Artificial intelligence is beginning to reshape Las Vegas hospitality, but so far the technology has changed far fewer jobs than many workers feared. Even so, the state’s largest labor union says it’s already using contract protections designed to prepare for AI’s eventual expansion.
While much of today’s workplace technology involves automation rather than generative AI, industry leaders say hotels increasingly are adopting digital tools to streamline operations, raising questions about how quickly AI could reshape Southern Nevada’s largest industry.
The Culinary Union, which represents about 60,000 hospitality workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including those employed at most hotel-casinos on the Strip and downtown Las Vegas, negotiated a contract in 2018 requiring advance notice before employers introduce technology that could affect jobs. The latest contract, ratified in 2023, also extends health care and pension benefits for workers displaced by new technology.
“There’s no other way to deal with this other than having a strong union contract,” said Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer for the union.
According to Pappageorge, since the contract was updated three years ago, the union has invoked technology protections outlined in the contracts “multiple times every month.”
While artificial intelligence is explicitly referenced in both contracts, the new technology being introduced in Las Vegas’ hospitality industry has largely taken the form of automation, including mobile ordering systems, cleaning robots and a broader use of tablets, Pappageorge said.
Where artificial intelligence fits into Las Vegas’ hospitality industry
Ryan Berger, Las Vegas branch director for Robert Half, a staffing and business consulting firm, said many Las Vegas hospitality employers are discovering that artificial intelligence is most effective when it enhances employees’ work rather than replaces it.
“In hospitality, AI is helping streamline functions such as scheduling, reservations, guest communications and administrative work, allowing employees to spend more time delivering personalized guest experiences,” Berger said.
Consequently, Berger said, employers increasingly value candidates who demonstrate literacy in artificial intelligence alongside strong interpersonal skills.
A 2026 survey by the firm found that 36 percent of managers believe new professionals should show familiarity with artificial intelligence tools, but 37 percent caution candidates against overstating their capabilities with the technology.
“The message is that employers appreciate candidates who understand how to use AI appropriately but still value authenticity and critical thinking,” Berger said. “For hospitality professionals, that means becoming comfortable using workplace technology while continuing to strengthen communication, customer service, adaptability, collaboration and problem-solving skills. Those human capabilities remain difficult to automate and continue to set top performers apart.”
Correction hires
Further research from the firm established that more than three in 10 organizations that initially reduced positions after implementing artificial intelligence later realized they still needed human skills, including institutional knowledge, relationship management and human oversight, and thus rehired for similar roles.
Still, despite these “AI correction hires,” as the firm refers to them, Las Vegas hospitality workers remain wary that the technology could ultimately replace them.
“Our members are quite concerned about AI combining with robotics, and we’ve seen job losses due to robotics,” Pappageorge said. “So we’re quite worried that if AI, when it gets combined, those job losses could be deeper.”
The combination of artificial intelligence and robotics in the hospitality industry primarily takes the form of collaborative robots, said Mehmet Erdem, chair and professor in the department of gaming management and hospitality technology at UNLV.
The best illustration of this technology, Erdem said, are food delivery robots that can make the process cheaper and faster.
To Erdem, leveraging collaborative robots are a win-win-win for the customers, employers and even employees.
He said that certain customer service functions such as food delivery can become more efficient allowing it generate more profit for the company. “Smart businesses,” Erdem said, use those profits to create jobs, replacing a food delivery person with, for example, cooks.
Contact Alex Streinger at astreinger@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5505. Follow @AlexPStreinger on X.
