Mohegan Sun has laid off nearly 300 employees, with two score more slated to lost their jobs in the coming weeks.
Now, Business Week is reporting that the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority will pay "between $8 million and $10 million in severance costs" for the 282 laid off workers. Another 50 people will lose their jobs before the end of the month.
Mitchell Etess, the chief executive officer for the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority, said the casino did everything it could to reduce expenses before resorting to layoffs that began last Thursday night.
In addition to the near 300 that got pink slips last week, CEO Jeffrey Hartmann, who has been with the casino for more than a decade, was also let go, though he is being replaced.
Montville Mayor Ronald McDaniel initially said he was unaware of any layoffs but later said he was told. He said the layoffs are a "terrible blow for the region and the town. I don't know how the economy would absorb it."
In 2010 the casino laid off more than 300 employees.
