Donald Trump‘s move to take tips out of workers’ pockets and put them in managements hands has poked an 800-lb. gorilla, in the form of the AFL-CIO. It was wrong when Steve Wynn did it as business 
policy and it’s equally wrong if Uncle Sam starts doing it as public policy. (It’s also a kind of reverse socialism but we won’t get into that.) Nobody should have to eke out a living on $2.13 an hour plus tips but that’s the America in which we live. Fortunately, if you find this proposal as odious as I do, you can make a public comment to the Department of Labor. Ironically — or cruelly, depending on your perspective — the planned shift in tipping policy falls not only on the working classes from whom Trump derived much of his support but it will smack some of his Las Vegas employees right upside the wallet. By the way, what do you think the odds are that The Donald has undocumented workers on his payroll at Trump International? Too bad we can’t place a prop bet on that.
* Casino revenues in Macao fell short of Wall Street‘s expectations last month but still managed an impressive 14.5% increase. “That said,” writes Deutsche Bank analyst Carlo Santarelli, “we expect January to be considerably stronger given the easy comparison (+3% in 2017) and we are forecasting high teens growth for the month.”
* Although nominally the new frontier in Internet gambling, Pennsylvania may be snubbing its newest industry in the cradle. Operators may be able to host only one “skin” on their Web sites, compared to New Jersey‘s sky’s-the-limit approach — the new Keystone State law law is murky on this point — and slot-style games will be taxed at a usurious 54%. Given these burdens, it’s entirely possible that operators may decide the game is not worth the toss, as it were. Columnist Steve Ruddock argues that smaller casinos could be deterred from entering the market for these very reasons, compounded by an eight-figure licensing fee. (State governments like to get as much of the money as possible up front.) “By fostering competition, each new operator will expand the market and create incremental revenue,” writes Ruddock and we agree.
* Ever wonder what happens to the money that gets left in slot hoppers or gets carelessly dropped on the casino carpet? At Michigan‘s Gun Lake Casino it goes to a trio of charities: the National Indian Child Welfare Association, the Safe Harbor Children’s Advocacy Center and the Native American Rights Fund. “Basically, it’s money that’s displaced in some way that remains at the casino and is not technically, the property of another patron, guest or the casino itself,” explained tribal spokesman James Nye. Gun Lake, which is managed by Station Casinos, will become independent in February, when its management contract expires in compliance with Michigan statutes.
Mixing gambling and religion, Endorphina‘s newest game is Durga, named after the warrior goddess of the Hindu faith. Who says gaming and faith can’t coexist? What’s next? A John the Baptist slot in which you get immersed as part of the bonus round?
