The Sky Ute Casino Resort reopened its doors in April, following a yearlong shutdown. While still not operating at full capacity, the list of expanded services and venues are opening up quickly. Meanwhile the Casino is racing to fill employment positions left vacant by the pandemic closures.
“If you’re a tribal member interested in getting into the Casino — as a career path — this is the time to do it,” emphasized the Casino’s Assistant General Manager in Training, Andrea Taylor, although employment opportunities are not limited to tribal members. The RV Park and hotel rooms opened to the general public in mid-May. The Casino floor opened with a planned phased reopening for the tribal membership mid-April, a VIP guest list followed, then the general public. The Rolling Thunder bowling lanes opened May 19.
“We have two private banquets scheduled at the events center, Music in the Mountains and the Safari Club,” Taylor said. “Those are the first two we are going to have on the books. The energy is starting to pick up, we are getting more and more customers. I know that we are looking to open up Seven Rivers [Restaurant] soon and the table games.”
“Technically we could open the hotel to 100%, we are authorized by the IMT, but we lack the staff to fully open,” Taylor said.
The Casino has 30 different departments to work in, such as: AV, Food & Beverage, Marketing, Maintenance, Hotel Operations, Purchasing, Accounting, Slot Floor, and Sportsbook.
Casino full time positions all include 401K, health benefits, life insurance, paid time off (PTO), and opportunities for career advancement. Job listings are available on the Sky Ute Casino Resort webpage, as well as the Southern Ute Indian Tribe’s home page.
“Tribal member training is available if they call Human Resources Dept,” Taylor explained. “Tribal members can be trained as they go. Day shifts are available, weekend work is incentivized by tips. [There are] great opportunities for tribal members right now. We offer competitive wages with other casinos in the Four Corners region,” she added. “Incentives include bonuses for room attendants if they go above and beyond.”
The Sky Ute Casino Resort has implemented state-of-the-art technology to ensure that both guests and employees are thoroughly screened for Covid-19 symptoms to ensure that the Casino is a safe, risk free environment. Thermal imaging cameras have been installed at the main entrance, scanning body temperature of guests as they arrive. Individual temperature checks and hand sanitization is required at the door.
“We have an 85% vaccination rate among employees, and new protocols in place [throughout the casino],’ Taylor said. “We’ve instituted every covid cleaning protocol possible. Employees, vendors and guests all go through the same thorough screening process.”
The Casino has also implemented software to help enable social distancing on the large gaming floor, where patrons are allowed to move about freely. “We have a system on the gaming floor that automatically shuts down the games nearby — to facilitate social distancing,” Casino Assistant General Manager (AGM) Travis Garlick explained. “It’s called ‘In the Clear’ and it’s set up to automate social distancing. Table games and bingo are a bit more challenging due to social distancing,” he said.
“It’s week by week. Travel and tourism are definitely up,” Garlick said “We are just ecstatic in being open to the southern Ute tribal membership. But also, the general public at large — and excited for the future.”
“We added [Sky Ute] SportsBook, that’s something new and exciting here at the Casino,” Taylor added. “You can use the kiosk downstairs to bet instead of the phone app — if you want that one-on-one interaction. We have someone there to help get you acquainted with the app if you have any questions, or if you’re a first-time user — we can get you started.” Placing bets on the Smartphone app is available 24/7. Kiosks are open 9am-midnight for the time being.
Breakfast at Willow’s is available seven days a week, the Rolling Thunder Grill and the Coffee Bistro are also open. The swimming and fitness center is now open for resort guests, by reservation.
There are no “trainee” positions open at this time; however, if a Southern Ute tribal member is interested in working at the Casino, they can call Human Resources at 970-563-1311 to get more info on available training opportunities.