As Boston's Encore Opens with Big Numbers, Twin River Formalizes Layoffs, Offers Jobs in DE

As Boston's Encore Opens with Big Numbers, Twin River Formalizes Layoffs, Offers Jobs in DE

Rhode Island's casino nightmare has begun.  The new Encore facility in Boston has opened and opened big. The impact was immediate on Twin River and workers are already being laid off.  And, Twin River announced that the impacted workers are being offered jobs in Deleware.

Boston's new casino crushed it in its first full month -- $262,432,569 coin-in.

The number was big -- more than MGM and Plainridge combined and it significantly adversely impact Rhode Island's Twin River facilities in Lincoln and Tiverton.

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

Encore generated $48.6 million in gambling revenue in its first full month, more than the Commonwealth's two other casinos combined.

The full impact on the Rhode Island budget is unclear.  Both RI casinos are state-owned and the revenue created by the gaming facilities are critical to the state's budget.

Twin River has immediately moved to layoffs.

“To reflect the decreased volume of business at Twin River Casino Hotel to our table games and slot machines, largely due to the recent opening of Encore Casino in Boston, we expect some of our part-time union table games dealers, mostly hired within the last six months, will be impacted. We have notified union leadership of this likely occurrence," said Patti Doyle spokesperson for Twin River.

Jobs in Delaware

"Any dealer impacted by the downturn in business at Twin River in Lincoln will be offered the opportunity to transfer to our Delaware property, Dover Downs, without any loss of seniority. Our diversification in markets across the country and the overall health of the company allows us to offer that option to some of our Rhode Island-based employees," said Doyle.

Twin River is scrambling to diversify. It recently purchased small casinos in other parts of the country and is pressing to get into the lottery technology business in RhodeIsland.

"As has happened in the past, areas of the business tied to customer volume are subject to seasonal attendance changes as well as market competition.  As a company that has grown from 1,000 employees to nearly 2,500 in Rhode Island alone in seven short years, we value all of our employees. We are hopeful the post Labor Day trend of increased customer traffic will afford us with the opportunity to re-hire some of our impacted employees,” added Doyle.