Here’s Why Tipping is Down, Gambling’s Up and People Are Acting Like Jerks

Excellent article from Vital Vegas

https://vitalvegas.com/heres-why-tipping-is-down-gamblings-up-and-people-are-acting-like-jerks/

I disagree with his basic premise. Jerkitude isn't anything new, and it existed in abundance before the pandemic. I also doubt, based admittedly on my own experience, that people are acting worse toward each other than they were before.

The factor he isn't considering is that when people are paying sky-high prices for everything, and in the case of gambling, when they're forced to play higher limits than they want to or can afford and get pounded through the floor as a result, they're less inclined to tip. It's simple human nature; though the prices you have to pay and your gambling results shouldn't matter in your tipping decisions, the fact is that they do. So if people are tipping less in Vegas, I blame that on the casinos leaving them with less money to tip with.

And all that aside--doesn't the clown who writes those blogs know what a paragraph is? Reading his stuff is like driving along a street riddled with potholes. It seems to be an internet/Millennial thing to write that way and quite frankly, makes those blogger types look cognitively impaired.

I tend to agree with Kevin,    As Vegas becomes increasingly player unfriendly the players increasingly return the discourse.    Sad because it's not the dealer's fault the casino has high table minimus, lousy comps, and an outrageous resort fee,,,,but the dealer is the  person the customer interacts with.

The other point is that while the casinos are raking In record profits they still don't pay their dealers squat and require them to live off other peoples' generosity.    

PJ, what has been the average ROI for casinos..............and let's pick the 3 years prior to Covid?  Also how much does the average blackjack dealer at, say the Flamingo, earn per year?  Based on your comments, you must know this information.

While I don't know dealer incomes, I did post ROI for Caesars and Harrah's shortly before Covid, and the profits were far far and FAR from large.  One was losing money while the other was maybe running a ROI of 5%.

Las Vegas casinos are making more money than ever - breaking records set before COVID.    Listen to any earnings call from the domestic players.   The only casinos struggling are the ones anchored in Macau.    So who cares about ROI from 3 years ago?

The fact is games are tighter...minimums are higher....comps and offers are less generous... drink service is declining....and nderstafffed bar / restaurant service is struggling.     Is it really surprising customers in that environment are less generous in tipping gratuities to the same resorts that are being less gratuitous to them?   

I still consider myself a good tipper and try not to take out gripes with these issues on the low level people who are not in charge of them.     But clearly many do.  And they are legitimate gripes, aren't they? 

I dont conclude the same thing the Vital Vegas authors did....which they say is  just a general "I dont give a fuck about other people" attitude that has suddenly gripped the populace.  Casinos are giving out less...so their customers are returning the favor.    Seems pretty obvious.

Problem is, we're hurting the workers that need tips for actions of the corporate execs who don't care. 

Ditto, antennanut.  In fact, since the pandemic started, I tip at home in places I never used to, like fast food servers, store clerks, sackers, car wash attendant, anybody who helps me in some way.  Just a dollar or two, but it brings such a reaction of gratitude.

  
When I pick up a to-go order at a sandwich place or our pizza place I give enough so each person working at that moment (usually 2-3, occasionally 4) gets a dollar.  They respond like it is a C-note.  For a dollar!  I guess they don't get that many "tips".  I don't know and don't care what their salary is.  I'm glad they are working.

Candy  

PJ, if not by ROI, how do you judge a companies success?  Here is the truth about one company, Caesars /Eldorado..................you know, the largest casino owner in Vegas.  They've lost money for 6 straight quarters.

PJ, please don't tell me that, like Kevin, you judge corporate success on revenues alone............as if expenses don't matter.

https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/CZR/caesars-entertainment/roi

Wow, Boiler, you think so simplistically...ROI is only one measure of a company's success. It's a cash flow number that does NOT take capital into account, nor does it consider intangible assets.

CZR has significant major capital assets. Those assets are what are enabling CZR to recover. Of COURSE they lost money during the pandemic--everyone else in the casino industry did, too! But they preserved their ability to make money, which is what matters now.

I'd point out that this thread is actually about tipping, but Boiler wants to wander off aimlessly...so, if we're considering how profitable CZR is/should be, I guess we have to defer to Boiler's "expertise."

Boilerman, I believe the word is EBITDA....which is the same metric the company you cited uses...instead of the one you picked.   And you can listen directly to the CEO of the company who says his Vegas properties are all setting  records.   To the extent their are losses is because Caesers is taking out new debt to buy more properites.    And good for them.   And it has nothing to do with the profitability of their exising portfolio.   And sure as hell has nothing to do with basing employee income on tipping instead of paying them a fair wage.

What else can I (and the ceo of Casesers) help with today?

Transcript of Caesers latest earnings call

" We delivered $1.4 billion of adjusted EBITDA on the quarter, excluding Caesars Digital, which represented a quarterly record for our Brick and Mortar properties. 31 of our 51 properties set a record for the highest third quarter EBITDA, while 32 set a record for the highest Q3 EBITDA margin. Starting with Las Vegas, demand trends remained exceptionally strong through the quarter, leading to an all-time quarterly record of 500 million in adjusted EBITDA in our Las Vegas segment. Excluding Rio rent payments, EBITDA improved 44% versus the third quarter of 2019, and margins improved 1400 basis points to 50%.

Total occupancy for Q3 was 89%, with weekend occupancy at 97% and mid-week occupancy 86%. Looking ahead, we remain encouraged by booking trends into 2022 and beyond. While group attrition remains higher than normal, we began to see conventions returned to Las Vegas in the third quarter, and the segment represented approximately 10% of occupied room nights, a dramatic improvement versus the first half of 2021. We continue to expect to see a gradual recovery in the segment leading into next year, and we are encouraged as group and convention revenues on the books for '22 continue to pace nicely ahead of '19.

"