Feb. 15, 2012--The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, which has reported casino volumes smaller than some peers, said Tuesday it laid off an undisclosed number of employees.

"In evaluating our business needs, we have determined it was necessary to make a small reduction in staff, less than 1 percent of our total workforce. These reductions were centered in the gaming operations department," the company said in a statement.

With nearly 4,200 employees, according to a regulatory filing, that would indicate the layoffs involved some 40 or fewer positions.

The announcement appears to be one of the first significant changes at the Las Vegas Strip resort since Thomas McCartney, a veteran of the Tropicana and other resorts, took over as chief operating officer Jan. 1.

The nearly 3,000-room property opened in December 2010 and since then has generated most of its revenue from lodging and food and beverage operations as opposed to some resorts where casino revenue is the largest cash generator.

This has caused Cosmopolitan executives to work on initiatives to boost casino revenue such as developing a high-limit table games area well after the grand opening.

The Cosmopolitan hasn't yet reported fourth-quarter financial results and the Deutsche Bank-owned resort hasn't yet disclosed how successful the initiative to grow gaming revenue has been.

During the third quarter, the Cosmopolitan reported a loss of $58.5 million.

Separately, the Cosmopolitan said it premiered a new chapter in its Just the Right Amount of Wrong television advertising campaign during the Grammys on Sunday.

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