The Eastside Cannery, built as a slightly higher-end property than its sister casino in North Las Vegas, occupies a part of the suburban valley that is already home to a host of casinos. It’s within three miles of Boulder Station, Arizona Charlie’s and Sam’s Town, but it’s expected to benefit from being the new kid on the Boulder Strip.
Tuesday, July 14, 2020 | 8:48 a.m.
Boyd Gaming Corp. is permanently laying off at least 25% of its employees because of the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, the company said.
Furloughed employees who have not already been called back to work are being permanently laid off, a Boyd spokesman said.
Boyd closed its nearly 30 gaming properties nationwide in March because of the pandemic. In Nevada, casinos were allowed to start reopening June 4.
Boyd has reopened nine of its 12 casinos in Southern Nevada. The Eastside Cannery and Main Street Station in Las Vegas and the Eldorado in Henderson remain closed.
Before the pandemic, Boyd had about 10,000 employees in the Las Vegas area and close to 25,000 nationwide.
In a letter to employees in May, Boyd CEO Keith Smith said between 25% and 60% of the company’s workforce could be laid off permanently.
The letter was sent in accordance with the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, which requires employers to give 60 days notice to workers of possible mass layoffs.
In a statement issued Monday, the company said layoffs were “at the lower end of the range outlined in the WARN Act letters.”
While Boyd has been able to open most of its properties, “we are still facing significant restrictions on our business, and visitation levels remain well below pre-pandemic levels,” the statement said.
Boyd is working to notify affected employees as quickly as possible and will provide some “financial assistance,” the statement said without elaborating.
State health officials on Monday reported more than 28,500 people in Nevada have tested positive for COVID-19. Nearly 600 have died from the virus in Nevada.
