Company eliminates pit boss position

Tuesday, July 19, 2005 | 11:07 a.m.

Harrah's Entertainment Inc. has eliminated its pit manager job classification from its Las Vegas casinos, a move that is expected to result in some job losses.

About 30 pit boss positions have been cut and replaced with the same number of "assistant shift manager" positions at the company's Caesars Palace, Paris, Bally's and Flamingo casinos.

Some of the new, higher-paying positions are expected to be filled by current pit bosses, who were invited to apply for those and other positions with Harrah's, company spokesman David Strow said.

"The basic idea here was not cost savings but improving customer service by putting a decision-maker closer to the player," Strow said.

Assistant shift managers will have more authority than the pit bosses in that they will be allowed to grant credit to gamblers on the spot and resolve customer disputes, he said.

Gamblers "don't want to have to sit around waiting for a decision to be made," Strow said.

The property managers at the casinos rather than Harrah's corporate executives made the decision to change the job classification after seeing the positions at work at the company's Harrah's Las Vegas and Rio casinos, he said.

Fears that Harrah's will cut down on table games at Caesars and other properties are unfounded, Strow said. Caesars Palace will be adding about 10 table games to meet demand created by the crowds that gather for the property's Pure nightclub, he said.