Vol. 4, No. 5, May 2007
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Discipline and Grievances
My feature last month (“Union Blues”), which discussed the reasons why a union on the casino floor is a bad idea, elicited much response, some of it negative, much of it positive.
I know much has changed since I was a dealer, more than 20 years ago. In fact, as I pointed out to one of my critics, I didn’t address the grievances the dealers have with management because, admittedly, I’m not involved in that and don’t pretend to understand the details. That’s the reason I try, instead, to focus on the relationship between dealers and the union, and how that impacts their jobs.
Now I’ve heard some comments from executives that dealers don’t know how easy they have it. Forty minutes on, 20 off every hour… sounds great. But I can tell you from firsthand experience that dealing is one of the toughest jobs I ever had. Those 40 minutes seemed like 40 weeks some days when you have nasty players and even nastier supervisors.
And let’s not talk about the scheduling. We knew we had to work holidays and weekends when other, “normal” people are off, but on some occasions management had no flexibility when we needed a day or two off. But if you think dealing is tough now, get ready for a sea change if the unions are allowed in the door.
Let’s talk about discipline and the union grievance and arbitration procedures, and how they work in a union environment. Unions govern their membership and interact with employers through a set of very “black-and-white” rules. As a result, management starts putting “everything” in writing. Here is how it works:
When management officials determine there is a pattern of negligence or malfeasance by an employee, they write a written warning notice to the employee advising that such mistakes or behavior cannot be tolerated. If the mistakes continue, another written warning notice is given to the employee. Depending on the severity or the costs of the continuing mistakes, the employee may be suspended without pay with a notice that continued patterns of mistakes will result in termination for cause. Then, the next mistake results in termination for cause.
I recently interviewed a surveillance director in Atlantic City and was struck by the extensive written and video records that are kept regarding the numerous mistakes made by dealers. By law, the casinos are required to extensively monitor and record the activities of dealers to ensure they are following state-approved procedures and paying out and collecting winning and losing wagers accurately. No union will ever negotiate a change to gaming enforcement laws or surveillance requirements.
Even the most proficient dealer makes errors. I know I made plenty during my day, and I was considered one of the best dealers in the house. Every dealer makes errors. And with little effort, a determined casino manager can establish a pattern of mistakes adequate to prove negligence in front of an arbitrator. Furthermore, management’s key witness at the arbitration hearing will probably be a representative from the Division of Gaming Enforcement.
Up to now, the discipline process for correcting dealer mistakes has been very informal, for the most part, in the non-union environment we presently work in. The surveillance director I spoke with says the vast majority of dealers don’t even get a formal reprimand, just a “talking to.”
However, in the “black-and-white” world of union rules, management will not have the flexibility to be informal. The informal rules and the flexibility we enjoy in the non-union world do not create the “paper trail” required in the formal union world.
As I said, dealing is a tough job. The work, the schedule, the players and the attitudes of management often don’t make it any easier. But why in the world would you want to make it even more difficult and adversarial? Exactly how is a union going to make your job easier or more lucrative? How are they going to negotiate a change of attitude in a bad manager? The more grievances the union has to file, the more expensive it gets to run the union, and the more dues you’ll have to pay.
As I said last month, you now have management’s attention. They will address the issues that concern you: pay raises, health care and work environment, among others. You can do all this without a union and without the baggage that will inevitably come with an outside, foreign third party.
