Aramark Permanently Lays Off 344 Employees at the Park Theater and MGM Grand Garden Arena

Aramark, the food-service company that operates staff at some of the big entertainment venues in Las Vegas, notified the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation that it was laying off employees at the MGM Grand Garden Arena and Park Theater at the Park MGM. Both venues hosted huge concerts and events before the state shut down nonessential businesses in March to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Although some entertainment returned to Las Vegas with events allowed at 50 percent capacity up to 250 people, both of these venues remain mostly closed since concerts are not taking place.

“Aramark has experienced unprecedented disruption to our business caused by the COVID-19 global pandemic. Park Theater just informed us that it does not anticipate business improving in full for an undefined period of time and will only need our services in a limited capacity, if at all, during this time-period,“ Stephanie D’Antonio, human resources assistant vice president, writes in a letter to the state. She sent a similar letter to the state regarding the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Both letters are part of the WARN Act, the federal law that requires most employers with 100 or more employees to provide 60 calendar-day advance notification of layoffs.

At the Park Theater at the Park MGM, where acts such as Aerosmith, Cher, and Bruno Mars once filled the 5,200-seat theater, Aramark permanently laid off 180 employees, including 134 bartenders, 20 servers, 13 food-service employees, and more. Another 164 employees, including 86 bartenders, lost their jobs at the 16,800-seat MGM Grand Garden Arena.

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