Before the Covid-19 pandemic subsides, there may be few if any U.S. industries that don’t turn to their local, state and federal governments for help and support. The gaming industry is no different.
Last week, MGM Resorts Chairman and CEO James Murren, along with representatives of the hospitality and tourism sectors, met with President Donald Trump to discuss the impact of the virus, which has brought their industries to a standstill.
“We know your industries are among the hardest hit,” Trump said after the White House meeting. And Trump should know, having been a casino operator for decades, and at one time owning three gaming halls in Atlantic City, all emblazoned with the Trump name.
“Within days, we have transformed from a vibrant industry welcoming people from around the world, to one experiencing a total shutdown of business,” Murren said of the industry’s plight, which shut down the company’s casinos around the country. He said the crisis “comes at a cost to our tens of thousands of employees, small businesses and communities who depended on us. We look forward to a productive dialogue on how to ensure that when it’s safe, we can be in a position to open our doors, and for the gaming industry and the nearly 2 million jobs that depend on us to be part of the economic recovery that is to come.”
Some pundits have scoffed at the notion of casinos, of all business entities, asking for a bailout. But at that White House meeting, which was also attended by Vice President Mike Pence, officials from other billion-dollar businesses—with names like Disney and Hilton—also lined up for their fair share of any stimulus package.
Back in Nevada, Rep. Dina Titus of the 1st Congressional District, which includes the Las Vegas Strip, said she’s contacted Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to advocate for the industry.
Titus’ Communications Director Kevin Gerson told the Nevada Independent the congresswoman “emphasized that any long-term relief package must include the travel and tourism industry and the millions of workers whose jobs depend on it.”
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, UNITE HERE union leaders, who represent casino workers nationwide, have called for industry and congressional leaders to “act decisively” with assistance following the mass shutdowns of casinos, hotels and restaurants.
“We need a bailout for the American worker, not just a bailout for American industry,” said UNITE HERE International President D. Taylor. “We have problems with unemployment. We have a crisis brewing on health care. We have a crisis on housing. We have a crisis on sick-leave pay. And, we’ll probably have a crisis on food stamps because if it’s that hard to do unemployment, I would imagine many states make getting food that much more difficult, too. The American worker needs to be at the table when we have discussions.”
The American Gaming Association joined the chorus, releasing a statement asking Congress to provide “liquidity to allow us to support employees.”
AGA President and CEO Bill Miller added a personal appeal, noting that some 616,000 casino employees have been sent home from work due to the contagion, which has caused 95 percent of the country’s commercial casinos and 76 percent of tribal casinos to close indefinitely.
“The impact on our employees, their families and communities is staggering, and the implications extend far beyond the casino floor,” Miller continued. “The federal government must act swiftly and comprehensively to get America’s hospitality employees, and the small businesses that support them, back to work. Gaming employees, their families, and communities are bearing the brunt of this economic standstill and will continue to suffer if Congress and the administration don’t take immediate action.”
He said the coast-to-coast shutdown of the industry over eight weeks would “rob the U.S. economy of $43.5 billion in economic activity.”
According to the AGA, the impact on gaming is staggering.
- Casino closures risk nearly$74 billionin total wages annually for workers and their families.
- Casino gaming supports$41 billionin annual tax revenue and tribal revenue sharing nationwide – essential support for local hospitals, first responders, and vital public services.
- Half the jobs our industry supports are at non-gaming businesses such as restaurants and local shops—all will be dramatically affected by a local casino’s closure.
- Casino gaming is vital to local small businesses, delivering$52 billionannually in small business revenue, including construction, manufacturing, retail, and wholesale firms.
On March 18 the tribal gaming industry in the U.S. requested $18 billion in U.S. federal aid. In a letter to members of the U.S. House of Representatives, the National Indian Gaming Association said tribal governments cannot provide health and education services for their communities without the revenue generated by casinos. The letter said the tribes could be at risk for default on loans unless they, too, receive federal support.
“Providing the means for tribal governments to continue paying all employees’ salaries and benefits will immensely help this country recover,” said the letter to Representatives Deb Haaland and Tom Cole of the House Native American Caucus.
The tribes asked Congress to consider legislation to impose a temporary 26-week restructuring and suspension on interest rate accrual on all loans with tribal governments and their entities.
According to CDC Gaming Reports, the possibility that the gaming industry might be included in a federal government stimulus package may have checked the freefall of share values.
But gaming industry consultant Richard Schuetz, CEO of Schuetz LLC, sounded skeptical about the plan in a Twitter post. Schuetz called it “somewhat surreal” that the soon-to-retire MGM Chairman Jim Murren, “who is personally taking over $50 million out of the company, went to the White House to meet a billionaire that bankrupted numerous casinos by not paying his lenders, to work on a plan to secure taxpayers’ money.”
