In the case that Valicia Anderson starts to count the people she knows in Las Vegas who lost their jobs, she will run out of fingers extremely fast.
Valicia Anderson’s husband is the breadwinner of her family. He also works at the restaurant in the Rio Casino, and he has lost his job. All her 25 co-workers lost their jobs. Moreover, her grown son, who worked in a temp agency, lost his job. The technician who did her nails lost her job. Furthermore, the barber who cut her husband’s hair lost her job. Also, her friend, who was a waitress lost her role as well.
Thus, for her, it is exceedingly difficult to think about a single person who is still being paid. The vents of the past month overwhelmed her. Thus, she walked in her bathroom, closed the door, sat at her vanity, and took deep breaths.
Mrs. Anderson said that this situation is pushing people up against a corner. Moreover, she also referred to those in charge of the pandemic response. She said that they want us to stay home, and we are doing that. Nevertheless, they are not helping us financially to keep afloat while we are at home.
For her, it does not make sense.
Thus, the bottom fell out of the American economy. Moreover, few places were hit harder than Las Vegas. In Las Vegas, a full one-third of the local economy is in the hospitality and leisure industry. It is more than in any other major metropolitan area in the country. Nevertheless, most of those jobs cannot be done from home.
Job Crisis
Moreover, in Nevada, around 350,000 people have filed for unemployment benefits since the crisis began. It is the highest number of state history. A Las Vegas-based economic research firm of applied analysis is estimating that the city’s current rate of jobless to be about 25 percent. It is nearly double what was during the Great Recession, and the number is rising.
Jeremy Aguero is a principal analyst with the firm. He said that from an analytical standpoint, that is unprecedented. They are not to frame for reference what they are seeing.
Mayors and governors around the country are wrestling with the question of how and when to reopen their economies. Las Vegas is facing pressure because of its dependence on tourism and hospitality. Carolyn Goodman, Mayor, last week argued that casinos must open and allow people to get sick. Nevertheless, Steve Sisolak, Governor, said that the state is not ready for reopening.
Nevada’s economy was one of the fastest-growing in the country before the crisis. Then, overnight, the glittering Vegas strip was shut down. Thus, it throws, casino workers, hotel cleaners, bartenders, and waiters out of work. In most cases, they are without benefits or severance. It leaves the most storied and bustling stretch of the economy of the state empty and boarded up.
Larry Scott is the Chief Operating Officer of Southern Nevada’s only food bank, Three Square. He described the Vegas strip. He said that if you can imagine a horror movie when all the people disappear, that is exactly how the situation feels right now.
