Dealer Salary

[Cubswin]

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is better than the $2.13 or whatever waitresses get.

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id place a wager that waitresses in most casinos make more then the dealers.

cubs

[highlife]

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id place a wager that waitresses in most casinos make more then the dealers.

cubs

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yeah, i concur. the waitresses in the poker room in Borgata make 300-400 minimum a day.

[JustPlayingSmart]

I am the friend referred to in the post. I hear other dealers say that in California, dealers are making $400 a day. Yet the guy who is telling me this deals in Las Vegas, and deals in a room where $150 is a very good day. I don't many dealers make $100k in a year, and I think that even half of that is an overvaluation. It's definitely not rocket science, though it is probably going to be more enjoyable than my "real world" job that starts in October.

As to why more minimum wage type people don't try to deal poker...
1) They don't know that is a possibility
2) If you have never played poker, the learning curve is fairly steep -- a dealing school would almost be a necessity
3) Most places seem to require at least 6 months experience or you have to know someone

[SpiderMnkE]

I didn't mean waitresses in casinos. I meant waitresses at Chili's.

As to why Wal-Mart employees don't become dealers. Try and imagine the trailer trash that can barely get your change right trying to create a side pot. Or even understanding the game up to the basic level needed to deal with many situations that may come up.

Also... Simon... if our jobs suck as bad as they do now in a year... and poker is booming... lets just move to f-ing vegas or california and be dealers... haha.

Consultant... Accountant... shoot me in the head

[Mucking Idiot]

A good dealer, in vegas will get about 120-150 in 8 hours in vegas. It's usually the big tourneys that pay the outrageous "downs" that you hear about..someone who wins a million in 3-5 days can be generous.
[img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]
It's not quite that easy though....

you constantly have 7-10 bosses over your shoulder..alot of times they are stuck and complete A-holes..U have to grin and bear it....this is not as easy as it sounds [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

every time you make a mistake, 1/2/3/4 people are all over it, sometimes angry about it [img]/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]

you are constantly(literally) moving, adding, multiplying, talking, reaching..so its more exhausting than it sounds

assume you reach for 1600 bets(to put in pot), or cards(to put in muck)....you are repeatedly twisting your back left and right...most dealers end up with back problems...carpel tunnel is also somewhat common..Later in my very shortlived career, i was usually in pain [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

Alot of people just cant do the math...you have to rake exactly or you are breaking gaming regulations...alot of people simply cannot figure out 5% of 1 plus 2 plus 4/4/4/3..8/8/...not to mention side pots and large pl pots that need to be counted...some people can(and do) "wing it" rather successfully...but some people are not designed for it.

All in all..it is a good "unskilled" job that pays well. you meet alot of people and it can be fun
at times. With the poker explosion, it is very easy to find a job right now...and you can always chase big tourneys.

I quit my dealing job 3 months ago to play poker professionally(wish me luck)...I used to dread going to work.

[SpiderMnkE]

Good Luck ... wish I had the skillz to be in the position to consider making that decision!

[jasonHoldEm]

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That is incredible... that is more that the avg college graduate!!

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Maybe so, but the average college graduate doesn't have to put up with people hitting them, spiting on them, burning them with cigarettes, throwing cards at their face etc, etc.

It's not a very glamorous job from what I've heard.

J

[scotnt73]

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That is incredible... that is more that the avg college graduate!!

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Maybe so, but the average college graduate doesn't have to put up with people hitting them, spiting on them, burning them with cigarettes, throwing cards at their face etc, etc.

It's not a very glamorous job from what I've heard.

J

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agreed. i was a waiter\bartender at the olive garden while going to school. from the crap i saw i cant imagine what bs you would have to take to be a dealer at a casino. i think a craps stickman might be fun but a poker dealer would suck.

[MicroBob]

it also VERY much depends on where you are dealing.

and when you are doing your hands/hr calculations you need to remember that if you deal in a room that is kind of dead part of the time you are getting in as many hands per day obviously.

i don't think it's quite so simple as calculating 30 hds/hr X 8 hours for most dealers.
you have time spent closing down tables or counting down the trays or whatever they need to do when they are NOT earning tips.


in tunica, i think a horseshoe poker-dealer can earn up to $200 on a good night.
but the beginning dealers at the hollywood (for example) will make much less. they'll be dealing the 3/6 game and often just getting a $0.50 piece for a tip for a hand.


i dealt BJ and other games at a smaller casino in tunica where we pooled our tips (as is primarily done for the non-poker dealers) and $10/hr for tips was a pretty good pay-check for us. $13/hr in tips was typical for other casinos where you needed more experience to get hired.
$22/hr in tips is what i heard the BJ and craps dealers frequently get at the horseshoe.


all of this stuff is 'through the grapevine' type of information so take it fwiw. but i believe most of it.



a friend from the break-in dealer joint i worked at took a poker-dealer's class that took 12 weeks to complete and is now deals that game and makes significantly more money.


amazingly, the job is NOT as easy as you would think. i would have a significant advantage for learning how to deal poker obviously because i have dealt BJ and 3-card poker AND i also already know how to play HE and omaha (and stud sort of) and even i acknowledge that i would need some training to deal this game competently. i know this just based on the mistakes i made on the floor after the BJ dealer-school training course.

and, as has already been mentioned, it's not exactly the most glamorous of jobs. if you like working EVERY friday, saturday and sunday night (including new year's eve and super-bowl sunday, etc etc) then maybe it's the job for you.
and you WILL be working the evenings....as the day-shifts usually go to the dealers with some experience.
and the gigs at the higher paying casinos and poker-rooms also go to the dealers with more experience.


if it's something that interests you be prepared to work for a bit less than what the dealers at the better casinos are making because there's a decent chance that you won't be able to get a gig there until you get the experience (although it IS possible).

[lefty rosen]

From what I know of dealing it can be drag after a while and many dealers quit out of frustration. In my city dealers make about 20 an hour including tips, but you also have to be able to deal BJ, and other games to get hired. So the testing is hard and many dealers fail it......