Another year, another Rivers Casino Schenectady award for workplace quality. This is the fourth consecutive year that the Times-Union newspaper in Albany has recognized the gambling facility among its top workplaces. All indications point toward a possible fifth year on that shortlist as well.
The 10th annual listing grew to an unprecedented size of 62 employers in the region. Despite the number of other businesses that share this distinction, Rivers is still swelling with pride over its consistent placement.
Another Rivers Casino Schenectady award
Over 15,500 employees rated their employers on a variety of attributes for this year’s list. Placement on this list is solely dependent on those employee responses. Most notable for Rivers is that it has earned a place on this list every year since it opened its doors in Schenectady.
“The Top Workplace award is a testament to our Team Members’ unmatched commitment to making Rivers a special place to work, providing outstanding service to our guests, and giving back to the community even during these challenging times,” said Rivers general manager Jeff Cutri in a press release. “Rivers Casino is a diverse and exciting place to work, and we are extremely proud to once again receive this distinctive recognition.”
In the same release, Rivers touted its benefits for employees like tuition reimbursement. It also highlighted the community service its employees participate in. Perhaps most importantly for those interested in New York casinos, the casino also says the numbers of its workforce “continue to grow towards pre-COVID-19 levels.”
How close is the casino industry in NY to pandemic recovery?
Casino revenue and staffing levels have strong correlations with each other. The healthier the revenue figures are, the more staff the casino can afford to support. At the same time, more staff enables the casino to offer more amenities and gaming.
So where do things sit on that front in NY? The NY State Gaming Commission hasn’t released figures for May 2021 yet. However, April 2021 represented more growth for the state’s four commercial casinos.
April’s combined revenue for the four properties was up about 4.4% as compared to March 2021. May’s numbers could be even better as capacity limits eased and more New Yorkers became vaccinated against COVID-19.
The deciding factor from this point forward in terms of how fast staffing numbers get back to pre-pandemic figures might be how quickly casinos react to rising revenues. It seems that Rivers in Schenectady will have no problem attracting applicants given its reputation in the community.
