New electronic casino table games stir fears of job cuts, loss of tips

[Earth Bound Misfit]

http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/185/story/232019.html

ATLANTIC CITY - Kathy Bresan, a poker dealer at Caesars Atlantic City, recently received a raise of 12 cents per hour. That's cents, not dollars. Now she makes $4.50 per hour, and her take-home pay for her part-time casino job is about $50 per week.
"I can't possibly live on $4.50 an hour," she said.

Bresan and thousands of other Atlantic City casino dealers survive on tips, the lifeblood of many jobs in the service-oriented gaming industry. Dealers estimate two-thirds of their earnings are in tips.

Now they are worried an emerging trend in the casino business may cost them their tips and livelihood. The introduction of automated poker games this summer at Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino reflects the growing popularity of electronic gambling across the country.

--snip--

"This is our future," said Marybeth Litchholt, a dealer at Trump Plaza. "We have been in the casino business for a long time. If they keep bringing in these games, there will be no jobs for us."

The arrival of electronic poker coincides with an effort by United Auto Workers to unionize casino dealers. So far, the UAW has won elections at Trump Plaza, Bally's, Caesars and Tropicana Casino and Resort. It lost union drives at the Atlantic City Hilton Casino Resort and Trump Marina Hotel Casino, although a judge has ordered a new election at Trump Marina after finding that the first one was flawed by casino misconduct.

--snip--

Rapid Roulette, a new version of the classic game, is another form of electronic gaming that made its Atlantic City debut this year on a limited basis. Harrah's Resort, Bally's, Caesars and Showboat Casino Hotel have one Rapid Roulette table each. A computerized betting system is used to speed up the game, but Rapid Roulette still requires human dealers to spin the wheel and bring chips to gamblers when they cash out.

--snip--

"Electronic gaming is a threat to us," said Ed Little, a Trump Plaza dealer. "It threatens to replace us outright or it will kill our income or adversely affect our income."

--snip--

Paula Cifelli, a dealer at Caesars, said that no matter how sophisticated the technology becomes, electronic table games will never replace the lively interaction between human dealers and customers.

"I entertain the customers," Cifelli said. "We laugh, we joke. Is a machine going to do that? I have people staying at my table for a long time, even if they are losing money."

Trump Plaza executives hope the electronic games will draw in novice players who eventually will graduate to live table games. Gary Noa, a Trump Plaza dealer, agreed that electronic gambling is a way to introduce an entirely new generation of players to live games, but he thinks the casinos have other motives.

"The history of the casino industry right here is the elimination of the worker," Noa said.

[brentspeak]

1. I remember speaking to a casino gift shop employee

She told how the employees were treated like garbage by management, and how unions were constantly busted.

[Earth Bound Misfit]

2. Take it from one who knows....

Saying that employees are treated like garbage by casino management is an insult to garbage.

[ladjf]

3. Easier to rig.

[Earth Bound Misfit]

4. Players at the poker machines are not playing "against the house"

thereby "eliminating" the potential to "rig" the game in favor of the "house". Players compete against each other with the house taking a percentage of the pot. What these games do for the house is produce more hands, and as such, more "rake". One problem with these "virtual poker dealer" machines is you'll need some "virtual players" to play against as very few gamblers have taken to them.

In the Roulette game, up to 12 players seat themselves at video terminals & make bets by touching the appropriate #'s, denominations, etc. Human dealers and a wheel are still used to avoid the possibility of "rigging" the outcome of each game. Again the rationale behind these machines is faster pacing of the games, fewer mistakes, better game security (gamblers will be unable to "claim" winning bets, past posting, etc).

The difference here, with no actual chips involved, and with players often preferring to "cash out" using vouchers, dealers lose out on tips, which is approximately 80% (or more) of their income.