Mixed signals from Vegas

Reading the Las Vegas tea leaves on a daily basis has one oscillating between seeing a faster-than-anticipated or slower-than-expected recovery. Case in point: Penn National Gaming‘s lack of plans to reopen the Tropicana Las Vegas. It’s worth remembering that Penn has $337.5 million of free rent on the Trop, courtesy of owner Gaming & Leisure Properties, so it can afford to be sanguine. Trop employees may not be feeling so laid-back. They’re going to have a lot of company. Casino.org reports that “numerous” Strip casinos are informing the state of plans to institute large-scale, permanent layoffs, hinting (hell, proclaiming) a downsizing of the traditional resort experience.

Penn is one of those winnowing jobs, specifically at M Resort (328 workers). Independent operators like the Sahara and Treasure Island (414 employees) also make the list. Also on the termination list are workers at Trump International. As its namesake said recently, “You put the wrong person in office, you’ll see things that you would not have believed are possible.” True that. Nor are the job slashings confined to Sin City. The Peppermill Resort Casino is among the Reno resorts that are downsizing. Nationwide unemployment may be waning somewhat but Nevada‘s stands [sic] at a staggering 25% and likely to worsen. The Sahara blamed its job jihad on “a number of protective measures” with which it must comply, a foretaste of what will surely become a familiar excuse.