Liz Benston

Reporter/ Gaming

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Recent Stories (view all stories)

Deluge expected for jobs at new Station casino: Aliante in North Las Vegas will have 1,000 openings and likely scads of applicants; Tuesday, July 1, 2008; Station Casinos will begin taking applications Sunday for more than 1,000 jobs at Aliante Station, the company’s 10th major property in town, which is scheduled to open in North Las Vegas Nov. 11. And applicants can line up in their pajamas.
State takes hit from unpaid markers: Friday, June 27, 2008; Adding to the state’s tax woes: It hasn’t been able to collect gaming tax on $166 million in wagers — the amount bet in Nevada casinos with markers that have not been repaid by the gamblers.
For Wynn dealers, deal slow to come: Still no contract a year after union vote, but Rio counterparts undaunted; Tuesday, June 24, 2008; Resolving issues having to do with grievances and tip-sharing is testing the ability of the Transport Workers Union to flex its muscle at a time when it’s trying to organize more dealers, this time at the Rio.
Lanni steps down from gaming lobby’s board: Thursday, June 19, 2008; MGM Mirage boss Terry Lanni has resigned from the board of the American Gaming Association, the federal lobby headed by Harrah’s Entertainment Chief Executive Gary Loveman. The two are at odds over a proposal by the Nevada teachers union to raise the state room tax.
Uncowed casino exec sues ex-employer, wins: MGM Mirage ordered to pay CFO it fired $4.5 million in wrongful termination case; Wednesday, June 18, 2008; Five years ago, a top casino executive was blamed for not spotting a criminal employee, and sent packing with a severance check.
Gamblers’ cash provider sees upside: Tuesday, June 17, 2008; Global Cash Access, the world’s largest operator of ATMs in casinos and the largest provider of cash advances and check verification services for the gaming industry, is a bellwether of the gambling business, perhaps a truer one than gaming companies that also depend on nongaming revenue sources such as hotel rooms and entertainment.
Lanni proposes payroll tax hike: Tuesday, June 17, 2008; The chief executive of Nevada’s largest employer Monday proposed doubling the state’s payroll tax to help the state close its ever-growing budget deficit.
Station Casinos honchos hit the jackpot in ’07: Monday, June 16, 2008; Until the economy turned south, Las Vegas casino companies enjoyed a robust 2007, rewarding executives and leading a pair of brothers to a pot of gold at the end of their rainbow. Many executives, acting before gaming stocks plummeted, profited after selling hundreds of thousands of shares from exercised stock options and grants of stock. In a class of their own: Station Casinos Chief Executive Frank Fertitta, who in 2007 made $122.4 million in exercised options and vested stock.
Having a smoke and playing, too: Bars hit by tobacco ban sell device that satisfies cravings, complies with law; Saturday, June 7, 2008; Check out Sharon Cottrell’s cigarette.
It’s not, really. And it gets her around Nevada’s no-smoking laws. The thing she’s holding between her fingers and drawing to her mouth looks like a pen.
Bringing a taste of Vegas to Dubai: Investor will bring hotel and nightclub expertise — but no casinos; Friday, June 6, 2008; His Excellency Mohammed Ali Al Hashimi — young, wealthy and ambitious — fits comfortably on the Vegas Strip. And that’s consistent with his role in Dubai’s striking emergence as a world-class resort destination.