New AGA research shows gaming diversity outpacing national average

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New research commissioned by the American Gaming Association (AGA) indicates that, when it comes to minority representation in the workplace, the casino industry is ahead of the curve in some categories.

Looking at 26 member organizations in the supplier and operator categories, the AGA was able to look at a sampling of how diverse the industry currently is.

“Consumers, policymakers, and investors are raising their expectations for all businesses on how they contribute to society beyond the bottom line. Encompassing data from across commercial, tribal, and manufacturing gaming verticals, the survey both highlights our industry’s leadership on diversity while presenting areas for continued progress,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller.

“As today’s report shows, our industry has made impactful strides toward becoming more diverse, but there is more work to do. The AGA will use this research to engage our membership on how we can collectively advance DEI in gaming in the months and years to come.”

One area where the industry excelled, in particular, was racial diversity. Over 60% of the workforce in the study are racial minorities. By comparison, the hospitality industry averages 52% in that category while the national average is 42%. The manufacturing side of the business was not as diverse, with 45%, but that still trended ahead of the industry average of 38%.

Where there is more work to do is gender representation in the workforce, particularly at the more senior levels. The numbers from the research were in line with the same issues the US workforce is experiencing at the national level.

The overall gaming workforce is 48% female, but the gender representation across verticals varies wildly. Service workers, sales workers, and admin support workers are all majority female, while craft workers and technicians were overwhelmingly male.

Mid-level managers were split 59.4% male and 40.6% female, while the C-suite roles were 70% male and 30% female. These numbers are almost exactly in line with national averages.

The gender split is an area to work on but minority representation at the managerial level is above average with 45% minority representation. The C-suite still needs some work with 83% of roles being filled by white people, which is above the national average of 79%.