I’m really sorry to hear about that, and good luck sorting everything out.
This kind of stuff still blows me away when I run across it. “You’ve come a long way, baby.” Yeah, but we still have a long way to go.
Well, folks, I’ve gotten over being stunned, and have officially made the transition to being depressed. I was gong to take a week or so off to decompress before I started jobhunting, but I may just go ahead and start filling in applications this week. Sitting around moping is going to do me no good.
Actually, I want to take some job training through the unemployment office, learn to do something useful and fun, rather than just grab any old job that comes my way. It would be a big letdown if, after five years of being in a skilled occupation that I enjoyed, I ended up at 7-11.
This situation is fucking with my sense of ethics. Work hard, show up for work everyday, do your job right, try to get along with your coworkers, give good customer service, get fired. Be lazy, come to work drunk, stoned, or otherwise under the infuence, verbally abuse your coworkers, be rude to customers then challenge them to fistfights if they say anything to you (I actually witnessed this happening), do a lot of no-call/no-shows, be moployed for life.
I just don’t get it.
The real fun part is, just last Sunday, I had period cramps so severe that I was vomiting, to the point that I couldn’t even keep water down, let alone any pain medication, and landed in the emergency room getting intravenous fluids (I was getting seriously dehydrated), and basically lived on Jello for the next three days. There were enough extra dealers scheduled that my boss gave me a couple of days off, but that’s two days pay that I lost, and now I’m going to have this hospital bill, and I lost my job. I’m hoping that I can convince the hospital to write off at least part of it, but still…
Sounds like you got dealt crap 
Thea, you need an in-town coffee buddy or anything, let me know. Yarr, stupid Horseshoe. I’m inclined, though, to agree with those who think it’s a financial issue. I work in medical billing here in town, and the Horseshoe is no longer paying the claims we send them. They haven’t been for about six months.
Well, I just picked up the paperwork, and the official reason for my termination is “reduction in staff”.
The question remains to be answered of why the decided to reduce their staff by one solitary female craps dealer.
We have one dealer that my shift boss has been wanting to fire for a while, but he’s been shorthanded lately. This is the guy who challenged player to a fistfight on the game… If they wanted to reduce staff, why not let the shift boss use the opportunity to get rid of the troublemakers, rather than hand down an edict that a particular dealer should be let go?
bristlesage, I think I might take you up on the coffee.
I went to a thrift store today to get interview clothes, and they’re hiring. I’m going to apply. The money won’t be great, but I can pick up a few extra bucks dealing private parties and conventions (which is easy money and pure fun- they don’t play for actual money, they’re just wanting to learn a bit about the games and have a good time, and the guy who runs these things is a real sweetheart.
Thea, just drop me an email. I’m around most evenings and weekends.
Thea - would it cause you a problem if I wrote a letter to the management? I would like to protest their firing policies.
Doesn’t “reduction in staff” make you immediately elligible for Unemployment Insurance. It’s better than nothing, and your employers have been paying the premiums for five years. Even if they deny your initial claim, challenge it. A lot of times the employer won’t even show up at the hearing.
GOOD LUCK!!
Lao Tsu, I’ve already applied for unemployment, and anticipate no problems collecting benefits. My final paycheck was enough to cover the groceries until I get my first unemployment check.
Well, I got a call from Wal-Mart today. I go for my interview tomorrow at 2:30. I’m going to skim through my copy of The Interview Kit, refresh myself on how to handle myself in a job interview.
I just applied for the job yesterday, and already I have a call for an interview. I think saying on the app that I prefer to work graveyard shift hours helped (I’ve found that graveyard is an easy shift to work the rest of my life around…)
So, wish me luck, everybody…
GOOD LUCK! Job vibes headed your way! Vibevibevibe…
Sorry to hear about your job loss, Thea. It’s a shame the casinos won’t let their dealers unionize, but I guess one of the reasons they won’t is so they can do exactly what they did to you. Sucks. Good luck in your new job hunt!
And to show my support for you, I refuse to pay the $10,000 to enter the Horseshoe’s World Series of Poker this year! 
Yeah like these opportunities:
-Drinking 7 days a week
-Drinking at 3:00pm on Tuesday
-Staring at the cieling for two hours (I call this “Sad Time”)
-Masterbating 12 times a day
-Fixing the hole in the wall from where you threw a chair through it (I call this “Angry Time”)
-Watching 72 consecutive hours of television
-Wearing the same clothes for 5 days in a row
-Plotting revenge
-Reverting to the mentality of a 18 year old
Hola!
I lived in Las Vegas 10 years ago (hate the city with a passion), then came home to Memphis. Nearby in Mississippi, the casino industry was legalized (in 1992).
I worked for several years in several casinos in Tunica and one in Vicksburg Ms. I can deal dice, but I was not a good physical dealer, and I did not like 5 or 6 dudes yelling at me to “up their bets”, “turn me on”, “turn me off”, and all that other jazz.
My last job was at the Horseshoe in Tunica Mississippi. Horseshoe was a good place to work actually. Tokes were $13-16 dollars per hour. (To all non casino people, tokes are tips, why are they called tokes, I don’t know). Jack Binion owns this property, and although he is kind of regarded as an a$$-hole, the dealers loved him because when he walked in the door, he would get the shift boss to immediately shut lids and close tables. This is why our tokes were good (best out of 10 joints there). Tokes were so good that they couldn’t find people there to dual-rate, dealers were making as much as floor. The people were more or less cool and everyone worked together. Little office politics.
I worked at a Harrah’s before Horseshoe and that place sucked because tokes were shit (3-4 dollars/hr.) because the manager would keep games going on all night with next to no play. I went off on a shift manager one night because my crew was dealing a dice game with 40 dollars on the layout to a bunch of inner city fleas playing Field bets and we were on overtime and two of us were sick. Harrah’s (the better people place) could not of cared less. At least their insurance and PTO was good.
I would suggest getting out of Vegas, unless you like it there. If you want to stay out west, go to Arizona or Washington State. Being a WOMAN and a DICE dealer is a plus, not a minus. I liked bullshitting with the dice players while at work, just the math was nerve racking. Horseshoe wouldn’t let me deal dice there.
I didn’t like working nights, weekends and holidays. I hated listening to the same stupid band every night. I won’t listen to “Mustang Sally” because that is all one lounge act played. F It, get another job. Horseshoe Vegas is a dirty hole.
Retired dealer
SENOR
Good luck! “At will” employment really sucks.