What’s Up With All The Layoffs In Las Vegas?

Las Vegas’ betting industry is the envy of the world (minus Macao). The casinos and crowds are the biggest, and most lucrative.

Or at least, they usually are. Cracks are beginning to show that Vegas might just be on the decline. Tourists are pulling back, casino floors are thinning out, and layoffs are starting to creep up among many big-name casinos on The Strip.

What’s going on? Well, that’s the point of this article. We wanted to get a pulse on the city and see if Sin City could be a canary in the coal mine — not just for legal betting, but the American economy as a whole. Keep reading and we’ll explain what’s going on.

Numbers Are Down Across The Board

You can go to Vegas and do an “eye test” on the health of the city. How many people are there? How expensive things are (one tourist went viral for complaining about a $26 bottle of water at a mini-bar)? But all these things are subjective. To be as objective as possible, we pulled data to get a read on the city, and the numbers were surprising.

For starters, visitor volume dropped 7.8 percent year-over-year in March, marking the third straight month of decline. Hotel occupancy slid too, down to 82.9 percent from 85.3 percent a year ago. Gaming revenue on the Strip fell 4.8 percent in that same period. Of course, these aren’t catastrophic numbers, but they all point downward.

Even with convention attendance up 10 percent, it’s not enough to make up for the broader dip in leisure travel — especially among international visitors. Flights between the U.S. and Canada are down over 70 percent compared to last summer. Perhaps Donald Trump’s talk on annexing Canada and making it the 51st state scared off visitors.

On the labor side, things aren’t any better. Unemployment in Vegas hit 5.2 percent in April, one of the highest rates among major U.S. metros. Leisure and hospitality are taking the brunt of it with thousands of jobs lost over the past year. Dealer schools are reporting fewer enrollments, and casinos are cutting back on roles that used to be a stable career path. More on that in the next sections.

What Casinos Are Saying

More and more, we’re seeing headlines about Strip-located casinos laying off workers. The latest to hit was Fontainebleau laying off as many as 60 table game dealers. The resort wouldn’t confirm numbers, but said in a statement: “We continue to evaluate our business needs and adjust our hiring strategy accordingly.” Non-PR spin translation: business is tough, and we need to save money.

They’re not the only ones feeling the sting, though. Resorts World, The Venetian, and several MGM and Caesars properties have all trimmed operations or restructured staffing in recent months. MGM — the largest employer in the Silver State — eliminated concierge services at six of its nine Strip casinos last month, laying off 19 people and reassigning another 15. The company also cut valet services at one of its non-luxury properties.

Executives insist these are strategic adjustments, not signs of panic. MGM’s CFO Jonathan Halkyard told investors, “we’re always managing our labor expenses, and you’re seeing a reflection of that.” Caesars echoed a similar message, saying they’re constantly optimizing labor and vendor costs without compromising guest experience. But again, that’s mostly PR talk, as far as we’re concerned.

All these recent layoffs from the top betting operators clearly show a city that’s sluggish. It’s not collapsing, but things are definitely trending downward. But why? Let’s discuss in the next section.

Possible Reasons For The Slowdown

You can’t put all the blame on one thing causing the slowdown. No, it’s a lot more complicated than that. But here are the factors working together at the moment.

For one, international travel into the whole country has taken a hit due to shifting U.S. policy, tariffs, and stricter border scrutiny. Of course, many put the blame on Trump and his rhetoric. There’s some truth to that, no matter your politics. After all, Trump has built much of his second administration around an “America First” principle. Other cities, not just Vegas, are seeing less and less tourists from overseas so far in 2025.

There’s also the technology shift. Casinos are increasingly using automation — from electronic table games to mobile concierge services — and that’s reducing the need for certain in-person roles. Roughly 80 percent of customer interactions now happen through apps or digital platforms, another trend expected to increase, especially with the advent of artificial intelligence.

And then there’s the pressure to please shareholders. Many of these properties are owned by public companies under constant scrutiny to hit profit targets. Labor costs have jumped, especially with new union contracts. That makes mid-level managers and non-union staff more vulnerable to cuts.

Writing about the issue, the Las Vegas Review-Journal quoted an anonymous casino exec “Volume is down here in Las Vegas, absolutely. You’re having fewer visitors, and those visitors have less wallet share, which makes for less spend in the casino. Therefore, if you have less spend in the casino, you have to adjust your operating decisions and operating expenses.”

All this is to say, no one should hit the panic button on Nevada betting yet. But… it ain’t all rainbows and sunshine either. The tourist haven is a perfect case study on how the economy, government policies, and automation are influencing it. What happens from here is anybody’s guess since all three factors are in constant flux.