Las Vegas Loses Thousands of Jobs in August Amid ‘Stationary’ Labor Market
Posted on: September 19, 2025, 01:30h.
Last updated on: September 19, 2025, 02:16h.
- Las Vegas lost thousands of jobs between July and August
- Nevada has the second-highest state unemployment rate, behind only California
- While some say the Las Vegas hysteria about the market is overblown, visitor numbers are down
The Las Vegas job market further contracted in August, with state officials reporting that employment decreased by approximately 4,300 positions.
In its August jobs report, the Nevada Department of Employment, Training, and Rehabilitation (DETR) reports that Las Vegas employment shrank by 0.4% from July to August. Compared with August 2024, there were 5,000 fewer jobs in Las Vegas last month.
Las Vegas’ troubles negatively impacted improving employment conditions elsewhere in the Silver State. Statewide, unemployment improved from 5.4% in July to 5.3% in August, though many former jobseekers are thought to have exited Nevada.
The August report shows a labor market that is largely stationary. The total number of jobs is now effectively unchanged from a year ago, and the unemployment rate fell slightly as some unemployed individuals left the labor market,” said David Schmidt, DETR’s chief economist.
A stationary job market is one with stagnant employment growth and relatively few labor opportunities.
“Private sector employment fell by 6,000 jobs over the month, led by statistically significant declines in the Construction and Accommodation & Food Services industries. However, we have not experienced a surge in new claims for unemployment benefits from workers in those industries, and data on hours worked and hourly wages continue to remain steady, pointing to an ongoing demand for workers,” Schmidt wrote.
Fewer Customers, Fewer Jobs
Las Vegas doing away with some jobs wasn’t exactly a surprise.
The casino destination has faced significant national and local media attention of late on a variety of concerns, ranging from growing customer angst about high costs and never-ending fees, to worries that President Donald Trump’s tariff wars and comments about Canada becoming the 51st state, and people from Mexico worrying about being detained.
Regardless of the culprits, the fact is that far fewer people are visiting Las Vegas, and that’s softening the Southern Nevada economy.
Through July, the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority (LVCVA) reports that about 22.64 million people came to Southern Nevada, an 8% drop from the prior year. Hotel occupancy rates in Las Vegas are down 3% despite the city having 3,042 fewer hotel rooms, largely because of The Mirage’s closure.
The average nightly rate for a Las Vegas hotel room is down to $193 on the Strip and $171 citywide. Strip RevPAR, or revenue per available room, has tumbled from $177 to $163.
The number of arriving and departing passengers at Harry Reid International is down 4.4% to 32.4 million travelers, a difference of almost 1.5 million people.
Nationwide Employment
Nevada’s August unemployment rate of 5.3% was a full 1% higher than the national average of 4.3%. Nevada isn’t alone, however, in facing labor challenges.
The US national unemployment rate has climbed steadily over the past two years, from 3.7% in August 2023 to 4.2% in August 2024 to 5.3% last month.
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that Black people have significantly higher unemployment at a national average of 7.5%. White people are at 3.7%. Asian people in the US report an unemployment rate of 3.6%, and Hispanic/Latinos are at 5.3%.
Last Comment ( 1 )
Why travel to Las Vegas and stay in hotels with record high daily room rates and ridiculously priced daily"resort fees" when you can gamble online all day from the office, or perhaps even from home?