Crown Sydney to cut 180 staff due to lack of gambling traffic

Crown Resorts will cut 180 jobs and reduce operating hours at its Sydney casino due to a lack of patronage.

The decision, which was announced to staff earlier this week, comes only two months after the Barangaroo property was forced to close one of its gaming floors.

It means Crown Sydney has now axed 275 positions since opening its doors in August last year.

No longer able to justify remaining open 24 hours a day, the casino will now operate between 10am until 2am from Monday to Thursday and until 4am on Fridays.

The gaming floors will open at 2pm on weekends, closing at 4am on Saturdays and 2am on Sundays.

Crown Sydney CEO Mark McWhinnie said the company was committed to finding the affected staff other roles at its Melbourne and Perth casinos.

“Our priority is to support the 180 impacted team members alongside their union as they determine their next steps,” he said.

Both Crown Resorts and rival operator Star Entertainment have struggled to recover from major regulatory penalties levied against their Australian casinos in the past two years.

Both companies were subject to Royal Commissions that uncovered massive operational failings with regard to anti money laundering (AML) and counter terrorism financing (CTF) regulations, resulting in record fines and licence suspensions.

They have also been affected by significant changes to New South Wales’ gambling tax laws.