By Darelyn Pazdel
Hiring challenges continue to pressure the hospitality industry, and tribal casino resorts are feeling the strain more acutely than most.
According to the American Hotel & Lodging Association, 67% of hotel operators report being short‑staffed, with 12% describing themselves as severely understaffed—conditions that can directly affect service levels, guest satisfaction, and revenue.
For tribal casinos, workforce recruitment comes with added complexities. Extensive background checks, remote or rural locations outside traditional employment hubs, and round‑the‑clock operating needs can significantly narrow the available labor pool.
“Hiring can be difficult,” said Matt Montana, Human Resources Manager at Red Hawk Casino + Resort in Northern California. “Gaming requires more background checks, which limits the number of qualified applicants. Then you add in physically demanding roles like janitorial and custodial work, and the challenge grows.”
Located about 40 miles east of Sacramento, Red Hawk Casino + Resort welcomes roughly 10,000 guests daily across more than 78,000 square feet of gaming and non‑gaming space, supported by a 150‑room hotel. Despite using conventional recruitment strategies—including online job boards, job fairs, and local staffing agencies—persistent labor gaps remained.
Seeking a sustainable solution, Red Hawk turned to a supported employment model that recruits, trains, and supervises teams of employees with disabilities. These supported work groups consist of small teams—typically three to four employees—guided by an on‑site job coach who provides training, oversight, and support.
Within weeks, Red Hawk was able to staff critical environmental services roles with reliable, well‑trained teams. Transportation, supervision, payroll, compliance, and ongoing support were managed by the workforce partner, allowing casino leadership to focus on operations rather than recruitment logistics.
North of Sacramento, Thunder Valley Casino Resort implemented a similar approach. The AAA Four Diamond property includes a 17‑story, 408‑room luxury hotel and more than 144,000 square feet of gaming space. When the resort decided to bring laundry operations in‑house—building a 6,000‑square‑foot facility capable of processing 1,000 pounds of laundry per hour—it needed a dependable workforce available 24/7.
Thunder Valley partnered with a supported employment provider to staff its laundry facility with multiple work groups, eventually employing roughly 30 individuals with disabilities.
“It’s a great workforce,” said Brant Kelly, Director of Hotel Operations. “It’s been nothing but a pleasure to work with them.”
The results exceeded expectations. Laundry Manager Khawar Qureshi described the teams as an “elite laundry crew,” noting their consistency, efficiency, and work ethic, and encouraging others across the department to model their performance.
Longstanding success with inclusive hiring can also be found at Viejas Casino & Resort in Alpine, California. For more than a decade, Viejas has employed people with disabilities in custodial and laundry roles. Today, approximately 20 employees with disabilities support essential back‑of‑house operations.
Retention has been among the most notable benefits. One Viejas employee, recently featured by a local San Diego news station, has worked at the resort for over 10 years and expressed interest in continuing for another decade. Management describes the team as “family,” reflecting the strong sense of belonging and loyalty fostered through inclusive employment practices.
Across Red Hawk, Thunder Valley, and Viejas, leadership teams report common advantages: lower turnover, dependable attendance, high morale, and consistent performance in mission‑critical roles. These outcomes translate directly into operational stability—an increasingly valuable asset amid ongoing labor shortages.
Another benefit lies in reduced administrative burden. In supported employment partnerships, the service provider serves as the employer of record, handling background checks, onboarding, training, supervision, payroll, compliance, and in some cases transportation.
“The cost of hiring can be expensive,” Montana noted. “With this partnership, the employment provider handles those responsibilities. We focus on training employees on our systems, which saves time and simplifies the process. The on‑site coaching and transportation support also make it easy.”
Research supports these operational results. A National Institutes of Health review of more than 6,000 studies found that businesses actively hiring people with disabilities often see improvements in profitability, driven by lower turnover and absenteeism, increased employee loyalty, and enhanced brand reputation.
Red Hawk’s Environmental Services Manager Roxanna Carlson has seen those benefits firsthand. “Our experience hiring people with disabilities has been great,” she said. “They are some of our most productive employees. Attendance and retention have been outstanding, and they have been incredibly dependable.”
For tribal casino and resort operators navigating today’s workforce realities, inclusive hiring is more than a social initiative—it is a proven business strategy. By broadening the labor pool and investing in supported employment models, tribal enterprises can strengthen operations, uphold community values, and build resilient teams that deliver for guests every day.
Darelyn Pazdel is Senior Vice President of Workforce Inclusion at PRIDE Industries, the nation’s leading employer of people with disabilities.