What is a Dealer – A Brief Guide

In bricks and mortar casinos, dealers are some of the most important employees. Casino dealers are the workforce that make these venues run smoothly and give customers and enjoyable and stress-free gambling experience.

But what is a dealer and what do they do? Each individual game on a casino floor has a dealer. Games that require a dealer include blackjack, baccarat, craps, and roulette, for example.

Dealer Responsibilities

That dealer will effectively run the game. This includes explaining rules, odds, and table stakes to customers so that they understand exactly how to play, and how much cash/chips they need to participate. Without a dealer, tables games like blackjack and roulette simply wouldn’t function – the dealer’s interaction is required for gameplay.

Croupiers are also responsible for directing the flow of play. For example, in blackjack, a croupier shuffles the deck of cards, deals them, and also plays an active role in the outcome of each hand. They keep table games flowing and are also responsible for awarding chips when players win.

This requires knowledge of a wide variety of casino games, and also a solid understanding of card decks. Typically, training is given by the casino. However, it is advantageous if the person already has some interest in casinos, or rudimentary knowledge of traditional casino games.Dealer

Salaries

In terms of salary, casino dealers can make really good money. However, this varies depending on location, the casino, and the croupier’s level of experience. For example, in the United States, a dealer can earn anything from $15,000 up to $430,000 per year with a median average of $77,500.

This is a large variance and factors that affect wages include the working hours, level of experience, training, and the success of the casino. In the UK, starting wages for dealers are typically around £12,000 to £15,000. Once a dealer gets experience and works their way up in a casino, they can earn anywhere up to £28,000 (not including tips).

Dealers also typically earn tips which are oftentimes grouped together and shared equally between all dealers on the floor during a particular shift. This will vary depending on the individual casino, however. Some casinos may simply allow dealers to keep all of the tips they earn. Also, depending on the starting wage, tipping can often boost salaries by up to 30% – this is course depends on the tipping culture of the country too. For example, in Australia, tipping in casinos is generally prohibited.

Traits and Skills Required to be a Good Dealer

Lastly, what skills do you need to become a good dealer? While training is given, there are some personal skills that are beneficial.

For example, you need to have quick mathematical skills to make calculations on the fly. Also, you should have a sharp eye and be attentive in order to catch potential cheaters. It doesn’t go a miss either if you are good looking!

Aside from bricks and mortar casinos, there is also dealers for online live casino games. These dealers either work in a physical casino, or a dedicated studio. Either way, the game is streamed via a live video feed to give players a realistic, immersive gaming experience. Some software developers like Evolution have large teams of dealers dedicated to their live dealer games – they receive training and work in dedicated studios.

Dealer FAQs

A dealer is the person responsible for individual games on a casino floor such as blackjack, roulette, and craps. Dealers maintain the flow of play, shuffle cards, explain rules, and distribute chips.

Ideally you should have great arithmetic skills, have a keen eye for detail, be quick-handed, and have a confident personality.

Training in most instances is provided for specific games. However, it is ideal to have great customer service skills, confidence, great communication skills, and a rudimentary understanding of different casino games and card decks.

Typically a casino dealer will work for 8-hour shifts

Typically in North America they learn blackjack first, whereas in Europe, Roulette is usually the first game to be learned.

In certain countries yes, this includes America, Australia, Canada, and the UK.

The dealer runs the game. This includes explaining rules and odds, distributing the game items i.e., cards, and ensuring a smooth flow of play.