“It has been tough at times recently and I'm obviously thinking about my employment, the employment of my friends and my team. There’s been unfortunate cases of redundancies throughout the industry, so there’s an underlying negativity there, a fear and anxiety.
“Most people here are very customer orientated, very sociable, amiable team members, so to take them
away from that for prolonged periods of time, that can be really challenging.
“My biggest fear would be that the casino industry itself doesn’t recover. It has taken an enormous hit and it has been an exceptionally long time, over 8 months now, without trading properly. People who I know who have worked in the industry for a long time will now find themselves without jobs. It is very bleak.”
Mark McCluskey, a 40-year-old Dad of one and
Operations Manager at Grosvenor Casino Edinburgh Maybury, who lives in Glasgow and has worked with the company for six years
Grosvenor Casino Edinburgh Maybury
“The casino closing has had a dramatic impact on me and my life. I’m currently furloughed which obviously means I’m only getting paid 80 percent of what I normally would.
“Lockdown is having a big impact on my colleagues as well. There are some people who work here, and they don’t have any outlet other than seeing their friends at work. It is taking a dramatic toll on their mental health.
“My biggest worry about the closure of casinos right now is my job prospects. Jobs are hard to come by in this climate. If casinos continue to be locked down like this, it is inevitable that sooner or later we are going to have some very difficult questions to answer and some difficult choices to make. And that’s a day that I dread.”
Vince Harvie, a 37-year-old Cashier at Grosvenor Casino Edinburgh Maybury, who has worked with the company for 14 years
Grosvenor Casino Edinburgh Maybury
“The closures have impacted me a great deal. Not being able to work and the worry of job security but also as I have worked here for over 15 years, it is more like a family and not being able to see some of my
favourite people is really tough. We are a close group and I know my colleagues all share the same worries. It has been frustrating because we all worked so hard to make our venues safe for customers so when we had to close again it has hit everyone hard.
“Customers feel the same way too. We get customers ringing everyday asking if we are going to reopen. When we are open, a lot of customers will come in to for a chat or a coffee; it is not just for the leisure aspect, it is a community. We value this community and put a huge amount of safety measures in place to protect it, so it feels unfair and that casinos are being penalised and not allowed to open in Level 2 restrictions.”
Katrina Mitchell, a 30-year-old F&B Supervisor at
Grosvenor Casino Glasgow Merchant City, who lives in Glasgow and has worked with the company for 15 years
Grosvenor Casinos Glasgow
as on the wider economy which will lose millions of pounds in tax receipts.”
Paul Willcock, President of Genting UK, added: “Te Chips are Down campaign is incredibly important for our Scottish Casinos and we are proud to be working together with our colleagues at Grosvenor and Caesars in order to raise the profile of our plight in Scotland.
“Casinos have some of the most stringent covid controls within the hospitality industry and it cannot be correct that we are forced to remain closed in level 2 areas.”
Out of 30,000 unique admissions through the doors since reopening in August (following the
P32 NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE / MARKET DATA
Out of 30,000 unique admissions since reopening in
August, there has been just one recorded case of coronavirus
transmission within any casino in Scotland, with 87 per cent of casino customers saying that they feel safe in a casino compared to other
entertainment venues.
initial lockdown in the UK), there has been just one recorded case of coronavirus transmission within any casino in Scotland, with 87 per cent of casino customers saying that they feel safe in a casino compared to other entertainment and hospitality venues.
Casino businesses have invested millions of pounds to ensure venues are safe for its colleagues and customers to play, installing PPE such as plexiglass screens between gaming tables, ID scanning technology upon entry, hand sanitiser stations and social distancing signage throughout venues.
Te casino industry in Scotland contributed £30m in tax a year to the UK economy, but the
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