Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

ThE ECONOMY:

Harrah’s makes cost-cutting moves

Company ending employer contributions to 401(k) plans, trimming manager salaries

Following similar cost-cutting moves by other casino giants, Harrah's Entertainment has ended company contributions to employee 401(k) plans and is trimming managers' salaries by 5 percent.

The salary cuts apply to thousands of managers who are eligible for bonuses.

Over the past year, Harrah's has laid off at least 2,000 employees and has reduced workers' hours. The company has struggled from lack of business, exacerbated by interest owed on billions of dollars in debt accumulated when the company went private. The economy had already begun to soften when the deal, struck during the real estate boom, closed in January 2008.

The cost-cutting moves are designed to "preserve as many jobs as possible" amid the plummeting economy and are temporary until the economy improves, spokesman Gary Thompson said.

Harrah's, which has roughly 75,000 employees, informed workers about the moves Wednesday by distributing memos and holding meetings.

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