Coast Casino Announces Layoffs

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) – Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Casino & Restaurant Biloxi is laying off about 50 full-time and 150 part-time workers as the summer tourist season ends.

Chief financial officer Scott King tells the Sun Herald (http://bit.ly/PKUuKG ) that for six weeks the company has been informing employees their jobs would end with summer.

Margaritaville hired nearly 1,000 people for its opening on May 22. Traditionally, Coast casinos hire additional employees for the opening and the summer and adjust employment levels seasonally.

King says Hurricane Isaac added to the layoffs because high water damaged the marina and the outdoor bar and dining area.

The Biloxi property is the first stand-alone Margaritaville Casino. Another is being built in Bossier City, La., and Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City will add a Margaritaville restaurant and bar.