Rio Hotel & Casino Lays Off Dozens More Staff

By Scott Roeben, on September 12 2024
2 min read 12 comments
Las Vegas Las Vegas Hotels

As we were the first to report, Rio has been adjusting its staffing levels since taking over operations from Caesars Entertainment.

Back in August, Rio let go of about 30 manager level executives.

Now, as many as 50 additional staff have been let go from the public areas department. The public areas department (PAD) is responsible for the cleanliness and maintenance of public spaces like the casino floor, lobby, hallways, restrooms and elevators.

Rio Las Vegas
Fewer customers than expected, fewer people to clean up after. Yes, we made it awkward.

We inquired about the layoffs, and Rio responded with a statement mirroring the one it shared in response to our story about staff reductions in August: “We proactively expanded our workforce while taking over operations from Caesars Entertainment in Q4 2023. As the resort undergoes extensive construction and remodeling, we now have a better understanding of the staffing levels Rio needs to provide guest service and operational efficiency. We deeply appreciate the unwavering commitment and diligence of all our team members and extend our heartfelt gratitude to those directly affected by the adjustments.”

Rio has been transparent about its staffing “adjustments” (nudge required), but won’t get into details about the exact number of people let go or their specific positions or departments.

The bottom line is business levels aren’t what they were expected to be at Rio and tough business decisions are being made accordingly.

While the optics aren’t great, Rio seems to be moving in the right direction overall.

The owner, Dreamscape, has put its money where its resort is, with an ongoing renovation that has given the off-Strip Rio a much-needed refresh.

The reality is there are challenges nobody knows if Rio can overcome (location being top of the list), and recovering from years of brand damage and neglect by the resort’s former operator hasn’t been easy. Among its many challenges, Rio has to deal with years of bad reviews online, somehow distinguishing its new incarnation from its years-long decline.

The improvements at Rio are hard to ignore, especially when set to the banger we made with A.I.


We’re a big fan of Rio and its recent efforts, so it pains us to share news of staff reductions, but if we didn’t, what scoop would the Las Vegas Review-Journal have to steal without attribution? No, really, they’re shameless. Here’s the story the unethical nitwits at the RJ published after we broke the news. They even had the balls to imply elements of our story were inaccurate, despite the information having been confirmed by the Rio. We aren’t dealing with MENSA members here.

Anyway, layoffs are painful for everyone involved, but are sometimes necessary to improve profitability, especially when financial goals aren’t being met. Labor is often the biggest expense in a company, casino or otherwise, so staffing can take a hit.

Combined with the executive layoffs reported previously (30 managers, plus 50 in maintenance and public areas recently), Rio has let go of an estimated 8% of its workforce since taking over from Caesars Entertainment.

Our heart goes out to the individuals affected, and here’s hoping running a tighter ship will give Rio a fighting chance to make its promised comeback.