Beth, Mid-20s
What does a croupier do?
Croupiers work at casinos, where they help people to gamble by shuffling and dealing cards, spinning roulette wheels, explaining and interpreting the rules of games to customers, announcing and paying winning bets and collect losing bets.
When Beth moved from Sydney to the Gold Coast, she applied for a job as a croupier expecting that it would only be a temporary position.
However, six years later, she's still working as a croupier, now in Melbourne. So what happened?
"Well, I found myself really enjoying the work. And it's good money for what we do," she says.
What are some of the pros and cons of the job?
Beth finds the job really interesting and gets to meet all sorts of people. "It's really rewarding to watch people get so excited when they're winning," she says.
"It's also nice to not have to do the 9-5 office job, and there's variety in that you can deal different games, from Blackjack, to Roulette, through to Baccarat." And the more games you can deal, the more money you earn.
However, it generally takes two weeks of full-time training to learn a new game, so croupiers tend to build up their repertoire gradually. Beth adds, "Dealing in the VIP private salon to players betting $200,000 a hand is a real mental challenge, too. Working out a pay-out becomes more difficult when you're talking such big bucks, although on such occasions, you'll have your supervisor around to check your calculations."
What sort of skills and qualities do you need?
To become a croupier, there are a few important ingredients. You will require good basic maths skills, strong customer service skills, and a clear criminal record (finger print and palm print checks will be taken). Beth says that you also can't afford to be too sensitive. "You need to be able to take insults, because when people lose money, they can come out with some pretty nasty comments. You really have to have leather skin and learn not to take things too personally."
So apart from intoxicated players using obscene language, are there other downsides to the job? "Working weekends, and night or graveyard shifts can be a bit difficult. At the moment, I work the day shift for four months, then switch to the night shift for four months. It usually takes some time to adjust when you switch over, but within a week or so, you get used to the new hours."
Also, for those contemplating a career as a croupier, "Be prepared to stand on your feet for long hours at a time, and maintain a high level of concentration."
When asked what changes she expects a few years down the track in her occupation, Beth responds, "Well internet gambling is becoming more popular, although for a lot of people, coming to the casino is a social outing, so I think we'll be around for a long while yet!"
Find out more about a career as a croupier
Visit the myfuture website in order to find more about duties and tasks, work conditions, earnings and required qualifications for a career as a croupier.
Find out more about this career path at myfuture.edu.au (Note: free registration is required to access the myfuture site).