Louisiana’s Boomtown Casino to cut 197 jobs amid widespread layoffs at casinos

The corporate owners of Boomtown Casino in Harvey are warning of 197 looming job cuts slated for Aug. 15, according to a filing with the Louisiana Workforce Commission, the latest in a string of mass layoffs at casinos across the state as the gaming industry struggles to cope with the coronavirus pandemic.

Casinos in Louisiana were shuttered for nearly two months by emergency orders aimed at stemming the spread of the coronavirus but were allowed to reopen at limited capacity in mid-May.

The Boomtown job cuts were announced in a legally required WARN notice filed with the state. The federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act mandates that all but the smallest companies give state officials and workers 60-day notice of plant closures or mass layoffs.

WARN notices indicate the company doesn’t believe the employees will be rehired anytime in the next six months.

Boomtown was one of four Louisiana casinos managed by Penn National Gaming that the Pennsylvania-based company said will have layoffs in August.

The L’Auberge casino plans to cut 602 jobs between its facilities in Baton Rouge and Lake Charles, while the Margaritaville Resort Casino in Bossier City plans to cut 347 jobs.

Penn National also owns Hollywood Casino and Boomtown Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi.

By mid-August, a total of nearly 4,000 casino workers in Louisiana will have lost their jobs since the coronavirus pandemic struck in March, according to public filings with the Louisiana Workforce Commission. At least one has announced plans to permanently close.

Read the full story at Nola.com

This story was originally published July 5, 2020 at 6:40 PM.