Betting on the job: Gambling as a workplace issue
CrossCurrents
By Andrea Zoe Aster
Peter* worked at a software company. At the casino, his game was blackjack. He was a "card counter," memorizing which cards
had already been played. He would sneak out of work early and took too many sick days. By the time the casino discovered Peter's
trick and banned him, he was debt-ridden and plagued with anxiety, his home life a mess. Finally, Peter sought counselling
through his workplace employee assistance program (EAP).
Most employers recognize that alcohol and other drug use problems are a drain on productivity and earnings. Many have support
services and treatment programs to battle such addictions. But fewer firms have EAPs that offer confidential counselling for
problem gambling, or insurance plans that cover treatment.
Yet the need for such workplace supports is more pressing than ever, says Gary Hoskins, an addiction therapist with the Centre
for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto. "There's a correlation between the availability of legal gambling and problem
gambling," says Hoskins. "In 1994 there were no casinos in Ontario. Now there are 10." In Ontario, Hoskins estimates four
to five per cent of the population has a severe to moderate gambling problem - the equivalent of 450,000 people.
But it isn't only casinos, lotteries and bingo halls that feed the gambling problem. The workplace too, has its share of temptations.
According to the Society for Human Resource Management in Alexandria, Virginia, 79 per cent of workplaces surveyed had betting
pools or games of chance among employees. For problem gamblers, the workplace Internet is particularly dangerous. In a 2002
survey by Harris Interactive of 305 Web-enabled employees, eight per cent said gambling was the most addictive Web content.
With this increased access to gambling opportunities comes growing concern in workplaces that gambling problems add up to
a jackpot of absenteeism, job loss, lost productivity and even theft.
Indeed, a 1994 Quebec study estimated that pathological gamblers clock five hours a month in late time. The researchers calculated
that, if half the pathological gamblers in Quebec were late five hours a month, and if the average wage was $30,000 a year,
lost wages would amount to at least $5 million annually. The same study reported that 37 per cent of pathological gamblers
steal up to $5,000 from their employers, 14 per cent skip entire weekdays to gamble and 36 per cent lose their jobs due to
gambling-related problems annually.
A 1999 report to the National Gambling Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago suggested that problem gamblers
have a higher rate of job loss than non-gamblers - 13.8 per cent compared with 5.5 per cent. Employers must then pay the costs
to search for, replace and train new employees, which amounts to 10 per cent of the annual salary for each employee replaced.
The key challenge for employers is actually spotting the problem. "Problem gamblers often go unnoticed in the workplace,"
says Eric Rubel, manager of Addiction Services at WarrenShepell in Toronto, one of North America's largest EAPs. "But employers
can be aware of the problem if they're looking for the signs," says Rubel, who oversees the provision of EAP counselling to
corporate clients and provides workplace training for managers.
Rubel cautions that, once suspected, employers should not outright accuse an employee of having a gambling addiction. "It
is best to address the issue in a non-confrontational, less obtrusive manner," says Rubel. "This type of approach aims to
reduce defensiveness on the part of the employee and increases the chances of acceptance and compliance with suggestions made
by the employer."
While there are practical strategies for addressing gambling in the workplace (see "Poker-faced employees" sidebar), effective
action begins at the policy level. Yet the Society of Human Resource Management survey found that only 23 per cent of employers
had written policies around workplace gambling. An important component of a solid policy involves regular training for managers
and supervisors and providing problem gambling information to all employees. "Lack of awareness of gambling as a health concern
leads to punitive action rather than support and treatment," says Colleen Tessier, senior project co-ordinator with the CAMH
Problem Gambling Project. "When employers consider how gambling affects the workplace, they can better address the issue."
*not his real name
Centre for Addiction
