Venetian Resort Las Vegas President and CEO Patrick Nichols details the resort’s renovation project, Sphere integration, tourism trends and capturing market share.
The job market in Las Vegas, Nevada’s economic engine, has remained stagnant while tourism on the Strip has plummeted.
Nevada’s unemployment rate decreased slightly, from 5.4% to 5.3%, but the decline reflects a decrease in the number of people working or looking for work, according to the August 2025 economic report from the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR).
The state’s labor force declined by about 1,300 people in August, while total employment remained steady at about 1.57 million jobs, unchanged from last year and down about 3,800 positions from July.
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David Schmidt, DETR’s chief economist, called the labor market “largely stationary.” However, he drew particular attention to the fact that private sector employment fell by 6,000 during the month, driven by statistically significant declines in the construction and accommodation and food services sectors.
The casino floor of the Resorts World Las Vegas Hotel and Casino is seen on June 24, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (BRIDGET BENNETT/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)
“We have not experienced an increase in new unemployment benefit claims from workers in these sectors and data on hours worked and hourly wages remain stable, indicating continued demand for workers,” Schmidt said.
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The weak job market comes as tourism remains weak, a problem that has persisted for several months.
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, which publishes a monthly summary of tourism data from several agencies, including the LVCVA, Harry Reid International Airport, the Nevada Gaming Control Board and the NV Dept. of Transportation (NDOT), reported that Southern Nevada’s tourism sector showed clear signs of strain in June 2025, with visitor volume down 11.3% compared to the same month last year.
People sitting at a poker table in a casino. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Getty Images)
Convention attendance also fell 10.7% in June, highlighting weak demand for leisure and business travel.
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Hotel performance metrics also highlighted the decline in tourism with occupancy rates down 6.5 percentage points to 78.7%. As a result, revenue per available room fell nearly 14%, signaling declining profitability for resorts and hotels, according to the report.
However, the report notes that gaming revenue in Clark County, where Las Vegas is located, increased slightly by 3.5 percent, suggesting that visitors who came spent more.
A Spirit Airlines plane lands at Harry Reid International Airport October 14, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Image/Getty Images)
Still, area service workers lamented that declining foot traffic on the strip has reduced their income, which relies heavily on tips.
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Sebastian Espinoza, a bus driver at Caesars Palace who works “on call,” told local news outlet KSNV in August that he rarely received a call to take a shift this year. Despite a decade of experience in the industry, Espinoza said he hasn’t been able to find work elsewhere either, according to the outlet.
