Could you even be a dealer?

[Preston]

Here is a question for the AP's.

If a casino offered you a really good paying job with great benefits dealing blackjack... Do you think you could do it?

All the stupid ploppy quotes, bad double downs, superstitions, and most importantly dumbshit plays and bitching about their bad luck.

I honestly don't think I could take it. Especially since I couldn't say anything one way or the other. Sometimes it is good to piss off a ploppy... especially during a good count.

 

[ScottH]

Here is a question for the AP's.

If a casino offered you a really good paying job with great benefits dealing blackjack... Do you think you could do it?

All the stupid ploppy quotes, bad double downs, superstitions, and most importantly dumbshit plays and bitching about their bad luck.

I honestly don't think I could take it. Especially since I couldn't say anything one way or the other. Sometimes it is good to piss off a ploppy... especially during a good count.

These comments don't bother me in the slightest. You can even enjoy the fact that you know they think they are good, but are just losers. If a ploppy says something about the flow or anything like that, instead of getting annoyed I just go with it and laugh about it with my partner.

 

[EasyRhino]

Actually, it would be fun to be a dealer, just to mess with players.

Unfortunately, the being on your feet all day, all the smoke, the constant surveillance, and the frickin' required manual dexterity would just make me crack.

 

[dacium]

Seriously I would love being a blackjack dealer. Ploppy after ploppy. I would love it the most on CSM machine, knowing every player was an idiot. I have shoes at home and dealer games out all the time to practice. I just hate all the other casino games and from what I can see you arent allowed to be just a blackjack dealer, they move your around to other crappy games.

 

[surf911]

Just of curiousity what is the pay for dealers? More or less...

 

[ihate17]

Around minimum wage

Just of curiousity what is the pay for dealers? More or less...

Plus tips. In other words, the players pay most of the dealers pay. Breakins might be making 20 grand if they are lucky at the fabulous Western, and Wynn stated that his dealers were making 100 grand before taxing them 10% to give the pit a raise.
Of course you have part timers, extra board dealers?, these perhaps do not get the hours or benifits of the regulars.

ihate17

 

[Sonny]

If a casino offered you a really good paying job with great benefits dealing blackjack...

There’s no such thing! The only dealer jobs that pay well are in places that would never hire me. :laugh: But I guess if you know someone…

Do you think you could do it?

Sure, for a while at least. I could tolerate it but I would never want to have to make a living doing it. Day after day, always on your feet, pit bosses breathing down your neck, annoying players, trying to grind out a few dollars per hour. Heck, the dealers have it much worse than we do! We can Wong out whenever we want.

I used to work part time for a company that held “casino night” parties. I dealt blackjack and craps almost every weekend. It was a lot of fun, but I don’t think I could do it 40 hours per week. It can get old pretty fast.

-Sonny-

 

[rogue1]

Not

It makes me crazy as a player hearing these dumbasses blame the dealer when they lose a hand I can't imagine being the dealer and hearing it all day,day in and day out!

 

[ihate17]

Some family members have been dealers

I have had several family members who have dealt, but only one both liked it enough and had the proper lack of motivation to stay in that job.

A cousin, who moved up the casino food chain, once commented, that casinos do not superglue the butts on the players to the seats on the table but the dealer is stuck till they get a tap.
Work in the right place and it pays very well for a position that requires little or no education and a skill that is easily learned (I hope the family is not reading this stuff). For some it is the best they can do, for some others the money can be a trap.

You have bosses who do not understand the game they supervise.
These bosses will often tend to pass blame along to the lowest denominator person, the person who can not pass down the blame, the dealer.
You have the petty stuff that goes on amongst casino employees.
You have a job where if a person of power just happens not to like you, your job will disappear and no reason will be given.
You have the complaints of tons of players, who mostly play horribly, and they land up very often blaming you for their poor play, which means losses.
Some players will offend you and accuse you of cheating.
And, you put yourself in a possibly bad position if you try to defend yourself against players and it results in an arguement or some kind of confrontation.
Easily, you are the guy who gets it in both ends, player/management.
Add to that, in places that have regulars, there might be a number of players that you really like and sometimes those cards that you just pull out of the shoe will be so bad that you will really feel sorry for that player.

A short and selective memory is required to maintain sanity. Take it home with you and it will eat you up. Casino bosses are as a rule not the best people to work with (of course there are exceptions) and people, the players can easily be at their worst in a losing, gambling situation.

As a benifit though, working in a casino you will get a great education in all sorts of behavioral abnormalities.

ihate17

 

[21forme]

Don't forget the pleasure of smoke blown in your face all day.

 

[RikaKazak]

Don't forget the pleasure of smoke blown in your face all day.

I could only deal at a smoke free casino/area....

Also I'd probably stab my eyes out before I completed my first week.

 

[shadroch]

Out of curiousity....

is there a maximum height a dealer can be? I'' almost 6'4 and don't recall ever seeing a dealer my size. Most tend to be average height or less.
I doubt I'd last long as a dealer,being on my feet all day would suck.

 

[21forme]

I saw a dealer ini AC yesterday who must have been at least 6'6.

 

[Mimosine]

is there a maximum height a dealer can be? I'' almost 6'4 and don't recall ever seeing a dealer my size. Most tend to be average height or less.
I doubt I'd last long as a dealer,being on my feet all day would suck.

at a few casinos nearby a few tables are lower and the dealer has a chair.

i doubt there are any height restrictions on being a dealer. why would there be.

 

[shadroch]

A taller player might be more apt to flash his hole-card.
I don't know. But its a fairly big coincidence that i've not encountered a tall dealer amongst the thousands I've played with.This last trip,I did see a craps dealer who had to be 6'7" at a minimum
Perhaps its just that we tall people tend to get better jobs than the floatsam and jetsam.

 

[halcyon1234]

Funny, I was thinking about doing this at the charity joint about a half hour away. But it seems like awfully long way to drive-- and one thing I didn't even think about was the fact that they are open 24 hours, 7 days a week. You can bet your ass Newbie McDealer would be getting the Idiot Wheel at 4am on Sunday.

For the record (this is in Ontario), they list under their employment section:
Dealer (Part Time)
Qualifications:
Must have a minimum of 6 months Blackjack dealer experience or have successfully completed a Blackjack dealer training school course.
Ability to communicate clearly and effectively in the English Language
Must have excellent customer service skills
Must have an excellent attendance record
Must be able to work in a team environment
Attention to detail and excellent math skills required
Must be available to work any shift, during any day of the week.

I honestly don't know where I would even go for a dealer training school course. I don't think my college has that as an elective. :laugh:

And that last detail-- any shift, and day-- blech. I like having a life on weekends and evenings. So I can do stuff like-- y'know-- go to the casino. =)

 

[Sonny]

But its a fairly big coincidence that i've not encountered a tall dealer amongst the thousands I've played with.

I did see a really tall dealer back in '99. It was at the Colorado Belle in Laughlin. This guy must have been at least 6'5". And yes, he did have trouble with his hole card.

Perhaps its just that we tall people tend to get better jobs than the floatsam and jetsam.

Yeah, they rock! :laugh:

-Sonny-

 

[ihate17]

For the record (this is in Ontario), they list under their employment section:
Dealer (Part Time)
Qualifications:
Must have a minimum of 6 months Blackjack dealer experience or have successfully completed a Blackjack dealer training school course.
Ability to communicate clearly and effectively in the English Language
Must have excellent customer service skills
Must have an excellent attendance record
Must be able to work in a team environment
Attention to detail and excellent math skills required
Must be available to work any shift, during any day of the week.


Excellent Math Skills Required??

Can you add to 21?
Can you multiply by 1.5

Seriously though, communication, customer service, and attendance, are important aspects in hiring just about anyone who deals with customers, but math skills, this ain't rocket science!

ihate17

 

[Preston]

You would be surprised how terrible at math the general population is.

 

[halcyon1234]

You would be surprised how terrible at math the general population is.

I second this. Go buy a $10 item-- any $10 item, anywhere-- and ask them to figure out the sales tax without the machine.

Heck, I even dare you to go to a bank teller! Withdraw $330. Ask for one $10 and the rest in $20s. Ask her to count the $10 first-- and see if she can count up from 10 to 330 in odds!

Go to ANY store with a 50% off sale, and ask how much any random item is.

If I ran a casino, I'd want my dealers to have a good foundation in numeracy. Yes, figuring out 1.5 of $10 is easy enough. But Blackjack isn't the only game. The Idiot Wheel should be called as such because the players are idiots-- not the dealer who can't figure out how to pay a $7.50 bet in any odds. (ie: $7.50 when it's 6-1). I know dealers can just match-stack chips, but do you want that to be the sole and only verification of a correct pay?

Heck, if there's a known number-stupid dealer out there, how long do YOU think it'll be before someone plunks down $156 in red and white, and then starts asking to get paid in greens. How easy would it be to convince him that he owes you 50 greens and three reds on a 7-1 bet? Especially if there's being high-pressure about it?

Someone who is bad at math-- who is suddenly put on the spot to solve a problem-- will gladly accept a given answer, rather than figure it out themselves.