Gaylord Drops 180 in Nashville

[Update 2/16; 9 pm] Gaylord has now announced it will reduce 3.5% of its workforce nationwide, cutting about 350 jobs. 180 positions will be eliminated in Nashville.

According to the Fort Worth, Texas Star-Telegram, Gaylord Entertainment laid off 30 full-time people today (2/16) from its resort in Grapevine, Texas. The property has a workforce of about 1,850 total. The article says that Gaylord spokeswoman Martha Neibling refused to comment on possible cuts at other Gaylord properties in Nashville, Orlando, and the Washington DC area.

Gaylord CEO Colin Reed recently announced that the company’s Opryland hotel had suffered a 7.1% drop in revenue per available room during the 4Q 2008 compared with the previous year. “We ended the year in an economic environment that continued to rapidly decelerate and since then, has shown no signs of improvement,” Reed told the Nashville Busness Journal. “Meeting planners are deferring decision-making, shrinking the booking window for 2009 and 2010 business.”

Reed readjusted the firm’s 2009 outlook saying that company-wide Gaylord would suffer an 18-20% first quarter drop in revenue per available room. Unconfirmed reports point to additional national layoffs.