does anyone here work/has worked in a betting shop?

I'd advise against it. Mind numbing stuff, emptying FOBT machines because the bookies wont take proper bets on normal sport, getting abuse because they dont have sufficient staff and you have to void a bet because it goes through the till two seconds after the off due to someone asking for prices on his 5p lucky 15 etc etc.

yea i work for stan james in ireland

Abuse, petty rules that promote people being suspended/sacked....more abuse and unless there is not something else you could do, then would avoid like the plague...fwiw there is a large staff turnover which goes someway towards measuring the "value" of the job....

They always have vacancies because the staff turnover is so high, in large part because the big chains treat their staff like sh*t.

You'll end up single manning the shop at 9pm at night, with the only people in there pumping their money into the FOBTs. Which you'll then have to count in your own time before you can go home.

wh have changed so much in the last 5 years it is actually sad. The turnover of staff is crazy there now - it really is as if they do like seeing people fired and want people to not work in a happy environment with content staff who are proud to work for them.

If you want a career in gambling then I guess you have to do it for a while as it gets you in to it as a start.

Bad opening hours are a problem now and they could get worse etc... it's sad that they extend opening hours and do not consider the staff at all - a letter will just come telling you that the shop now opens later or earlier and the staff of the shop just have to adapt to it.

One main thing I found terrible with Hills was that they took people on contracts that were short hours - say 25 hours a week but they would work 40 and often more a week all the time, when it comes to holiday pay of course they only get the 25 hours. It's become driven by greed and the FOBTs and to an extent EPOS have driven the skill and knowledge out of the job significantly.

The training given is pretty poor as well now - most people high up on the retail side of things are not passionate about Sport or even Gambling now and the lack of knowledge is huge on the training courses - it is alarming just how high an amount of Shop Managers do not know what an arber is.

The backstabbing is terrible but it seems to be the same in most betting firms and not simply wh.

I really cannot put my finger on why wh became a hard place to work at - I think Topping must be a key reason though.

Like somebody above, I worked in shops when it was enjoyable. Stick the papers up, study form, chat to the punters, watch the racing and settle the bets, lock up I couldnt stand it now.

coral seem to have more people connected to sport

JC's recruitment and training is as bad as it sounds WH is. A mate went for an interview there recently, and they seemed to have no interest in the fact he had a decent knowledge of racing and sports. I sometimes go in the shop he applied for the job at, and the staff are absolutely clueless.

On the other side of the coin, my local is a JC and the manager and staff are all sound and know their stuff when it comes to the racing and sports. Sadly they don't appear to be the sort that these companies want now.

Having knowledge of sports is not even on their radar! When I ask them in WH to check odds for a prem game I have to tell them what league it is, disgraceful! Is it really too much for them to REMEMBER a few names. morons the lot of them.

hope this helps
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3aDO8P-BAM
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I was made redundant last year and eventually got desperate for a job so thought I'd apply for a bookmakers as it was a wage, albeit a not very good one, and an environment I thought I'd enjoy. Applied to all the big chains that were recruiting nearby and never even got an interview with any of them, 2 of them didn't even have the courtesy to reply to my application. I have 12 years customer service experience, a maths degree and although I'm not an expert in all sports, I have a bit of knowledge of the horses. Obviously wasn't enough to sit behind a counter for any of them. Doesn't say much for me though I suppose.

wh seems to have an ability to change people. Many people I worked with I noticed changing heavily as they tried to get further on in the firm yet all failed and have never got any higher than Shop Manager - subsequently they have left or been fired or got people fired.

People do seem to attack DOM'S a hell of a lot but in all honesty most of the time it is justified.

You may also find yourself having moral issues with the attitude of those higher up in the Firm who are pushing the FOBT'S on to people with the venom of a viper - I know I did and still do and it played a huge part in the incident that meant I was fired by wh and I am currently in the middle of an appeal regarding it. I am appealing as I want them to admit they made errors in appointing a man who lied on his CV, was rumoured to be related to Steve White (Area Manager) and his highest level of management experience was managing in the Computer games shop "GAME". A DOM was appointed who had no experience of the betting industry and was fired himself for the incident involving myself and him and numerous complaints from other members of Staff in our district and also amazingly other districts when he was on call for them - he should never of been given the job and the Area Manager who appointed him is to blame for that yet he has walked away scott free from this. I was used by wh as I had the audacity to stand up to a bully, the fact they sacked him following an investigation speaks volumes (he had been in the job 5 months) and the fact Steve White the Area Manager will still not answer relevant questions also does. A pathetic, shallow firm on the retail side of the operation - the amount of women who most go home in tears following being treated poorly by them must be high and I imagine many husbands, partners, brothers etc.... must feel like going and having it out with those who caused it regularly!

The Michelle Spurr case says a lot about wh these days:

http://www.dewsburyreporter.co.uk/news/local/dewsbury-news/bitch_slur_mum_s_163_27_000_payout_1_1347427

Having had this done to me by wh I would never advise anyone to work for them - there are far better firms out there no matter what you want to do in life. The amount of old school staff who strongly advise the young ones to get out while they are still young is amazing.

If you value yourself so little that you want to battling for the vacant position of "vending boss" for the district in order to feel a degree of importance go to wh. If you don't go to McDonalds or Burger King - the young ones in their seem to be miles happier than most of the young ones I saw pass through wh.

Probably a bit more than you bargained for there but these incidents seem to be common place with wh. I have many more - such as the Female Employee who was suspended for 6 weeks for serving a Serve Legal aged 19 years old! Two DOM's came in the Shop with no warning and took her keys off her, checked the tills and safe in front of a packed Shop at 1pm on a Saturday and was asked to leave the premises.

Full of class william hill - imagine your Mrs, bird, Sister or mate coming home after being treated like that. Pure filth.

grumpy you work at Willaim hill? Really?

Unfortunately it is a sad but true fact that you could be one error away from being sacked - such as not asking a Serve Legal for ID.

Anyone who has worked in a Shop in last two years will be agree with that statement.

Didn't know what a "Serve Legal" was so googled it..

their site has it's own "hall of fame" for their most hard working visitors

http://www.servelegal.co.uk/hall_of_fame

You forgot to mention that the rate of pay is lower than a restocker  (shelf-filler) in a supermarket!!!
The latter having no responsibilities to worry about,plus staff discount after a short term.

Imagine having to deal with idiots like this on a daily basis!!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9PkKfHE8Ec

thanks for responses. i wouldn't say i won't apply now but its certainly opened my eyes as i expected alot of positive feedback especially from people who like a punt. sad it seems as though gaming machines seem to be the dominant force. i was expecting it to relatively interesting.

Tell you a good one this clown of a DOM suggested in front of the Area Manager - that all Staff should register with Retail Eyes (the mystery shopper firm that Hills use) so you would know when the mystery shoppers were in the vicinity and you would be prepared for them.

What a cabbage.

Just out of interest what are FOBT's DOM's and EPOS

fixed odds betting terminals..district operations manager, EPOS is the till..and ALBOS is the monitor the staff look up prices et al