Many event coordinators wonder why Las Vegas doesn’t have a large pool of qualified staff to be hired locally. It’s quite odd given the events and conventions that happen frequently. After providing guest services for CES activations in Las Vegas, it was interesting to find out that a lot of staff members are outsourced from Los Angeles. We’re going to cover exactly why that is and how it could be avoided.

Where Are Event Staff in Las Vegas?

Theres thousands of events year round being hosted in Las Vegas - EDC alone has 520,000 guests that attend in a 3 day time span annually. The Las Vegas Convention Center capacity is 175,000. To provide bartenders for 175,000 guests in a day, you would need 5,333 bartenders at the bare minimum.

Out of the 12,000 bartenders in Las Vegas, most are committed to working at their usual spots. Bartenders in Las Vegas already make a living wage in tips at popular hotels and casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, why would half of them opt out for 2 days of EDC?

Planners for EDC and other activations associated with EDC in 2024 have to be proactive in hiring bartenders in nearby regions to ensure quality.

Factors Contributing to Outsourcing Event Staff

Limited Local Talent Pool

When large scale events come into Las Vegas, the casino talent pool are needed to service their local establishments due to the high volume of tourists.

Las Vegas is also known for having low retention rates and a lack of local event staffing agencies. This is due to the liability associated with hiring non reliable staff, and potentially hiring transients.

Most event staffing agencies in Las Vegas aren’t actually local to Las Vegas, many are stationed in Los Angeles or other neighboring regions. The price to travel is high, and to stay costs even more, even hotels off the strip get fully booked with outsourced staff, which requires the hotels to increase work hours for their employees to manage the influx.

Cost Considerations

Los Angeles is known for having staffing agencies that service to Las Vegas.

If you’re looking to outsource, make sure you consider the price. Unless you book early enough with a local Las Vegas Agency, you’re going to be forced to outsource if you’re coordinating an event.

In consideration of price, it is going to cost a lot more to try and supplement staff last minute from another location. Make sure you give a Los Angeles Staffing Agency 30-60 days notice.

In my experience providing staff to Las Vegas, hiring a charter service bus is the way to go. When it comes to getting Los Angeles staff to travel, remember to pay them for their time and provide per diem for traveling.

Benefits of Outsourcing Event Staff from Los Angeles

If you plan to host an event during any busy season in Las Vegas, theres quite a few benefits to outsourcing staff.

Los Angeles is known for providing higher quality staff members that are known for serving top VIPs. Outsourcing can make your Vegas event stand out and bring you even more clients.

Drawbacks

The main drawback of outsourcing staff is finding staff members who have Las Vegas Certifications. We had to get all of our bartenders TAM certified before they could legally serve alcohol.

This sort of request for a Event Staff in Los Angeles requires booking well in advanced if the agency doesn’t have many staff local to Las Vegas.

Conclusion

If you are planning an event in Las Vegas and have the time and budget to outsource staff, let the agency focus on the logistics. The team needs to get TAM certified and travel and lodging needs to be addressed, but it can lead to impactful results to your next event.

Looking for top tier Event Staff in Los Vegas? Inquire to Elevate Events here.