The closure of some Atlantic City casinos draws a reaction from bus

The closure of some Atlantic City casinos draws a reaction from bus operators who bring gamblers from New York, while Chinese employees who lost their jobs because of the closings also comment, in these two stories from World Journal:

The glamour of Atlantic City in New Jersey, which has glittered for 36 years as a casino town, is quickly fading. There were 12 casinos operating at the beginning of the year. But by mid-September there may only be eight left. In January, the Atlantic Club announced it would close for good. This triggered an avalanche in which Showboat, Trump Plaza and Revel all followed suit one after another. Business insiders said the economy never completely recovered from the financial crisis in 2008 and the casinos have been struggling. Meanwhile, they got a double whammy when several new casinos opened near New York City, luring away many Chinese gamblers with their convenient locations.

“The casinos that lost Chinese clients couldn’t possibly maintain the vibrancy of their business,” said the head of Golden Express, a bus company whose main business is to take Chinese gamblers to the casinos. The person explained that Chinese gamblers often like to place big stakes, especially for the table games, while white customers and gamblers of other groups are not as reckless. A few years ago, business for the bus company started to decline, thanks to the downturn of the casinos. The ebb was totally unexpected for many business insiders.

Currently, Golden Express provides 11 round trips daily between Chinatown and Atlantic City, three between Flushing and Atlantic City and seven between Brooklyn and Atlantic City. Revel has not had many Chinese clients so the bus company has no route to the casino. It offers two round trips to Showboat daily. Golden Express will make a decision on when to stop the route to Showboat when the casino specifies the time of its closure. But none of the casinos being closed are among the bus company’s main clients. So the buses are still 90 percent full at this time. Its loss from the closures is limited.

Mr. Ji, who has been working as a marketing promoter for 20 years for several casinos in Atlantic City, said business was at its peak in the 1990s.

“Among casinos in the entire country, only those in Atlantic City could afford to host concerts for the A-list pop singers from China and Hong Kong. Stars like Leslie Cheung, Andy Lau, Aaron Kwok and Paula Tsui used to have concerts in the casinos every year. Singers who were not as famous but also wanted a show would be put on a waiting list. Sometimes there were several shows in the same night, and all enjoyed a great turnout. But now many casinos in Atlantic City, struggling to keep their heads above water, have cut the budget for such concerts. This year, there are no A-list stars from China scheduled to do shows here,” said Ji.

Ji said a few reasons contributed to the decline of Atlantic City. For example, the business model of casinos there is outdated and they didn’t transform into modern casinos in time. Casinos in Atlantic City used to make 80 percent of their profits from gambling games. But nowadays, gambling is no longer able to support the business completely by itself. Compared to Atlantic City, the more successful Las Vegas only makes 50 percent of its profits from gambling. And it not only has casinos but also boasts good restaurants, clubs, bars, shopping malls and shows and offers diverse entertainment to vacationers.

In addition, the local Chinese gamblers who had cash on hand seem to have run out of funds and cannot play high-stakes games any more. And China placed strict restrictions on government employees traveling abroad with taxpayers’ money and reduced opportunities for Chinese businessmen and public officials to participate in gambling in the U.S. Also, more and more casinos opened in the New York area, imposing more competition on established ones.

The closure of four casinos in Atlantic City not only batters the local economy, but also is a heavy blow to the job market. It is estimated that 8,000, or one-fourth of the total jobs in the casino industry, will evaporate this year. Many Chinese casino workers will be unemployed.

Ms. Ying, who lost her job when the Atlantic Club closed, said she had been working as a casino dealer for 18 years. She managed to find a new job at Bally’s, another casino in Atlantic City, and said she is lucky compared to many other former co-workers who have been struggling to find a job. “We would take any job that’s available. We have to take whatever is thrown to us, no choice,” said Ying.

Ying also said the casinos now tend to not offer full-time jobs, nor do they offer health insurance. Clients are holding their wallets more tightly and not as generous on tips. She made $200 per day before and now she’d be happy if she makes half of that. So most people have to juggle between two jobs. Many also work at restaurants, shops, and work as janitors.

Ying said sometimes when there aren’t many clients, the company will force them to take time off. Many workers work part time with no contract so casinos don’t have to take care of them. When a casino worker loses his or her job, he or she normally will apply for unemployment insurance and live on welfare for half a year while job searching. Also, many workers from Atlantic City are moving to New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Connecticut to work for the new casinos there.

Mr. Quan, who used to work in public relations at Resorts, had foreseen the decline six years ago and left the casino for a job in the financial management industry. But he said not everyone working in PR for casinos can change jobs so easily. Those who work for casinos often are gamblers themselves. They are addicted to the lifestyle of dressing up and entertaining with clients everyday for public relations. It is hard for them to work in other industries. He also said some friends who are still doing PR jobs for casinos complained that when they hosted banquets in New York City during this Lunar New Year to treat the VIPs, sometimes no guests showed up.

By Yue Li World Journal
Translated by Rong Xiaoqing from Chinese