Wynn blackjack dealers make $90k/year

[Dan Druff]

Many people tip their blackjack dealers because they make minimum wage, and are assumed to be hurting. It is hard to resist throwing them some good cash when you are winning thousands at the blackjack table and they are barely able to pay their rent...

... Or are they?

There is an ongoing lawsuit regarding sharing of tips at the Wynn. Blackjack dealers are now required to share their tips with the pit staff and other gaming-related employees.

Here is the most interesting thing to come out of the story:

The answer, said Greenberg, was that tip pooling raised the pay of the supervisory positions from about $60,000 a year. By contrast, Wynn dealers make about $90,000 a year including tips.

http://www.casinocitytimes.com/artic...g-policy-62225

This is consistent with what an inside source told me in 2005 -- that Wynn and Bellagio dealers made over $100k per year. It makes sense that they are down to $90k after the pooling (and considering the fact that Vegas was busier in 2005 and spread higher limits, due to the economy being better.)

[big dick]

nice im gonna start tipping less.

[PLOL]

nice im gonna apply for a job

.

[bottomset_69]

I cannot think of a more depressing job than a dealer. Think about it:

1) You have to stand for 8 hours at a time in one spot, barely moving

2) You go to work every day in a place with no windows and loud annoying machines screaming "Wheel...Of...Fortune"

3) You have to deal with a large amount of smelly losers and drunks

4) You basically do the same shit over and over and over. No variety. All you do is pull cards and act like you give a shit if the player wins or loses

5) And as a *HUGE* bonus you get to spend every day you work inhaling second hand smoke quadrupling your chances for lung cancer

I personally would refuse to pool my tips with anyone given that environment. Why the fuck should you ever share something that was given to you and you alone? The Pit Boss and myself would be having a long talk after work if he was ever under the impression I was sharing my money with him. I might share a little with the waitresses if I know I haul some ass after work, but that would be it.

[Deal]

I cannot think of a more depressing job than a dealer. Think about it:

1) You have to stand for 8 hours at a time in one spot, barely moving

2) You go to work every day in a place with no windows and loud annoying machines screaming "Wheel...Of...Fortune"

3) You have to deal with a large amount of smelly losers and drunks

4) You basically do the same shit over and over and over. No variety. All you do is pull cards and act like you give a shit if the player wins or loses

5) And as a *HUGE* bonus you get to spend every day you work inhaling second hand smoke quadrupling your chances for lung cancer

I personally would refuse to pool my tips with anyone given that environment. Why the fuck should you ever share something that was given to you and you alone? The Pit Boss and myself would be having a long talk after work if he was ever under the impression I was sharing my money with him. I might share a little with the waitresses if I know I haul some ass after work, but that would be it.

[JimmyG_415]

I cannot think of a more depressing job than a dealer. Think about it:

1) You have to stand for 8 hours at a time in one spot, barely moving

2) You go to work every day in a place with no windows and loud annoying machines screaming "Wheel...Of...Fortune"

3) You have to deal with a large amount of smelly losers and drunks

4) You basically do the same shit over and over and over. No variety. All you do is pull cards and act like you give a shit if the player wins or loses

5) And as a *HUGE* bonus you get to spend every day you work inhaling second hand smoke quadrupling your chances for lung cancer

I personally would refuse to pool my tips with anyone given that environment. Why the fuck should you ever share something that was given to you and you alone? The Pit Boss and myself would be having a long talk after work if he was ever under the impression I was sharing my money with him. I might share a little with the waitresses if I know I haul some ass after work, but that would be it.

I did this in college, they'd come and recruit us.
It was fun for 3 summers + 2 NYE's, but you could just see it in the "lifers" eyes, everything you said here just wears them down.
We used to work graveyard, get off at 5 am, drink/play pai gow til 8AM, wake up at 3pm, hit the beach til 7pm, get to work by 9pm and do it all over again. We were on summer vaca, we were always upbeat, the lifer's hated us.

But as for pooling, you wouldn't have a choice, they either pool or don't pool. I'm pretty sure all the big strip casinos pool. Or else only the hot chicks would get tips. I worked in Tahoe, and all 4 of the big casinos, (then it was Caeser's, Horizon, Harvey's, and Harrah's), pooled. Bills you got to keep them. I could see maybe a Casino doing that just to get all the hot chicks, but I think pooling is pretty standard.

$$$ wise only though, if you have no skills, you could do a lot worse.
The cost of living in Vegas or most gambling towns, is cheap.
You could basically work that 8 hour shift for all 3 meals, free cafeteria, (it is crap left over from the buffet, but still free, or it was when I worked there.) As long as you aren't a degen, you could save a lot of cash doing that.
A lot of people i did this with just kept dealing.

[bottomset_69]

Yeah, if you are in college or mid 20s, probably a blast and good money. But if you are say 40, and having been doing it for 20 years, and facing another 20 years dealing cards, I can't think of a worse outlook. Maybe being a flight attendant is worse, when you are in the back fixing drinks and people are blasting shits and opening the door in your face. That is worse.

[Smotorious]

your off by 15-20k. no one was close to 90 in years until cosmopolitan opened. even then they didnt crack 90. this has been a recurring theme with you for years druff. why do you care so much? secretly wanna snap boards on LV BLVD? yes it is brainless easy $ serving the worse of society where you truly learn just how worthless you are as a person. basically flatlining through life as a inconsequential part of someones vacation. I know its true because i am in the business. I hate every second of the day, but in the scheme of the world i cant just quit a cushy job with bennys, 5 weeks vaca, and 0 chance of getting fired. my attitude is shit and im for sure clinically depressed. the sight of people ( any fucking people ) basically revolts me. im pretty much a hermit on my days off and drink during graveyard hours trying to avoid people. Im 31 and have 10 yrs in allready. i was a teacher for a year so its not like its casino work or mcdonalds or a gas station are my only options. I havnt dealt in a few years (floorman), i know i could never do it again. now i just kinda walk in circles and watch espn. remember- you could also have a exciting career in the gaming industry.

[big dick]

just got home from vegas but while I was there i played some bj.A few of the dealers at the bellagio said they made around 70k per year.Lets not forget they get a 20 minute break every hour, not a bad job if you think about it.

[Dan Druff]

your off by 15-20k. no one was close to 90 in years until cosmopolitan opened. even then they didnt crack 90. this has been a recurring theme with you for years druff. why do you care so much? secretly wanna snap boards on LV BLVD? yes it is brainless easy $ serving the worse of society where you truly learn just how worthless you are as a person. basically flatlining through life as a inconsequential part of someones vacation. I know its true because i am in the business. I hate every second of the day, but in the scheme of the world i cant just quit a cushy job with bennys, 5 weeks vaca, and 0 chance of getting fired. my attitude is shit and im for sure clinically depressed. the sight of people ( any fucking people ) basically revolts me. im pretty much a hermit on my days off and drink during graveyard hours trying to avoid people. Im 31 and have 10 yrs in allready. i was a teacher for a year so its not like its casino work or mcdonalds or a gas station are my only options. I havnt dealt in a few years (floorman), i know i could never do it again. now i just kinda walk in circles and watch espn. remember- you could also have a exciting career in the gaming industry.

I don't fault you or any other dealers for making that kind of money. Just curious -- why did the money for high-end strip casno dealers improve when the Cosmo opened? Wouldn't it get worse because there was more competition, and therefore fewer tips? Or are you saying that people at the Cosmo were making that, and dealers elsewhere made less?

If it really isn't 90k for the dealers, why does the lawsuit claim so? Are they lying?

Anyway, this isn't a big issue to me. As I said, I support every dealer -- and every other working person -- to make as much money as they can, provided they do it legally. If someone offered me $300k/year to flip burgers at McDonalds, would I take the job? You bet.

I make these posts just so people understand the financial situation of people they're tipping.

If they are tipping because the dealer is nice/helpful/fun, great.

If they are tipping because they think it brings them good luck, great.

If they are tipping because they feel it's just customary to do, regardless of what the dealer takes home, great.

I am just saying that if you make $50k/year and feel obligated to tip the blackjack dealer a lot "because he makes minimum wage", you should consider that he make substantially more than you, and then evaluate what you want to do.

Interesting perspective on how you hate the job but do it anyway because the money is good. That's the feeling I get from a lot of high-end blackjack dealers. I totally understand it, but I just hate when it shows through and they act nasty/bitchy to me and still want to get tipped. The female dealers tend to be worse than the male dealers this way.

[BeerAndPoker]

It's hard to say if someone would tell the truth but regardless for someone to be sitting their playing a pit game and strike up the question to the dealer "Hey how much you make a year?" is LOL.

[abrown83]

Interesting perspective on how you hate the job but do it anyway because the money is good. That's the feeling I get from a lot of high-end blackjack dealers. I totally understand it, but I just hate when it shows through and they act nasty/bitchy to me and still want to get tipped. The female Asian dealers tend to be worse than the male dealers this way.

Fixed this for you Druff.

[gut]

Interesting perspective on how you hate the job but do it anyway because the money is good. That's the feeling I get from a lot of high-end blackjack dealers. I totally understand it, but I just hate when it shows through and they act nasty/bitchy to me and still want to get tipped. The female Asian dealers tend to be worse than the male dealers this way.

Fixed this for you Druff.

True that. I remember playing some small like $55 tourney at, Luxor maybe, and this Asian lady was just firing cards at people. sent one at me and I had nothing on the table in front of me but chips (hands were off the table). Card catches chips in air and turns over. She proceeds to bitch at me for it. I was tipsy and just laughed it off.

[cmoney]

I think some of the dealers actually enjoy watching players lose. I have seen this most in female Asian and Russian dealers. It as if they are miserable doing what they are doing (or just have a bad day) and get joy watching you be miserable too.

[bottomset_69]

your off by 15-20k. no one was close to 90 in years until cosmopolitan opened. even then they didnt crack 90. this has been a recurring theme with you for years druff. why do you care so much? secretly wanna snap boards on LV BLVD? yes it is brainless easy $ serving the worse of society where you truly learn just how worthless you are as a person. basically flatlining through life as a inconsequential part of someones vacation. I know its true because i am in the business. I hate every second of the day, but in the scheme of the world i cant just quit a cushy job with bennys, 5 weeks vaca, and 0 chance of getting fired. my attitude is shit and im for sure clinically depressed. the sight of people ( any fucking people ) basically revolts me. im pretty much a hermit on my days off and drink during graveyard hours trying to avoid people. Im 31 and have 10 yrs in allready. i was a teacher for a year so its not like its casino work or mcdonalds or a gas station are my only options. I havnt dealt in a few years (floorman), i know i could never do it again. now i just kinda walk in circles and watch espn. remember- you could also have a exciting career in the gaming industry.

Good feedback. I asked a dealer a year ago if going to a place with no windows and ringing slot machines drove them nuts. They said they were able to block it out, but what they can't block out are the obnoxious drinkers and second hand smoke. I was the only one at the table so the guy was able to open up. Literally one minute after his comment, some drunk guy knocked over his beer on the table next to us, and he was like "see what we have to fucking deal with every day".

Also, another thing that tilted him was constantly having to explain the table games to new gamblers, especially the exotic games.

Pooling your tips would just tilt the fuck out of me. You should always be able to keep 100% of what you earn.

[vegas1369]

FWIW it's kind of been common knowledge around town that Wynn dealers make close to six figures, and this was long before the Cosmo opened. No idea how the Cosmo affects what the dealers at the Wynn make, unless they are making less than what they made before the Cosmo opened. That would make sense to me. Curious how the Cosmo comes into this equation.

[Smotorious]

i was using cosmo as the benchmark. cosmo has been the best job in the city since its opening- and its not really close. Wynn would have been on 90 before the tip stealing (sharing some say) ordeal happened- that shaved them down to 65-70 where they still are. then again this was when wynn was a brand new big dog on the block. encore, palazzo, cosmo,and aria, have since opened- all higher limit nice brands.my best year was 81k at mandalay bay in 2002, then 77k the yr after. i do not work at mand bay anymore.

i work at a top level casino, as a floorman. I make basically 30/hr. ill never say any part of the job is or was dificult. just a matter of not being a idiot. im truly suprised at some of the jokes that get jobs. i think the asians get the jobs because they will show up on time and never question anything. blacks are the worst employees, and not suprisingly worst players/tippers. have another adios motherfucker drink you dumb nig.

to be honest, when i was dealing i would just rather everyone win so you dont have to hear the bullshit about never getting a blackjack, every shooter going point 7, and how the waitress never comes around. grow up.

I still put on a face when i was dealing and considered myself very good. know the difference between when to use your mouth, or dummy up and deal.the talk of my attitude and depression are true and carry into my personal life, but i try to hide it at work. im well liked by other employees and the guests. casinos bring out the best in people and its such a treat to be surrounded by such amazing guests and co-workers(LOL).

working on the floor is more tolerable for me because i can just walk away from retarded players and dealers. im not gonna lie, my job is essentially 90% swiping players cards. some purpose i have in life huh boys!

if when i ask you "how are you doing today bud?" and you reply with " ill let you know in a little bit" im going to look at you like your a retard and want to punch you in the face. dont be that guy.

and dont scream. ever. no matter how high you are playing. the first think i think of when i hear screaming is "who am i cutting off right now".
wanna be my favorite player?? sit down, shut the fuck up, and play- in that order.

i just cant make myself quit something so easy to start over somewhere else at the bottom.

[Steve-O]

your off by 15-20k. no one was close to 90 in years until cosmopolitan opened. even then they didnt crack 90. this has been a recurring theme with you for years druff. why do you care so much? secretly wanna snap boards on LV BLVD? yes it is brainless easy $ serving the worse of society where you truly learn just how worthless you are as a person. basically flatlining through life as a inconsequential part of someones vacation. I know its true because i am in the business. I hate every second of the day, but in the scheme of the world i cant just quit a cushy job with bennys, 5 weeks vaca, and 0 chance of getting fired. my attitude is shit and im for sure clinically depressed. the sight of people ( any fucking people ) basically revolts me. im pretty much a hermit on my days off and drink during graveyard hours trying to avoid people. Im 31 and have 10 yrs in allready. i was a teacher for a year so its not like its casino work or mcdonalds or a gas station are my only options. I havnt dealt in a few years (floorman), i know i could never do it again. now i just kinda walk in circles and watch espn. remember- you could also have a exciting career in the gaming industry.

I think this goes for every job dealing with the public (or a small sampling of a certain "not so great" part of the public) indoors. I have prison guards friends and they basically hate people because their entire existence is dealing with the scum of the earth. I would imagine that dealing is the same as you mostly deal with angry losers and degenerates. Because of this I'm always nice to and sympathize with the dealers and try to be complimentary (unless they are truly terrible) and even though I'm only an average to slightly above average tipper I always had a good report with casino staff, with my guess being that 15 minutes of actual conversation/distraction during their rotation is probably a godsend.

I don't fault you or any other dealers for making that kind of money. Just curious -- why did the money for high-end strip casno dealers improve when the Cosmo opened? Wouldn't it get worse because there was more competition, and therefore fewer tips? Or are you saying that people at the Cosmo were making that, and dealers elsewhere made less?

If it really isn't 90k for the dealers, why does the lawsuit claim so? Are they lying?

Anyway, this isn't a big issue to me. As I said, I support every dealer -- and every other working person -- to make as much money as they can, provided they do it legally. If someone offered me $300k/year to flip burgers at McDonalds, would I take the job? You bet.

I make these posts just so people understand the financial situation of people they're tipping.

If they are tipping because the dealer is nice/helpful/fun, great.

If they are tipping because they think it brings them good luck, great.

If they are tipping because they feel it's just customary to do, regardless of what the dealer takes home, great.

I am just saying that if you make $50k/year and feel obligated to tip the blackjack dealer a lot "because he makes minimum wage", you should consider that he make substantially more than you, and then evaluate what you want to do.

Interesting perspective on how you hate the job but do it anyway because the money is good. That's the feeling I get from a lot of high-end blackjack dealers. I totally understand it, but I just hate when it shows through and they act nasty/bitchy to me and still want to get tipped. The female dealers tend to be worse than the male dealers this way.

Most data is cherry-picked and easy to manipulate. The 90k figure could be from people working peak hour shifts or in certain sections, or it could just be a three-four week sample where the casino was super busy, or they could be including overtime hours or something. I don't think it would be too hard to manipulate the data to find a sample that gave you that 90k number while not "technically" being dishonest; I would call that the sign of a good lawyer

[cmoney]

i was using cosmo as the benchmark. cosmo has been the best job in the city since its opening- and its not really close. Wynn would have been on 90 before the tip stealing (sharing some say) ordeal happened- that shaved them down to 65-70 where they still are. then again this was when wynn was a brand new big dog on the block. encore, palazzo, cosmo,and aria, have since opened- all higher limit nice brands.my best year was 81k at mandalay bay in 2002, then 77k the yr after. i do not work at mand bay anymore.

i work at a top level casino, as a floorman. I make basically 30/hr. ill never say any part of the job is or was dificult. just a matter of not being a idiot. im truly suprised at some of the jokes that get jobs. i think the asians get the jobs because they will show up on time and never question anything. blacks are the worst employees, and not suprisingly worst players/tippers. have another adios motherfucker drink you dumb nig.

to be honest, when i was dealing i would just rather everyone win so you dont have to hear the bullshit about never getting a blackjack, every shooter going point 7, and how the waitress never comes around. grow up.

I still put on a face when i was dealing and considered myself very good. know the difference between when to use your mouth, or dummy up and deal.the talk of my attitude and depression are true and carry into my personal life, but i try to hide it at work. im well liked by other employees and the guests. casinos bring out the best in people and its such a treat to be surrounded by such amazing guests and co-workers(LOL).

working on the floor is more tolerable for me because i can just walk away from retarded players and dealers. im not gonna lie, my job is essentially 90% swiping players cards. some purpose i have in life huh boys!

if when i ask you "how are you doing today bud?" and you reply with " ill let you know in a little bit" im going to look at you like your a retard and want to punch you in the face. dont be that guy.

and dont scream. ever. no matter how high you are playing. the first think i think of when i hear screaming is "who am i cutting off right now".
wanna be my favorite player?? sit down, shut the fuck up, and play- in that order.

i just cant make myself quit something so easy to start over somewhere else at the bottom.

I always have found the inter workings of the casino fascinating specifically what it is like to be a deal/ pit boss at some of this high end place in Las Vegas. Thanks for posting your experiences. I suppose I echo a lot of what bottom set said. On the surface, it seems as if it would be a god awful job no matter how much one was paid. The screaming and yelling when some hick from Alabama won his 50 dollar double down would tilt me like no other. Or the guy that is still blowing smoke directly in your face even you have made a point it is bothering you. I think the biggest thing for me would be the surreal nightmarish feeling of essentially living in a casino 8 hours + a day. The noises, the people and just the non stop chaos. It reminds me of that episode of Curb your enthusiasm where the chick works in the Looney Tunes attraction at universal studios and had to hear the same noises daily. Are a lot of employees on medication? There is no way I could take that in a normal state of mind and would find myself turning to alcohol or xanax on a constant basis to "turn down the dial" while at work.

I am one of those players that is very quiet and tips well. I only really engage the pit boss or the dealer if they engage me. I figure if they want to talk they will talk and I not going to get into some BS conversation about how their day is going. Unless something outside of work went well for them that day, they are probably not having a good day.

Maybe this is my imagination, but I have noticed that when I have a good relationship with the pit boss on duty (whether it is from tipping or just good conversation they start up) my points for play are significantly higher. I am not sure if this is just because they actually make more of an effort to track them or if they are inflating them because of the conversation but it has been noticeable and happened many times.

I supposed people adapt and when your options are make 70k a year and do relatively little versus starting over again it really a no brainer even if you hate the job. Afterall, in the whole scheme of things, and with the economy the way it is, it could be a lot worse.

[Smotorious]

im a drinker, my stomach just cant handle meds. if i wanted, pain pills are passed around like a candy dish on break. there are some people i know ive never seen 100% sober.

some of the people are actually hurting, some just do it to numb the surroundings, many are addicts.

im 31, stayed broke the first 5 years i did this. my bartender is one of my better friends and i dont even know his last name. I have a girlfriend- she is one of the very few i can tolerate human interaction with. my dislike of people came through working in a casino environment. i have no family in vegas - i text my parents once a week and call them for 2 mins maybe, maybe once a month. i refuse just about every social event im invited to. i shop at 430am. she is dominican and they have a huge sense of family and friends. spending time with her family is just like work for me. i doubt ill marry or have a kid while in this work environment. the shifts are (for intents and purposes) 4a-12p,12p-8p,8p-4a, although yes there are stagnated time starts we can just use that as a guidance.you give up family liberties with any of the start times. 4-12 you cant get your kid off to school and miss nighttime events because you have to sleep and get ready for work. 12p-8p you cant spend anytime with your family at night, no dinner, no help with homewrok, no little league coaching. 8p-4a dont get to sleep with your significant other, miss nighttime social events. and you always work holidays and extra shit that makes vegas busy. super bowl, ncaas, any cowboy event.. nfr and bull riders, countless others.

it was my preference to have a great tipper in a 1 on 1 setting, where we can chat like humans- talk sports, about the hot chick that just walked by, what your in town for- i was/am very cordial but i acted human. you didnt get cookie cutter suck your dick treatment from me. if you told a stupid joke i didnt laugh. if you asked me a question i straight shot you ( depends on table dynamics ), if they are a rowdy drinking group and the dealer snaps off a 6 card nasty 21 i can say "man that fucking sucked" to the guys, if its a quiet dude just look at him and shake your head. i can read the people well. as a supervisor now, if the dealer isnt really a english speaker and has a huge george (slang for tipper in the business) on his table, i will socialize with him to keep him involved. or if its a asian george, ill give the dealer the green light to speak chinese or whatever. if you want friends in a casino, or people to give half a dam about you, put out a fucking bet for the dealers and dont stiff the waitresses. i can remember a dudes name that comes once every 2 yrs and tips well and is nice. but if you come by every other month and stiff every time im not gonna try to remember your name, and trust me , there will be no pleasantries between us, you get no quarter from me. i always ask the dealers why they say " its nice too see you again"? no its not, your just taking up a seat in my section that a hooker or george could be sitting in. dont tell me how rich you are when your up 25k and have stiffed us all night- if it has gotten too that point no one cares and we want you gone.

are you gonna get a higher average bet rating if your a george? fuck yeah from me you are.
am i gonna call the restaurant to set up your dinner reservations and comp it? fuck yeah.
am i going to remember you next trip? fuck yeah.
are you going to get any error (even yours) taken care of in a way that is advantageous too you? yes.

sorry for the giant run-on sentence.