Crown Resorts has dismissed more than 1,000 workers across its Sydney, Perth, and Melbourne properties. The firm attributed the job losses to a challenging financial climate and heightened oversight in the Australian gaming sector.
Crown’s chief executive, Steve McCann, highlighted a decrease in global visitors, diminished pedestrian activity from local employees in urban hubs, and gaming limitations in both Melbourne and Sydney as contributing elements. He stressed the company’s dedication to fulfilling regulatory requirements and ongoing reform initiatives, including the Crown PlaySafe program, the Sydney and Melbourne transformation blueprints, and continuing remedial actions in Perth.
These staff reductions follow a turbulent period for Crown Resorts, which encountered a string of controversies and legal issues. The corporation was slapped with a substantial penalty of AU$450 million (US$294 million) after being deemed culpable of serious money laundering and terrorism funding infractions. Exacerbating their difficulties, they were also probed for salary underpayment by the Fair Work Ombudsman and had to acknowledge additional compliance violations and improper conduct towards personnel.
The high temperatures continued for Crown Resorts as the Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) initiated a probe into their leadership team. A sense of relief, however, came when the New South Wales Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority (clarification: it was ILGA, not NICC) concluded its assessment the previous week, permitting Crown to retain its operational authorization (though with stringent stipulations attached, they were certainly not free from scrutiny!).