Finding the right job can be a challenge. As well as the right skills and qualifications, job seekers need to be aware of the market they’re going into, and how the role they intend on performing for the foreseeable future will develop.
WorkForce Woes
Traditionally, vocational positions that involve years of training, or even a degree, have been the most lucrative. But these‘old-school’ positions are now taking a bit of a hit thanks to increased stress levels, reduced budgets and lack of job security. Traditionally popular jobs like working in medicine, finance and law are still drawing new applicants, but as the field gets wider so does the competition around things like salary and promotion, along with external influences like politics and economy. Recent survey of the UK workforce reveals that more than half of us don’t like our jobs very much, for a variety of reasons including salary, commute and just plain boredom. A different survey by the ONS shows that almost 75% of employees don’t feel like they put a good shift in even once a week. It could be that the old ways of building a career are showing some wear and tear.
With opportunities like the internet, an economy built on ad-hoc work and the increasing rise of the tech and automation industries, new entrants to the job market are willing to take bigger risks to ensure their careers are both successful and happy. With university debts spiralling and a lifetime of nine-to-fives trying to pay it back, apprenticeships are fast rising as an alternative to the years of late nights and lectures.
All UK businesses will a pay bill of £3m or more must now pay the apprenticeship levy. It’s a chance to help the workforce get on its feet again, and skill up the young and hungry career candidates. It applies across every industry whether creative or clerical, which comes as welcome relief to an industry experiencing the biggest boom in a generation – gambling.
Brick-and-mortar boom
Gambling is experiencing sustained, consistent growth in the UK, despite looming shadows like Brexit and the protracted global recession. Between 2015 and 2016, the £13.9billion industry grew by just under 2%, consistently creating opportunities for both new and old market players. Along with the emergence of more online casinos and gambling websites, brick-and-mortar business is booming too.
The gambling industry is currently split, with 66% of revenue generated in traditional establishments like casino and betting shops, and the other 33% coming from online casinos. This growth means there are now more job openings in the gambling industry than ever before, some of which may surprise job seekers who may have thought the casino industry was limited in terms of variation.
In a traditional casino, there’s a huge variety of job roles both on the gaming floor and behind the scenes. Naturally, the big focus of any casino is the games that they offer, and this is the front line of operations. The Croupiers, also known as Dealers, who manage table games and ensure that everyone is playing by the rules, essentially run the gaming floor. There is always an interesting mix of customers in a casino, ranging from cheaters who want to beat the system in any way possible, to one-off visitors who are out for a good time.
Casino Careers
Becoming a croupier isn’t exactly easy, but it is a good example of how someone could turn their hobby into a career. Potential candidates can either take on-the-job training or study for a qualification in casino operations. They’ll need to draw on the experience of playing table games, and have an infallible knowledge of all rules and regulations. Because of the need for these skills, as well as employees who can concentrate for long periods of time and work unsociable hours, Croupiers are in high demand right now – the best can command improved salaries, often upwards of £20,000.
One-step up from the croupier is the Pit Boss or Floor Manager. For this kind of role, you’ll need to be not only an expert in the games on floor, but have an eagle eye too. This is not only to spot cheaters or mistakes being made by the croupiers but to watch out for things like drunken behaviour and problem gambling. Casinos have a responsibility to look after vulnerable members of the public, and from the Croupier all the way up to the Casino Manager, it’s employees’ responsibility to display training and willingness to help players with problems or face the legal consequences.
Maybe try something simpler…
As well as these out-and-out casino floor roles that require training and / or expertise, casinos also have a wider range of support roles, where again, they need to hire more staff. From bartenders to security staff, traditional casinos are ramping up recruitment to deal with a new influx of customers – so you don’t necessarily need to be a casino gaming expert to land a job in a casino. Most of the opportunities in gambling have little to do with physically dealing cards or buildings operation.
However, if being a croupier is the career for you, prospects are looking very bright in the online casino world, with massive potential for growth not just in the UK, but overseas too. The surge in the popularity of the live casino function has significantly increased the number of job opportunities. The thrill of playing at a live casino with real dealers has ensured there are now more people visiting online casinos than ever before. Should the US gaming market open up under relaxed restrictions, online casino brands will need to act fast to meet the unprecedented demand of an entire country coming online to play casino games, creating job opportunities nationwide. From the sales staff to computer developers, openings in the UK gambling industry now number over 100,000, and we can expect to see that figure rise further as more markets open up for UK-based gambling businesses.
Considering casinos or the wider gambling industry as the starting point for a career is a good move at the moment. Several of the UK’s biggest online gaming providers regularly make it onto the Glassdoor list and of course, plenty of scopes to develop skills and climb the ladder at these often multi-million-pound turnover businesses, located across the country. The biggest takeaway, however, is the extended growth and stability of the industry, and an outlook of positivity well into the 2020s, regardless of external economic factors. All you need now is to get some expertise and immerse yourself in the industry, or start applying for those support roles!