Dealing blackjack paid the bills – UConn Daily Campus

When Mariana Stebbins came from her native Brazil to attend UConn in 2005, like many students she needed to find a job. What she found was chance to deal blackjack at one of Connecticut’s nearby casinos.

Stebbins heard about the job through a program Mohegan Sun conducts with other countries to help provide immigrants with work. The money, flexible schedule and proximity to UConn seemed ideal for a student.

She soon enrolled in blackjack-dealing classes, obtained her green card and got a job at Mohegan Sun. Stebbins, now 29, worked on and off at both Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods from 2005 until her graduation in 2009.

Dealing blackjack paid the bills but often proved exhausting. Her shoulders and back ached from standing for eight hours and the constant use of her hands made them cramp. She also found the repetition of dealing one hand after another mind-numbing.

Sometimes she was harassed by players in the male-dominated environment.

But despite the negatives, a steady salary and guaranteed hours kept her coming back.

Stebbins says many dealers, including other college students she’s known, get “sucked in” by the job security and find it difficult to leave casino jobs. The income and flexible hours offer a comfortable life and sometimes sidetrack dealers from moving ahead with their education or career.

“Needing to make money and pay for more dealing classes causes some dealers to take semesters off, finish school late or not at all,” Stebbins said. As bills mount, many student dealers find it hard to leave, she said.

“You start paying bills and making good money,” Stebbins said. “I think people are afraid of losing that security. You look at college as something unattainable.”

But Stebbins stuck with the job, struggling to balance additional work shifts, more dealing classes and an expanding school workload.

As a young female dealer, Stebbins admits she often felt uncomfortable in the male-dominated gambling world.

 “It’s definitely a man’s environment,” Stebbins said. “There’s a bunch of men, they’re yelling, they get very excited and very loud.”

She once had to call a supervisor after being harassed by rowdy male gamblers who were losing money. Another man swore at her and told her she was only upset because she “didn’t have a man.”

While dealing blackjack did have its downsides, the work itself and interaction with people could be rewarding.

“Don’t get me wrong,” she said. “Working there can be fun. Some people love it.”

Stebbins’ casino job served its purpose, helping her graduate from UConn last year with a degree in journalism. Degree in hand, she landed a job at the Consulate General of Brazil in Boston.

Today, she is proud to have supported herself through college, but relieved her days dealing blackjack are over.

“I wasn’t going to die working at the casino,” Stebbins said.

 

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