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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (June 3, 1997)
4 June 3, 1997 SMOKE SIGNALS Employee Spotlight Casino job changes the life of security officer By Tracy Dugan Tribal member Mike Colton and his wife Daphncy have both been employed at Spirit Mountain Casino since its opening in Oc tober of 1 995. Recently promoted to Lead Security Officer, Mike is enjoying the ben efits of his hard work over the past year and a half. A graduate of the Security Officer Acad emy through Clackamas Community Col lege and the Tribal Education Program, Mike knew that a job at the Casino is what he and his family needed in order to change the direction his career was going. Prior to entering the security officer training course, Mike was working at a trailer factory. Daphney was employed at the Comer Store inWillamina. 'A security officer's job consists of "working the floor' and working at dispatch at the security podium," said Mike. "Work ing the floor means being on the lookout for people who arc underage, assisting the officers, and general customer service.? Mike said that if there is ever any distur bances on the Casino floor, they are usu ally handled by an officer, and that super visors may be called upon to assist in dif fusing the situation. Daphney, who works as an assistant in the Casino's Human Resources department, said that she and Mike arc both proud to be working for the Casino for many reasons. "Even though Mike was earning more at his old job, we feel that we are contributing something to our children's future by work ing at the Casino," she said. "The Casino management really appreciates family val ues and family life." Mike and Daphncy have two daughters, Justine and Jade. Mike said also that he appreciates the in centives the Casino offers for hard work ers. "Not only arc there opportunities for advancement," he said, "but the people I work with arc the factors that have led to my success. Part of the reason why I needed a career change is that I never really en joyed the job I was doing before I came to Wwwr"'wu'i''w"'wP'w"wi"MHiip.i ! mniinii.i ,m ! nmi mn V - . . I v - j.;1 . ' " ! I, , I- ;.'( A ' f ! v " ; - I; ' i f '" ' - ,'' work for the Casino. Now I like what I do." Mike said that the customer service as pect of being a security officer is what he enjoys most, and he is always telling Daphncy how much he loves his job. "The security officers all know each other pretty well, and I think the crew I work with are not only serious workers, but they are great people," he added. Mike can recall going to the Casino Job Fair that was held at the Community Cen ter back in July of 1995. "They were con ducting interviews that were only a couple of minutes long," he said. "There were so many people." During the interview, Mike was asked why he thought the coyote was jumping over the mountain. And what was his re ply? "To get to a better life." j 3233fflEIBS) o mmm mtsom m Apply to Dealers' School Tribal members and Spirit Mountain Employees who are interested in learning to deal Blackjack and Let It Ride games should contact Camille Mcrcier at Spirit Mountain Casino. There are fourteen total openings available to Grand Ronde tribal members and internal employees. The deadline to apply is June 30. Dealers' school consists of a minimum of 120 hours of Blackjack training; 20 hours of Let It Ride training; 40 hours of Pai Gow Poker training, plus additional hours for gaming regulation requirements. Successful stu dents will need to pass a background check, pass a table games audition, and interview successfully in order to be offered a deal ing position. Applicants will NOT be paid to attend dealers' school. To apply for the dealers' school, please send your applica tionresume to Camille Mercier at P.O. Box 39, Grand Ronde, Oregon 97347 or you can hand-deliver it to the Casino's Human Re sources offices at 28840 Salmon River Highway in Grand Ronde. Interested in working at Spirit Mountain Casino? Tribal members who are interested in seeking employment with Spirit Mountain Casino should call Sarah Harvey or Cam ille Mercier at 1-800-760-7977. Applicants should be prepared to: Check the Job Information Hotline for current openings. Jobs are updated each Friday. The deadline for applying for an open position is Thursday of each week. Tribal member applicants may also request to have job postings mailed to them. Complete an Application for Employ ment at Spirit Mountain Casino. Appli cations are available at the Human Re sources building 28840 S.W. Salmon River Highway, Grand Ronde. You may also request that an application be mailed to you. Resumes are also accepted, and en couraged. Schedule a screening appointment. The screening appointment is designed to pro vide customer service to Grand Ronde tribal members who are interested in working at the Casino. The purpose of this screening appointment is to discuss the best position for the applicant based on their experience and qualifications. The applicant will be informed if that position is currently open or will be in the near future. If there is an open position, the applicant will be sched uled to interview with the supervisor or manager of the department. If the appli cant does not qualify for a position at the Casino, they will be informed of the rea sons why and referred to the best resource to gain the experience, training, education andor social services needed to become a viable candidate. Complete a Security Packet. The Secu rity Packet is an application for a Gaming License. The gaming applications and li censes are reviewed, approved, and issued from the Grand Ronde Gaming Commis sion. Tribal member applicants will be given a Security Packet to complete after the screening appointment only. There are varying degrees of security licenses, which are dictated by the duties of a position. Orientation. If an applicant is granted a gaming license and is offered a position at Spirit Mountain Casino, heshe will need to attend a paid, three-day orientation before working on the Casino floor. During ori entation the applicant is able to tour the Ca sino, schedule their uniform fitting, learn about the history of the Grand Ronde Tribe and Spirit Mountain Casino. Training is also provided in the areas of policies, pro cedures, diversity, gaming regulations, and customer service. Spirit Mountain Casino is a company de voted to quality service, teamwork, growth, fun, and opportunity. Spirit Mountain Ca sino recognizes tribal preference practices for enrolled members of the Grand Ronde Tribe. Contact Sarah or Camille for further information. L- : .,.,,. J
