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Las Vegas Roundup

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Dec. 7, 2001-- AFL-CIO President John Sweeney operates at a political level requiring a great deal of verbal skill.

So it was not particularly surprising that Sweeney largely deflected a question when recently asked whether Las Vegas casino companies have used the Sept. 11 terror attacks as a pretext for layoffs.

"We've heard that accusation made in other cities and industries as well," Sweeney said at a news conference during the AFL-CIO's five-day convention at Paris. "It is a fact that many of the employers are taking advantage of Sept. 11 in terms of the layoffs."

The labor boss declined to say whether he knew of specific gambling companies that had cut jobs with little justification.

TRIVIA TIME: What was the fourth-largest gambling market in Nevada last year behind the Strip, Reno-Sparks and downtown Las Vegas?

BAGGAGE CHECK: For a few troubling moments, a piece of luggage was the focus of police officers at a union rally in front of the Palms.

Las Vegas police spotted the bag sitting on a West Flamingo Road sidewalk and immediately sought its owner amid concerns of a potential safety threat.

As hundreds of placard-carrying protesters wandered by one woman eased any worries.

Turned out the luggage was filled with pro-union T-shirts and belonged to an Ohio man who was in town for the AFL-CIO convention.

ROUGH STATS: "While leisure air travel has faltered during the past couple of months, business travel has almost collapsed," Fortune magazine writes in its Monday edition.

"In September, the latest month for which data are available, the number of domestic miles flown by business travelers fell a whopping 44 percent over last year, according to the Air Transport Association; leisure travel fell 30 percent."

The key reason for the decline: travel fears.

SIGN OF THE TIMES: "Perhaps no city better illustrates the new economic realities than Las Vegas," writes The Associated Press. "The glitzy city has dimmed since the terrorist attacks, losing more than $78 million in convention business and 75,000 visitors since the terrorist attacks. The unemployment rate hit 6.7 percent in October compared with 5.4 percent nationally.

TRIVIA ANSWER: The Boulder Strip was the state's fourth-largest gambling market in 2000 as its casinos won $595.5 million from gamblers.

QUOTABLE: "If you look at Vegas, the hospitality and tourism industry generally lags behind the general economy." - AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Rich Trumka speaking about the prospects for an economic turnaround.

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