percent and 60 percent of employees. The company had approximately 10,000 employees in Nevada.
While the casino has been able to reopen all but three Las Vegas properties since then, a Monday statement from the company said it is still facing “significant restrictions” on its business.
“Given these ongoing challenges and continued uncertainty, we are moving forward with permanent layoffs of team members who were still on furlough and had not been recalled to work,” the statement said. “We are notifying affected team members as expeditiously as we can. This was an extremely difficult decision for our Company, and one we had hoped would not be necessary.”
The company did not disclose how many workers are being laid off but said the layoffs are at the “lower end” of the range outlined in the letters.
According to the May letters, listed on the Department of Education, Training and Rehabilitation’s website, more than 6,000 Nevada employees received the letters, but not all were laid off.
The WARN Act requires businesses with 100 or more employees to provide at least 60 days notice of mass layoffs affecting 50 or more workers at a single site, to allow those affected ample time to find another job.
Boyd’s May letter said it was unable to give a full 60 days notice, citing the pandemic’s “sudden, unforeseeable and dramatic impact” on business.
The company will pay severance packages and extend health benefits at no cost through July 31.
This story has been updated to clarify that Boyd has reopened all of of its regional properties. The three properties that have not reopened are all in Las Vegas – Main Street Station, Eldorado and Eastside Cannery.
Contact Bailey Schulz at bschulz@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0233. Follow @bailey_schulz on Twitter.