Hundreds expected back at work as SIGA gets set to open casino doors June 20

On June 20, hundreds of employees will be back on the job at casinos and restaurants run by the Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority (SIGA).

For SIGA president and CEO Zane Hansen, it’s a promising light at the end of a long tunnel.

“(We’re) really looking forward to it,” he said. “We’ll be closed, for the second closure here (due to COVID-19), about six months. So it’s been a long ordeal for our employees and our owners and the First Nations across the province, so we’re really looking forward to it.”

Casinos, bingo halls, theatres and other event facilities will be able to open their doors to the public once again June 20 with a maximum capacity of 150 people. It’s part of Step Two of the province’s reopening plan.

Hansen says 911 employees are waiting to get back to work not just in the casinos but in cafeterias and restaurants run by SIGA that operate in conjunction with the casinos.

“You’ll see slot machines being available and electronic table games,” he said. “We’ll have the deli counters going and we’re going to run some restaurants more in the evening service to start out. We’re just working out the final schedule details.”

On a typical evening, there can be hundreds of people packing any one of the half-dozen casinos operated by the gaming authority. Hansen says while a capacity of 150 people is a good starting point, he’s hoping that will increase in the weeks after reopening.

“If there’s one thing COVID has taught us, we’ve learned to adjust,” he said. “It’s better than being closed by all means; we’ll adjust our footprint and our size and cost model to live within that. Certainly in the long run we do need to get back to a normal-times operating level.”

For now, the core operating systems at the casinos have been maintained. Hansen says they’re very difficult to simply shut down, but a couple of weeks are still needed on the gaming floor for technicians to ensure everything is up and running.

After that, it’s cleaning and refreshing all areas of the casinos, then calling back staff for retraining. Hansen says it will all follow the province’s rules and regulations, and he can’t wait to see people back again.

“Right now, we’ve got to take small, careful steps and get back on our feet,” he said.