Las Vegas job market drops after tourism slump

Isaiah Thompson and Shawn Herron were looking for a job for months but struck out.

So, the Las Vegas friends in their 20s made money another way: donating blood.

Thompson, who indicated that he sends out at least 20 job applications a day, several days a week, estimated that he can make upward of $800 per month giving away his plasma. He uses the funds to pay his rent.

It was easy to find a job three or four years ago, but Las Vegas’ job market is “honestly terrible” now, he said last month.

If someone has work, Thompson noted, they “better hold on to it.”

“Once it’s gone, it’s hard to find another job,” Herron said.

Las Vegas’ job market isn’t looking too good these days. America’s casino capital shed thousands of jobs in August amid a prolonged slump in tourism — the region’s main economic engine — and Nevada’s labor market overall is “largely stationary,” state officials reported.

Homebuilding and other construction have slowed in Southern Nevada, spending has tumbled at clothing stores and restaurants, and the local jobless rate has been hovering among the highest in the nation for big metro areas.

Las Vegas is still a far cry from the depths of the Great Recession or the early days of the pandemic. But overall, Southern Nevada’s economy and job market have slowed.

At the same time, locals still face elevated prices on everyday goods after a stretch of high inflation and a housing market that, according to UNLV’s Lied Center for Real Estate, is now “largely unaffordable for much of the local population.”

David Schmidt, chief economist with the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation, said fewer people have been quitting their jobs and layoffs have been pushing higher.

Hiring has not fallen off a cliff, he said, but it has “leveled off.”

‘Stagnating labor market’

Las Vegas is not alone, as hiring has slowed around the country, too.

Employment levels nationwide “changed little” in August, with a gain of just 22,000 jobs, and has shown little change overall since April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported.

Andy Challenger, senior vice president with career-services firm Challenger, Gray &Christmas, said in a report last week that U.S. job cuts this year are likely to surpass 1 million for the first time since 2020 — the year the pandemic turned life upside down and shut off much of the economy overnight.

He cited a “stagnating labor market, cost increases, and a transformative new technology” — a clear reference to the rapidly spreading use of artificial intelligence.

Overall, the total number of employees nationwide in August inched up by 0.93 percent from a year earlier, according to seasonally adjusted federal data.

In the Las Vegas area, headcount dipped by 0.44 percent in that time.

Las Vegas depends far more on the tourism industry than the country overall, as Southern Nevada has long relied heavily on people traveling here to spend big eating, drinking, partying, gambling and going to shows and conventions to fuel the local economy.

Tourism, however, is sliding this year.

Around 25.8 million people visited Las Vegas this year through August, down 7.8 percent, or a drop of more than 2 million people, from the same eight-month stretch last year, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Amid the drop-off, sales at clothing and jewelry stores and food and beverage outlets — categories that cover locals and tourists alike — tumbled over the past year in Southern Nevada.

Food services and drinking places, for instance, logged nearly $12.7 billion in taxable sales in Clark County in the 12 months through June, down almost 2 percent from the prior year-long stretch, according to the Nevada Department of Taxation.

The percentage dip appears small but amounts to a drop of $256.5 million in sales.

All told, employment in the Las Vegas area fell by 4,300 jobs from July to August, according to DETR. Also, Southern Nevada’s unemployment rate in August, 5.6 percent, was fourth highest in the nation among metro areas with at least 1 million people, federal officials reported.

‘The town isn’t as busy’

Aaron Mahan, of Henderson, said he lost his long-held job as a food server at an off-Strip hotel in late August and was rehired about a week later into a lower-paying position at the property.

He is a member of Las Vegas’ powerful Culinary Local 226, and spokeswoman Bethany Khan said members have priority placement into available positions.

Mahan said the eatery where he worked changed from a 24-hour coffee shop to a limited-hour buffet because there weren’t enough customers. He also said he’s heard of other restaurants eliminating lunch service and staffers losing hours or their jobs altogether.

“The town isn’t as busy as it once was,” he said.

Fewer people are taking Vegas vacations amid a series of financial headwinds, and as President Donald Trump’s trade wars threaten to push up prices for businesses and consumers alike, sparking widespread economic anxiety this year.

There has also been growing frustration over resort fees, parking charges, food and drink costs, and other expenses that can give visitors sticker shock and make Las Vegas a pricey place to visit.

Casinos and others have rolled out price breaks in recent months to boost business. But if someone feels less secure in their finances or job prospects, not taking a trip to Vegas is an easy way to save cash.

Culinary union President Diana Valles said the “Trump slump” has arrived in Las Vegas and has been affecting union jobs and workers’ hours.

As she described it, the administration has been “pushing chaotic tariffs that have driven away customers from Canada, Mexico, Southern California, and around the world.”

‘I just keep going’

Las Vegas’ tourism decline has forced several casinos to reduce labor costs, including through layoffs and automated table games, said Liz Romero, chief mission services officer for Goodwill of Southern Nevada, the nonprofit thrift-store chain and career-services group.

Romero also said that many job-seekers, especially those who worked in hospitality, casinos or entertainment, are exploring new careers.

Ryan Berger, Las Vegas branch director for staffing firm Robert Half, said overall hiring has slowed in some sectors, though seasonal and contract opportunities remain steady.

Many companies are “cautious due to economic uncertainty and a softer tourism sector” but are making targeted hires for critical roles, he said.

He said Robert Half hasn’t seen a sharp change in the volume of professionals seeking help in Las Vegas, but there has been a “noticeable shift.”

Berger said that people who worked in hospitality and tourism are now exploring “more stable sectors” like health care, customer support and administrative roles.

Shakira Hatchett, who lives in northwest Las Vegas and has worked in nursing and call centers, said that she had been looking for a job for the past six months. She estimated that she had applied for well over 30 positions.

She landed some interviews but was still looking for work last month. She attended a career fair at Boulevard Mall, and afterward, was heading to another one.

Hatchett said that it can be frustrating and a little disappointing to get rejected or never hear back from an employer. But she figures that someone will eventually see the best in her and offer her a job.

She also said that she has three kids, two of whom still live at home, and that she has to keep trying.

“I’m not the type of person that gives up,” she said. “I just keep going.”

Contact Eli Segall at esegall@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0342.