RISING SUN, Ind. — Grand Victoria Casino & Resort laid off 64 workers Thursday, the latest in a yearlong series of cutbacks that has seen 250 jobs eliminated at the Rising Sun riverboat complex.

        About 40 of the people who received notice this week were dealers. They were a casualty of the casino's decision to cut almost half of its 70 table games.

        The layoffs come after southeastern Indiana's casinos have attracted millions of visitors and raked in millions since they opened almost five years ago.

The Grand Victoria Casino & Resort in Rising Sun. (Enquirer photo) | ZOOM |

        The cutback could be the signal of a possible slowdown in the gaming business or the effects of increased competition from the October opening of Belterra Casino & Resort in neighboring Switzerland County.

        The Grand Victoria employees were offered the chance to apply for other jobs, general manager Larry Buck said.

        The layoffs were effective immediately. Overall, employment has fallen to about 1,094 from about 1,344 in January 2000, Mr. Buck said. And many of the employees who are working have been filling part-time hours.

        Andrew Burkholder, a food and beverage supervisor who had worked at Grand Victoria since it opened in October 1996, said he was called and told not to report for his shift Thursday night.

        “It's cutthroat,” Mr. Burkholder, 29, said. “We've seen it every year, but nothing like this.”

        Mr. Burkholder said salaries for the list of available jobs ranged up to about $9.25 an hour. Full-time dealers at Grand Victoria earn about $40,000 a year, he said.

        “I guess I didn't get that phone call, so I'm safe,” Sean Tavernier, 23, of Aurora, said. He has worked there as a bartender for a year and said he hasn't seen a slowdown in his business.

        The news of the layoffs sent shivers through the tiny community of 2,500 people, although Grand Victoria officials said it should not have an immediate effect on operations.

        “That's a bunch of jobs for Rising Sun,” Mayor John Roeder said.
       

December business slowed
        Like many casinos in Indiana, Grand Victoria's business suffered in late 2000. In December, the Hyatt-owned casino “won” $9.8 million, down 19 percent from the same month in 1999.

        “I don't think Grand Victoria pays off as well as Argosy,” said Mary Lou Weigand, 81, of Springfield Township, who played at Grand Victoria on Thursday and estimates she visits the Lawrenceburg casino about three times a month.

        Still, Grand Victoria has its supporters — in some cases because of its lack of crowds.

        “It's more laid-back,” Lesa Rother, 39, of Brookville, Ohio, said. Added husband Rick, 42: “I know the last three or four times, it hasn't been as busy. That's what I like about it.”

        The cutbacks come as the casino industry as a whole is raking in unprecedented numbers of tourist dollars. Last year, Grand Victoria, Argosy Casino in Lawrenceburg and Belterra attracted more than 11 million visitors and “won” a combined half-billion dollars.

        Employment at Argosy and Belterra have remained steady, with about 2,400 and 1,500 employees, respectively, officials there said.

        For all of 2000, Grand Victoria's gross gaming revenue was $138.7 million, and it attracted more than 3.1 million visitors.

        Gross gaming revenue is the amount of money the casino earns before deducting salaries and other expenses.

        “There's no good time to do this,” Mr. Buck said. “Our business is down a little bit from last year, but it's still pretty healthy.”

        Mr. Buck said slots have be come more popular nationwide, leading to the cut in table games.
       

Dealers to get more hours
        Most of the casino's dealers have been working only three or four days a week since fall, and this move will allow them to return to full-time work, he said.

        He said the casino now employs about 131 dealers. All of the workers laid off Thursday were offered other jobs, but Mr. Buck wasn't sure how many would accept.

        One customer from Indianapolis, Martha Zentz, traveled to Grand Victoria with several friends Thursday. She said she wasn't bothered by the cut in table games, since she and her friends — who come to Rising Sun because of the casino's no-smoking section — favor slot machines.

        “If they close down half the machines, then I'll be worried,” she said.

        Enquirer reporter Cindi Andrews contributed to this report.
       

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