Although revenues have rebounded nicely as the gaming industry comes out of the Covid-19 crisis, markets including Pennsylvania and Atlantic City are still dealing with stubborn labor shortages stemming to the fact not all employees returned following the 2020 industry shutdowns.
“The pandemic hurt everyone, said Bill Miller, president and CEO of the American Gaming Association, in an interview with PlayPennsylvania. “Mentally, the perspective around work has changed. We have to do what we can to make our industry accommodating and welcoming to a significant group of people. It is a challenge.”
Miller added that supply chain and labor shortages are related.
“All of these things contribute to the tightness that exists in the industry,” he said. “You’re seeing triage operations where casinos will have one of their restaurants closed because they don’t have enough service staff to work at all of them. I think people are getting past Covid. Getting people to feel comfortable at a workplace that is face-to-face is going to take time, and it’s one of largest challenges that all of us in the hospitality industry face. It’s going to remain a challenge at least into the near future.”
The PlayPennsylvania report cited information from Katie Bach, a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, which shows that 1.6 million workers could be missing from the labor market right now because of long Covid, accounting for upwards of 15 percent of unfilled jobs.
Former casino industry executive turned university instructor and casino consultant, Robert Ambrose told the news site, “I think (Atlantic City and Pennsylvania casinos) do have a labor problem. Many times they won’t admit it, but I think they do.”
Ambrose said it’s the worst labor shortage he’s ever seen. “I focus the answer on the front-line positions. There is an issue there. Entry and mid-level positions (slot attendants, slot supervisors, dealer, hotel front desk, housekeeping) are the backbone of the casino and it’s the hardest to staff. Without it, you can’t run a property well and service suffers.”
Vaccine mandate are another problem, particularly in Philadelphia, which instituted a city ordinance requiring proof of vaccination for employees returning to Rivers Casino Philadelphia and Live! Casino Philadelphia.
In early January, Philadelphia’s vaccine mandate went into effect. To enter a casino in Philadelphia—Rivers Casino Philadelphia and Live Casino Philadelphia—you must show proof of vaccination. It also means that all employees must be fully vaccinated which presented another staffing hurdle.
“Our volumes are so impacted by the mandate, I have to be careful in some areas how much staff I have because there isn’t a need for it,” said Rivers Casino general manager Justin Moore.
