jobradio.fm

Tens of thousands of casino jobs were lost over the past decade as fewer people visited casinos and casino revenue declined. However, Mississippi's casino industry still supports many gambling jobs across the state.

A new report from the John C. Stennis Institute of Government at Mississippi State University found that 24,789 people - about 2.12 percent of the state's total employment - were employed by casinos and casino hotels across the state during Q2 2010.

The casino and casino hotel industry lost 14,769 employees, a decrease of 37.3 percent, between Q2 2000 and Q2 2010. Casinos alone lost 12,540 jobs, a decrease of 36.6 percent, while casino hotels lost 2,229 workers, a decline of 42.9 percent.

That drop in employment caused casino and casino hotel payrolls to decline as well. Payrolls fell from $907.3 million during 2000 to $750.5 million during 2009, a loss of $156.9 million.

Revenue at casinos across the state also declined, dropping from $2.649 billion during 2000 to $2.465 billion during 2009. This means the state lost about $184.6 million, a decrease of 6.97 percent, in casino revenue during that time period.

Part of the reason for that revenue decline is that fewer people have been visiting casinos in Mississippi. A total of 33.65 people went to casinos in 2009, which is a decrease of 22.38 million from the 56.03 million who did so during 2000. That being said, fewer out-of-state visitors went to casinos between 2000 and 2009, but the number of Mississippi residents who visited casinos actually increased.

Labels: Gambling jobs