The Pahrump Nugget Hotel and Gaming Hall will terminate 310 employees once the Nevada Gaming Commission approves the sale of the property to Mammoth Ventures, although the new owners will then interview, and possibly rehire, many of the former employees.

The termination notice was delivered to Pahrump Town Board Clerk Paul Willis under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988, which requires employers to give notice to government officials about pending reductions in the work force.

The hotel and casino has been operated by Generation 2000 since it was built in 2001.

A letter dated Aug. 18 from William Ensign, managing partner in Generation 2000, states:

"The employees employed by the Pahrump Nugget will be terminated at a date no less than 60 days following the date of this letter. The precise date of the termination is not presently known due to the fact that the Nevada Gaming Commission is still in the process of approving the sale transaction. After the Gaming Commission completes the approval process, additional notice setting forth the specific termination date will be sent."

The statement notes there is no union representation involved at the casino.

Ensign's letter concludes:

"While the Pahrump Nugget intends to terminate each and every one of its employees as of the close of its sale to Mammoth Ventures LLC, it is our understanding that Mammoth Ventures LLC will be interviewing all of the Pahrump Nugget's former employees after the date on which their employment with the Pahrump Nugget terminates and extending offers to most, if not all, employees."

The notice itemizes the current types of job positions at the Pahrump Nugget: 31 pit dealers, 22 slot and floor technicians, 22 food servers, 15 gift shop clerks, 21 porters, 18 cage workers, 15 bowling clerks, 13 bus persons, 13 dish washers, 11 hostesses and cashiers, 11 cocktail waitresses, 10 bartenders and other personnel.

The application for the gaming license is still pending with the Nevada Gaming Control Board. No date has been set yet for a hearing.

When the casino sale was announced in June, the new owners were to be Golden Gaming Inc. Rod Atamian, who is listed as the executive vice-president and chief financial officer of a number of companies including Golden Gaming Inc., Mammoth Ventures, tavern chain PTs Gold and others, expected the casino to change hands by the end of this year, assuming the gaming license can be approved.

When the casino acquisition was announced, Atamian told the Pahrump Valley Times, "It seems that the property has a pretty tight-knit culture here that is very motivated to provide excellent service. We'd like to maintain that and improve upon that."

Amanda Penn, public information officer for the Nevada Department of Business and Industry, said there have been other instances where new casino owners have terminated all the former employees.

"More than likely they're firing all the employees and making them interview ... The new employer would maybe have their own standards they would want employees to live up to. If there has been a change in ownership, it's not that unusual in the gaming business."