CASINO WORKERS'
HEALTH AND SAFETY RESEARCH PROJECT
RESEARCH PROJECT
Gaming workers in Windsor, Ontario and Winnipeg, Manitoba worked
together to research the health and safety hazards they face on the job.
The workers and their unions, CAW Local 444 in Windsor and the Manitoba
Government Employees Union in Winnipeg, joined with the Windsor Occupational
Health Information Service, Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers,
and the Manitoba Federation of Labour Occupational Health Centre to carry
out the research. Very few research projects have addressed the health
and safety problems in the fast-expanding gaming industry.
THE GAMING FACILITIES
Casino Windsor, which is run by a private consortium, has been operating
out of two temporary facilities since its opening in 1994. It employs
about 3,600 people. A large permanent facility is scheduled to open
in 1998 and is expected to add an additional 1,500 employees to its workforce.
The Winnipeg gaming facilities are operated by the Manitoba government.
There are three gaming sites: the Crystal Casino, Club Regent and McPhillips
Street Station. There are approximately 800 gaming workers at the
three facilities. Planned changes include the closing of the Crystal
Casino and expansion of the other two facilities, adding 325 new jobs.
Full licensed beverage services and entertainment are planned.
The gaming facilities in both locales provide similar services.
But there are a few differences--Winnipeg offers Bingo and Video Lottery
Terminals (VLTs); Windsor does not. Coins (actual currency) are used
for Winnipeg's slot machines; tokens are used for Windsor's. Alcohol
is not yet permitted in Winnipeg but is available in all gaming areas of
Windsor's casinos.
"Being physically sore and the emotional
toll of work affects family life."
Dealer, Winnipeg
WORK ENVIRONMENT
There may be more to the gaming facility environment than meets
the eye. In fact, in both communities, there is a history of health
and safety concerns dating back to the opening of the facilities.
The flashing lights, music, slot machine noise, and overcrowding help to
provide a stimulating atmosphere for the patrons. But it can be very
stressful to the workers who must endure it for an entire shift, day-in,
day-out. Second-hand smoke fills the air. Patrons smoke in
the breathing zones of workers.
Hazards associated with working with the public such as exposure
to body fluids and germs, harassment, and threats of violence appear to
be widespread in the gaming facility environment. Gaming workers
may also be faced with fast-paced, repetitive work, prolonged standing,
lifting, pushing or pulling heavy weights.
FOCUS GROUPS
The research team decided that the best way to approach the research
was to set up focus groups to find out what health and safety problems
were of greatest concern to the gaming workers. Thirteen focus group
sessions were held in Windsor; six in Winnipeg. A total of 51 Windsor
gaming workers, members of CAW Local 444, and 20 Winnipeg gaming workers,
members of MGEU, participated in the three-hour focus group sessions.
The sessions were led by trained union facilitators and observed and recorded
by staff from the three occupational health centres.
RESEARCH TOOLS - MAPPING
The focus group participants used "mapping" exercises to report
their health problems, the hazards they face on the job and the impact
that work has on their lives.
BODY MAPPING
Body mapping is a research tool that is used for gathering information
regarding the health problems (illnesses, injuries, aches and pains, etc.)
of workers. This exercise was carried out in each of the focus groups.
Large images of the body (front and back) were posted on the wall.
The gaming workers were encouraged to place self-sticking dots on the body
map to indicate their own health problems.
They reported, one at a time, to the group, what health problems
their dots represented.
This information was recorded.
BODY MAPPING RESULTS
The following health problems were reported by the focus group participants:
"Customers cough in your face...when
you've got a cold you feel run down;
it's hard to concentrate
and be nice to customers."
Slot Attendant, Winnipeg
"I thought I was the only
one having all these pains"
Cook, Windsor
HAZARD MAPPING
The gaming workers were asked to draw a rough diagram of their work
area(s) on large sheets of craft paper which were mounted on the wall.
Some participants drew their own maps; others were done collectively.
Collective maps were encouraged when there was more than one person from
a particular work area or occupation. They were instructed to draw
themselves, the physical lay-out of their work area, their co-workers,
and any hazards which exist.
They were also asked to group the hazards as: Biological, Chemical, Physical, Stress and Work Design Hazards. Colour-coded, self-sticking labels were provided. They were then asked to describe their drawings to the rest of the group. This information was recorded.
HAZARD MAPPING RESULTS
Some of the most commonly reported hazards were:
The dealers considered repetitive strain injuries to be one of their
greatest concerns. They also feared retaliation from patrons who were losing
money.
The porters were concerned about ergonomic issues (pushing, pulling
and carrying equipment), use of certain cleaning agents, noise and overcrowding,
along with concerns about biological hazards from body fluids and bacteria.
They mentioned spills of blood, urine and vomit. Body fluids and
germs were identified by many of the participants as being of concern.
This was also considered to be a cause of stress, along with fear of needle-stick
injury.
"Its very stressful to get
into areas where patrons are (you get) elbowed, spit on, kicked, yelled
at, stepped on and threatened with violence."
Porter, Windsor
Workers in the slot machine department reported the problems of noise
and abuse from patrons. Participants from the security department
reported that standing for long periods of time and fear of patron violence
were important issues for them. They reported a number of instances
in which angry patrons tried to assault them - for example, one security
officer told of an incident in which a patron tried to run him over with
his car.
"YOUR WORLD" MAPPING
The "Your World" mapping exercise was designed to bring out the
effects of work and its hazards on the gaming workers' lives. A large
sheet of drawing paper with a human figure drawn in the centre was fixed
to the wall. Participants were asked to add symbols or words to the
map to represent the areas of their lives affected. For example,
family problems might be represented by drawing figures of children.
Participants then explained their drawings to the group and the information
was recorded.
"I like to go for walks but
if my feet or knees are
bothering me from work, I
can't walk."
Slot Attendant, Winnipeg
"YOUR WORLD" MAP RESULTS
The most frequently cited social and personal life disruptions were
in the areas of:
"I'm not able to enjoy my
grandchildren due to the pain."
Pit Clerk, Windsor
ESTABLISHING PRIORITIES
Each participant was asked to name their top priority workplace
health and safety concern. These concerns were recorded on a chart along
with details regarding causes, effects, and some proposed solutions.
Participants were then asked to cast votes for the top priority issues using self-sticking dots. They each had three votes, giving them a chance to vote not only for their top issue but other participants' issues as well.
Finally, the participants offered a number of solutions to the problems
which were believed to be of high priority. It is interesting to
note that employees from each city raised the same top three priority issues,
albeit in different order -- stress, indoor air quality, and ergonomics
(see below).
SOME PROPOSED SOLUTIONS
These are some of the solutions suggested by the focus group participants:
Stress could
be reduced with consistent policies, management training in the area of
employee relations, reducing noise levels, improved shift schedules, better
policies regarding abusive patrons, adequate staffing, rotation of holidays,
more team work, improved communication, consistency between gaming commission
and company policy, joint mental health committee, sensitivity training,
Human Rights Code training and reducing overcrowding.
Ergonomics and Work Design
problems could be remedied by replacing machines with updated equipment,
asking for worker input on work station design, improving work station
design, having more space per worker, increasing staff & floaters,
removing "shuffle masters", changing booth locations, widening aisles,
bolting stools and chairs to the floor, limiting the number of customers,
using smaller/lighter chairs, having a massage therapist/physiotherapist
on site, better job rotation, longer rest/break periods, shorter work weeks,
planning traffic flow, implementing exercise/stretch/gym programs, more
variations in job, sharper knives, providing ergonomically designed tools,
lifting devices, anti-fatigue mats, step-ups, risers, chairs, stools, light
weight, adjustable carts, proper shoes and clothing/uniforms.
Indoor Air Quality
problems could be decreased by eliminating or restricting smoking, improving
and maintaining ventilation (cleaning filters), maintaining comfortable
temperatures, higher ceilings, improving work design to avoid smoke, installing
filtered smoking tables, providing education about proper use of chemicals,
testing the air regularly, regulating the "command centre", having government
inspections every month, improving vacuuming of the coin machines to suck
up dust, injecting oxygen, doing random inspections, changing the design
for doors and windows, extracting fumes and dust, installing local suction
on jet sorts and hoppers, offering smoking cessation programs for co-workers,
providing medical check-ups, and cleaning machines in banks when there
are no people present.
Priority Issues Identified by
Focus Group Participants in
Windsor and Winnipeg
Each section of the pie represents the
proportion of votes cast by participants for each priority issue.
Each participant had three votes. Note: "Indoor Air Quality"
includes second-hand smoke; "Biological" includes body fluids and
infectious patrons.
PARTICIPATORY ACTION RESEARCH
Now that the priority health and safety issues have been determined,
further research will be carried out on the specific problems identified.
If you would like more information about this project, please contact:
CAW Local 444 1855 Turner Road Windsor, ON N8W 3K2 Ph: 519-258-7878 ext.20762 |
MGEU 601-275 Broadway Winnipeg, MA R3C 4M6 Ph: 204-982-6444 |
All of the data included in this report was
provided by the gaming workers themselves.
To protect their confidentiality no personal
identifiers have been included.