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Ncore Boston Harbor announced furloughs for 3,000 employees as the Everett casino awaits the start of Massachusetts’ third reopening phase to resume its casino operations and dining services. Encore plans to open under Phase 3 of the state’s reopening plan, noting the reopening date could come as early as July 6. Encore Boston Harbor confirmed that it will close its hotel temporarily due to the coronavirus pandemic.The temporary shutdown is effective immediately.The Everett casino - which is normally open. Encore is offering a $7 shuttle boat from the Seaport (the World Trade Center dock) and downtown (the Long Wharf North dock) to the casino’s front door along the Mystic River.

Encore Boston Harbor announced Thursday that the Everett casino intents to reopen to the public on Sunday, July 12.

The reopening date comes after Gov. Charlie Baker announced that casinos will be allowed to reopen as early as Monday as part of Phase 3 of the Massachusetts reopening plan.

Encore Boston Harbor will open its doors at 9 a.m. July 12, pending approval from state gaming officials.

The decision comes after the Massachusetts Gaming Commission approved a slew of reopening requirements last week.

The new guidelines include rules and recommendations for screening guests, including a requirement to make hand sanitizer available and a suggestion to conduct temperature checks. Social distancing guidelines for slots include a requirement that casinos turn off every other slot machine and remove chairs, and to either ensure a minimum of 6 feet between slot positions or install 6-foot-tall plexiglass dividers.

There are also reduced occupancy limits based on a formula for total patrons and employees. Commissioners believe the formula will reduce each facility’s capacity to about 25%.

Other requirements for reopening guests at Encore Boston Harbor include:

Thermal temperature scans at all guest and employee entrances. Anyone, guest or employee, with a temperature of 100.4 or more will not be allowed inside.

Face coverings are mandatory for all employees and guests. Face masks will be available for guests as needed.

Enhanced cleaning and disinfecting of public spaces throughout the day.

Hand sanitizer stations and disinfecting wipes available throughout the property.

Signage at each point of entry and at prominent locations throughout the gaming area to remind guests of safe practices including frequent hand washing, use of hand sanitizer, proper wearing of masks, and to go home if sick.

Encore Boston Harbor, MGM Springfield and Plainridge Park were ordered to shutdown in mid-March. Casino operators previously said they will need 10 to 14 days notice in order to ramp back up.

Following the shutdowns, thousands of casino workers were furloughed.

Wynn Resorts, the casino’s parent company, put off furloughs after closing on March 15 in light of the coronavirus pandemic, paying the roughly 4,200 employees who work at the $2.6 billion Everett casino. The company spent $3 million a day, or roughly $220 million between mid-March and May, to continue paying its employees, the company said.

MGM Springfield told state labor officials in May that it will lay off as many as 1,887 employees at the end of August.

The Springfield casino had just over 2,000 employees earlier this year.

In a letter obtained by MassLive in May, Acting Chief Executive Bill Hornbuckle said the company is in the midst of “the most challenging period ever faced” by the company.

Hornbuckle said when employees were first furloughed in March, MGM hoped a significant portion of its operations would “bounce back” by the summer.

“However, we are realistic in our understanding that domestic and international travel will remain limited for some time,” Hornbuckle said. “We believe that demand for travel will be significantly decreased for the remainder of 2020 and could continue through the early part of next year.”

Amid operational shutdowns, MGM furloughed nearly 63,000 workers, leaving the company with a skeleton crew of its roughly 70,000-person staff in the United States.

Employees will remain furloughed through the end of August, when their employment will be end if they are not rehired by Aug. 31. Hornbuckle did not specify how many of its furloughed workers would be laid off.

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“We now believe that some of our colleagues may not return to work this year,” Hornbuckle wrote. “And, given the continued uncertainty facing our industry, we simply don’t know just how many employees will return to work within the coming months.”

All furloughed employees enrolled in the company health plan will have their benefits extended through August 31 with no employee contributions for premiums.

Massachusetts casinos will be among the final in the nation to reopen following coronavirus shutdowns.

In neighboring Connecticut, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation and the Mohegan Tribe reopened Foxwoods Resort Casino and Mohegan Sun at the beginning of June. Twin River Casino in Lincoln, Rhode Island opened on Tuesday. Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady, New York, remains closed.

Casinos in Las Vegas were allowed to reopen as early as June 4.

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MGM reopened Mandalay Bay and Aria on Wednesday. The company requires all employees and guests to wear masks inside public spaces at every MGM property across the U.S.

“As part of our work to continually update and evolve our health and safety policies, we are now requiring masks for all guests and visitors inside public spaces,” the company said in a statement released last week. “If a guest is in need of a mask, we will provide one. We hope that our guests will do their part to help the collective efforts to curtail the spread of the virus. Guests who do not wish to comply will be asked to leave the property.”

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©2020 MassLive.com, Springfield, Mass.

Encore Boston Casino Opening Date

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The die has been cast: The Encore Boston Harbor casino plans to open back up on Sunday, July 12, the company announced Thursday.

The announcement came a few hours after Gov. Charlie Baker announced that Phase 3 of his four-phase coronavirus reopening plan will start Monday. During this step, casinos, movie theaters and gyms can start back up following closures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

But Encore will have far from a full house, as the casino has said it will have many of its slot machines turned off, and it will enforce social distancing.

“Every effort has been made to preserve Encore’s luxury experience and provide guests with the peace of mind needed to enjoy a fun and relaxing return,” the casino said in a statement announcing the game-on move.

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The opening is pending the approval of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission.

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Encore, at $2.3 billion, was the most expensive private construction project in the history of the state, opening last June before closing March 15 as the pandemic spread.

Its top brass in May outlined a range of steps for an eventual coronavirus-era reopening, including thermal cameras taking the temperature of everyone going in and out, and all staff and visitors being required to wear a mask. They said the casino will sanitize all machines every hour and will use “disinfectant guns” that blast an electrified mist of cleaning products.

The casino is installing plexiglass between gamblers at blackjack tables, and restaurants will not be using printed menus as guests instead use their smartphones to order food.

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Other table games like poker, craps and roulette remain suspended until further notice.

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Massachusetts’ coronavirus trends have remained positive now more than two months after the state and Boston-area peak. But cases nationally have begun to spike, driven mostly by large outbreaks in the southeast and southwest.

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Encore, a huge golden building on the banks of the Mystic River, which is owned by casino giant Wynn resorts. The casino said it will open its hotel side “in a limited capacity.”