TABLE GAMES By Al Moe
WORKING IN ARIZONA GAMING Everything You Need To Know To Get Started
F
inding work in a local Arizona casino can be a wonderful experience. The casinos range from small properties with just a few hundred slot machines to the three largest employers (Gila River Gaming Enterprises, Casino Arizona/ Talking Stick Resort and Desert Diamond Casinos) with multiple properties, hotels, restaurants, slots, poker, and table games. Finding the right one for you should be more than a splitsecond decision. So do your homework and choose wisely. About Licensing When I first worked in Nevada casinos, I applied on a Tuesday, had my interview, and was hired on the spot. I was given paperwork to take to the local police station where I got fingerprinted, and I had to bring a money order for the FBI to do my background check. The detailed check took weeks, but I got a Sherriff’s card immediately and had my first paid orientation day on Friday. Yes. Things have changed. In Arizona, you must apply, get “approved” as a hire, fill out important background check documents, and be approved by both the casino’s Tribal Gaming Office and the Arizona Department of Gaming. Your background check will take time. You won’t work this week. Probably not this month. Your background paperwork will be different and easier to finish for job seekers beyond the gaming departments (poker, table games, bingo, keno, slots, and sportsbook). And working jobs in other departments can help when in-house gaming positions open! The Casinos in Arizona Without steering anyone towards a specific property for employment, 22 federally recognized tribes in Arizona are part of a Tribal-State gaming compact most recently updated and signed into law on April 15, 2021. That’s Tax Day, a bad day for most of us. My first day working in a casino was April Fool’s Day, but that’s probably not significant. Arizona’s latest compact authorized new table games, including Sic Bo, Baccarat, Pai Gow Tiles, Big Six, Craps, and Roulette. And (drum roll, please) a new maximum wager of $100,000 (up from $1,350). Each casino regulates its table limits, and the 100K number is sky high, but several properties have $2,500 limits every day now. On January 1st, 2022 there were about 550 card
16 Arizona Gaming Guide | April 2022 | azgamingguide.com
Table Games Dealer (pre-pandemic) At Lone Butte Casino
and table games in the state and 18,000 slot machines. Arizona gaming is growing, and there are jobs! The addition of Craps and Roulette was long-awaited in Arizona and sparked a feeding frenzy to get qualified dealers and supervisors for the games. Starting wages rose for supervisors, and some properties have bumped up dealer pay based on how many games they deal. You may not have to know all the games to get hired, but it helps improve your chances! As for pay scales, starting Floor Supervisor and Pit Boss rates are higher in Arizona - at the casinos that have incorporated Craps and Roulette into their gaming mix - than in many comparable casinos in other states and even Las Vegas. And speaking from multiple employment experiences, Arizona casinos are much more relaxed and enjoyable. As for table game tips, most Arizona casinos are “go for your own” and not “split joints.” Your income depends on the number of players habitually visiting the casino, your shift, and personality. I know dealers who are happy grinding out $50,000 and others who quickly make twice that. It is a “go for your own” job! $
Writer Al Moe has worked in the casino industry for many years. He has lived and worked in Las Vegas, Reno, and Lake Tahoe. He also attended the University of Nevada, Reno. He is an avid writer and blogger. His book, “Vegas and the Mob," is available online at Amazon.com. He is also the proud father of four beautiful girls.
