I worked as a waiter, and a bartender and I can tell you that the money is a lot better that that. That being said, it does matter where you work. If you are in a city it is much more likely that you will make more money.
John
· 2 years ago
"Gaming Dealers: $17,010"
I'm presuming that these salaries are quoted in USD, which converts to about $20,356 AUD.
After a few years running a web consultancy, I became burned out and worked as a casino dealer here in Melbourne, Australia to get away from the tech industry and focus on settling my debts. As a part time dealer, I can tell you that my salary was in excess of $35,000 AUD (about $29,246 USD). Though, bare in mind that I often worked full time hours and there were periods where I picked up shifts and worked a ridiculous number of hours, because the overtime was just so alluring.
As a casino dealer, there were a few perks that really helped me save money and knocked larger dents out of my debt: my uniform was provided and laundered by the casino, I received free two meals for every shift that I worked, a decent wage (with small raises based on skill set and years of service) and received full employee benefits such as sick leave, annual leave, overtime and superannuation (which I believe is the equivalent to a 401(k)).
My training was also paid, including the one month of training prior to my employment required to actually learn how to deal. All of my subsequent training was also paid.
One thing, that I was told by my trainers and superiors was that our base rate was typically much higher in standard to dealers in say Las Vegas. The reason apparently being that casino dealers in the US work on commission or tips which makes up for their lower base rate. In Australia, the Government regulations prohibits casino dealers from receiving tips or gratuities of any kind from patrons.
A month ago I happily left the casino, and I've resumed my career in the tech industry with a whole new perspective.
Not sure if that's of interest to anyone, but I thought I'd share my experience. I've obviously only talked about the perks and none of the downsides. If anyone is interested, I'd be happy to share these experiences as well.
Robin
· 2 years ago
My guess is that for some of these professions, this is reported income and tips, etc make make the totals quite a bit higher. This is based on what I remember the fulltime waitresses doing when I was in highschool. The part-time factoring in is probably a factor as well.
Tim
· 2 years ago
many of the jobs listed are "tipping" jobs, which the article alludes that the figures are based on salaries.
nothanks
· 2 years ago
John, what are some of the downsides? =)
D
· 2 years ago
Does it count if I am also the owner of the laundry?
Thanks for the blow though. Ouch :)
Flexo
· 2 years ago
D: I think owners of the laundromat are not lumped in with laundry workers, even though you probably do that as well. I'm thinking that the results of the survey have more to do with laundries in hotels, etc.
Everyone: I agree that some of these salaries (bartenders, waiters, dealers... maids?) are kept low by the anticipation of tips.
Madame X
· 2 years ago
I've worked as a retail cashier and doing food-service stuff, in high school and college, and in the years just after graduating from college-- i.e., when it was my "real job." Why don't you think people in these occupations would be reading your blog?
MissGoldBug
· 2 years ago
From my experiences, this article seems pretty accurate. I was surprised to see that waiters and waitresses were so low, though. My part-time waitressing gig grosses me $12k a year. Keep in mind however, a servers' hourly wage is $2.37 an hour... give or take state by state... That's mine, too...
$18k doesn't go very far no matter where you are in the U.S.
Say "hello" to America's WORKING Poor.
In this country, there should be no such thing. It's a shame.
MGB
John
· 2 years ago
"what are some of the downsides? =)"
In terms of the downsides to being a casino dealer, there were many. First of all, the hours are hard as you are required to work on a 24 hour rotating roster. Secondly, it can be extremely difficult to get weekends and public holidays off. During my time there, I met many staff who hadn't spent Christmas with their families in years. When I was on nightshift, it wasn't uncommon for me to go 1-2 months without going out and socialising.
Then there are the patrons. As a dealer, your job is not only to deal the game, but to also provide customer service. Now as many people already know, it's not the easiest thing to be nice to someone when your job is revolves around taking money from them.
However, one of the most absolutely shocking experiences of working in a casino for me, was to see people's relationships with money. As almost everyone on this weblog knows, one of the most important elements of sound personal finance is one's relationship with money. I believe this relationship is founded on our attitudes towards money.
It's not until you work in such an environment where you see countless numbers of gambling addicts squander away hundreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars that you begin to realise how money can truly bring out one's true characteristics.
On one hand, I was truly making massive progress on my debt; on the other hand, one could argue that it was at the expense of other people. It's something that will probably remain with me for a long time.
I apologise for the shameless plug, but I hope that what I've written can be of value to someone.
Minimum Wage
· 2 years ago
I have worked as a hamburger flipper, dishwasher, service station attendant, and cashier and never earned more than 25 cents per hour above minimum wage in any of these mcjobs.
The War on Poverty was not won because it was the wrong war. It should have been a War on Working Poverty which is winnable.
Alfa
· 2 years ago
Nope. I almost got a job as a masseuse but it's not there either when I thought it'd be included.
I'm doing part-time child care for my niece but I do it for free because she's priceless. :-D
nikki
· 6 months ago
I've worked as a waitress, a barista, cook and bartender in Australia and doing those jobs for over fifteen years has motivated me to get a degree. I am back home with my parents now at age 35. I lived in a ski resort for five years and was jumping off cliffs on a snowboard instead of going to university when I finished high school. I had alot of fun but doing those jobs away from the snow environment was depressing, no snowboarding in between shifts to look forward too. My younger sister is a lawyer and owns her home. I sometimes feel depressed that I made the wrong decisions when I was younger. But I sure had alot of fun. I am not money hungry. I am lifestyle hungry. I want a fun life and I need a higher income to have more fun. It's shocking how low the wages are in America for food and beverage related jobs because you work really hard on your feet non stop. The positives are it keeps you fit but if you are run down you are exposed to the public all the time and all their colds and flu's. At the same time you build up a strong immune system from that exposure. You can live week to week on the wages but it's hard to build up savings. If you work casually for an agency you can get $18 to $22 an hour but if you work fulltime you are on a set wage of about $400 to $500 a week take home. I have also worked in factories and they pay you $17 to $26 an hour which is good but the work is so repetitve it bores you silly. Hospitality is mentally stimulating and you are so busy the time passes really quickly. I guess it all comes down to the choices you make in life. I think lifeguards and ski patrol workers should be paid more as they work in life or death situations and are responsible for people's lives'.
All Comments
I'm presuming that these salaries are quoted in USD, which converts to about $20,356 AUD.
After a few years running a web consultancy, I became burned out and worked as a casino dealer here in Melbourne, Australia to get away from the tech industry and focus on settling my debts. As a part time dealer, I can tell you that my salary was in excess of $35,000 AUD (about $29,246 USD). Though, bare in mind that I often worked full time hours and there were periods where I picked up shifts and worked a ridiculous number of hours, because the overtime was just so alluring.
As a casino dealer, there were a few perks that really helped me save money and knocked larger dents out of my debt: my uniform was provided and laundered by the casino, I received free two meals for every shift that I worked, a decent wage (with small raises based on skill set and years of service) and received full employee benefits such as sick leave, annual leave, overtime and superannuation (which I believe is the equivalent to a 401(k)).
My training was also paid, including the one month of training prior to my employment required to actually learn how to deal. All of my subsequent training was also paid.
One thing, that I was told by my trainers and superiors was that our base rate was typically much higher in standard to dealers in say Las Vegas. The reason apparently being that casino dealers in the US work on commission or tips which makes up for their lower base rate. In Australia, the Government regulations prohibits casino dealers from receiving tips or gratuities of any kind from patrons.
A month ago I happily left the casino, and I've resumed my career in the tech industry with a whole new perspective.
Not sure if that's of interest to anyone, but I thought I'd share my experience. I've obviously only talked about the perks and none of the downsides. If anyone is interested, I'd be happy to share these experiences as well.
what are some of the downsides? =)
Thanks for the blow though. Ouch :)
Everyone: I agree that some of these salaries (bartenders, waiters, dealers... maids?) are kept low by the anticipation of tips.
Why don't you think people in these occupations would be reading your blog?
$18k doesn't go very far no matter where you are in the U.S.
Say "hello" to America's WORKING Poor.
In this country, there should be no such thing. It's a shame.
MGB
In terms of the downsides to being a casino dealer, there were many. First of all, the hours are hard as you are required to work on a 24 hour rotating roster. Secondly, it can be extremely difficult to get weekends and public holidays off. During my time there, I met many staff who hadn't spent Christmas with their families in years. When I was on nightshift, it wasn't uncommon for me to go 1-2 months without going out and socialising.
Then there are the patrons. As a dealer, your job is not only to deal the game, but to also provide customer service. Now as many people already know, it's not the easiest thing to be nice to someone when your job is revolves around taking money from them.
However, one of the most absolutely shocking experiences of working in a casino for me, was to see people's relationships with money. As almost everyone on this weblog knows, one of the most important elements of sound personal finance is one's relationship with money. I believe this relationship is founded on our attitudes towards money.
It's not until you work in such an environment where you see countless numbers of gambling addicts squander away hundreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars that you begin to realise how money can truly bring out one's true characteristics.
On one hand, I was truly making massive progress on my debt; on the other hand, one could argue that it was at the expense of other people. It's something that will probably remain with me for a long time.
But I digress, I've written on this topic before on my own weblog:
http://www.theitch.com.au/2007/02/01/happiness-...
I apologise for the shameless plug, but I hope that what I've written can be of value to someone.
The War on Poverty was not won because it was the wrong war. It should have been a War on Working Poverty which is winnable.
I'm doing part-time child care for my niece but I do it for free because she's priceless. :-D