The Mill Casino-Hotel succumbed to economic pressures and laid off 37 employees, or 7 percent of its workforce, Wednesday.

Ten of the employees have been offered other positions at the casino-hotel or may remain on part-time or on-call status, according to casino officials.

The North Bend casino and hotel just opened a 92-room, seven-story tower in July. A casino spokesman said the layoffs related to hotel and related construction costs and economic conditions.

The casino and hotel, which are owned by the Coquille Indian Tribe under its parent corporation, the Coquille Economic Development Corporation, employ more than 500 people, according to Ray Doering, the casino’s communications coordinator.

The employees were given notice at the beginning of their shifts throughout the day. A four-year casino employee himself, Doering said the layoffs came as a big surprise to him. To his knowledge, the business has never let employees go for financial reasons.

“It’s not real huge, but we’ve never done this before,” Doering said. “We’ve always been growing.”

Employees’ tenure ranged from six months to 13 years, he said.

“It pretty much covers the gamut,” Doering said. “It runs from lower-paid positions to managerial.”

Nearly half the affected positions were in the gaming room, according to a press release. The most visible change will be the elimination of Keno. The game hasn’t been very successful and has enjoyed only modest play since its introduction in 2006. There were cutbacks in marketing, the bakery and beverage service, too, Doering said.

Nationwide, there have been reductions in the gaming industry, he said.

“It’s not that it’s been horrible,” Doering said. “People just don’t have that disposable income anymore. The spending is down. This economy is unpredictable.”

Doering said it’s hard to say what will happen in the next couple of months.

“We’re in uncharted territory,” he said.

General Manager Larry Close said the casino tried to prepare for the economic downturn, but it wasn’t enough.

“We instituted serious cost control measures at the start of the year to cope ... but, with no end in sight in the near term, we now must take the added step of reducing staff,” he said in the press release.

Close was optimistic about the future.

“Despite this current situation, I am convinced that our recent casino-hotel expansion and improvements in our facilities and services have positioned us well for future success once our national economy rights itself,” he said.

Dena Miles, human resources director, said it’s normal for the casino to let some of its seasonal workers go at the end of the summer, but this year they had to eliminate more.

Workers received in-lieu-of-notice pay based on length of service. All of them will receive benefits through the end of October, with some tenured employees receiving additional considerations. An employee assistance program will provide counseling and The Mill is coordinating with the Oregon Employment Department to provide outplacement assistance.

Kathie Creasey, manager of the Coos Bay and Brookings state employment offices, said tribal workers who are laid off are eligible for the same unemployment benefits as other workers.

“As long as the employer submits wage credits, anyone who has earned money in Oregon or are paid in Oregon are eligible,” she said.

Creasey declined to comment on whether anyone laid off Wednesday had come into the employment department.

“It’s confidential,” she said.

According to an employment department report, Coos County unemployment rose from 7.2 percent in July and to 7.6 percent in August. The Mill Casino Web site, http://www.themillcasino.com, had no job listings available as of Sept. 26.

The casino opened in 1995 and the 112-room hotel in 2000. The tower project, combined with an earlier expansion of the casino, cost about $40 million.

Besides the casino and hotel, The casino waterfront property features five on-site restaurants, meeting, wedding and banquet facilities, an indoor pool, a gift shop, a fitness center, an arcade, a business center and a 102-space RV park.

In March, CEDCO announced that plans for a Home Depot were squelched when the home improvement store terminated its lease of property adjacent to the casino.

Besides The Mill Casino-Hotel, the tribe owns an organic cranberry-farming venture, Coquille Cranberries, an assisted-living and Alzheimer’s center, Heritage Place in Bandon and the broadband telecommunications provider, Optical Rural Community Access Communications, also known as ORCA Communications.