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I am becoming increasing concerned with the extent some employees with gambling addiction go to satisfy their addiction. That is, some of these employees go as far as defrauding, and stealing from their employers and go ahead to gamble with the money. Some time ago, a close buddy of mine narrated how he caught his colleague adjusting the sales records after removing some cash. After he confronted him, the colleague confessed that he usually use the money for betting. Below are several similar cases.

1- UK Addict Stole from JD Sports to Gamble on Crypto (https://www.gamblingnews.com/news/uk-addict-stole-from-jd-sports-to-gamble-on-crypto/)


2- Gambling Addict Goes to Jail for Stealing Company Money (https://www.gamblingnews.com/news/gambling-addict-goes-to-jail-for-stealing-company-money/)


3 - Addict Fueled Gambling by Scamming an Elderly Man (https://www.gamblingnews.com/news/addict-fueled-gambling-by-scamming-an-elderly-man/)


I'd like to know your thoughts -  Do you think that employers should screen potential employees for problem gambling before employment?

I've applied for several jobs so far at different places and no one has asked me if I like gambling or anything like that. I only got questions about what my hobbies are and what I can do as other skills, it makes a lot more sense to me than anything else.

A trick question is what's bad about you, it's a gray question to tell them about all our bad behavior so far. So basically they don't ask if we gamble or not, but every company wants employees who are honest and well behaved both outside and in the workplace.

One big question, HOW?

Most of the people who are gambling, especially gambling online really make their activity is private. Makes nobody, even their closer friend don't know do a gambling and someone who got addiction always keep their problem secret until there has some problem of their financial (Got some debts).

I think some company have taken "Credits score" on their jobs requirement, I know that's a requirement is not focused for gambling addiction person. But, is for targeting person who have a bad score kredits before they can work on their company.

It is difficulty to know gambling addicts? I was an addict before, no member of my family knew for over 5 years until I gambled with the money I supposed not to gamble with. The employers can not know.

The best is for the employers to take care of their business by making sure that no employee steal their money, gambling addicts are difficulty to know, if they want you not to know.

I feel like this is too much and its against basic human rights. You may think I am exaggerating this but think about this: People's hobbies are their private life outside working life. If you don't mix each other and mess your life you should be freely do anything you want. And all these so called scammer gamblers are scammers at first, gamblers at second. Being gambler doesn't automatically turn you into scammer/fraud. It is about personality.

You are right, but what if anything like that is indirectly asked during interview, but I expect addicts to know the right thing to say which would be in a way that they are not gambling at all. There are few questions that may be asked which the employers may see  necessary for not to accept any interviewee that failed it. But it would be weird if employers are looking towards that direction, but anything can happen.

I think it is very important that you take that assessment of a potential employee before he/she is given a job, the motive should not be  to completely penalize him/her but to understand if they are suitable for the position especially if it is a position regarding management of finance. People with gambling problems can be suitable for other positions that don't involve money, but never positions that involve money.

Same here, I've been through lots of interviews in the past years but I never came across some questions related to gambling or if I'm into any of these activities. There may be companies who will ask that upon the interview but I think that just rarely happen because the company is thinking that it is not any of their business as long as the employee if they passed the interview will uphold and do their jobs/tasks that was given to them in like a daily basis.

I don't like that idea. It's a clear violation of our privacy. It's unethical for me to ask that question to their applicants and used that as basis if they will accept that person or not. What if that person properly passed the initial interview that leads them to be qualify at the final interview.

If that question is being asked, these employers are already judging the book by its cover.

Refer to their performance later on, if they are not doing their properly their work, then take an action.

That's the reason there's a probation period for around 3-5 months at most, before upgrading the employee into regular status.

It's extremely dependent on the job type on whether they should have access to this sort of sensitive information or require a declaration from the employee. In certain scenarios like finance it can be important to weed out people who have these sort of problems, because they could potentially have access to vast sums of money and if they cannot control their own finances, they should not be allowed access to many other peoples. There are other jobs as well, like working for the security services in sensitive roles, that could make someone vulnerable to foreign powers if they are known to have a gambling addiction. This sort of vetting is usually declared up front and like with finance roles is required by law or insurance necessity, so if someone is not comfortable with it then they simply have to find a position that does not do such checks.

Its odd or something that you cant really hear from an interview but since we havent tested out on applying on a finance based or firm type of company then there might be those kind of questions but its not really

something that we could really say that this is something needed for it to be asked on any applicant since this is a personal matter.Stick with those important details or information rather than on focusing on this one

when it comes to screening but since they are the ones who do run off the business then its their right or have the full authority nor have the choice whether they would be asking it out or not.

Employers are mostly looking for good credentials. They won't surely bother with our activities in our personal life as long as they see us suitable and fit on the work we are applying for. Even for let's say that question will be asked, I think there's an employee who will admit they have a gambling problem.

Companies should be opened at all. In the interview, they can tell already if that employee is worth to hire.

If some shit happened involving that employee after being hired, then that's time to consider putting that person into watchlist as companies can't just fired their employee even if they want to as part of the Labor Act depending on per country.

What percentage of problems is associated with an employee's gambling addiction? I don't think it's so common that a separate screening for this parameter is required. In addition, in various jurisdictions, this can have negative consequences for the employer, since such an interest in the employee's private life may be perceived as illegal. And in jurisdictions where gambling addiction is considered a disease, it will also be an attempt to violate medical confidentiality, right? After all, if an employee has passed a medical examination and has all the necessary permits (including from a psychiatrist), then the employer should not independently dig into these cases for the details of interest to him.

Private companies didn’t care that much about the personal interest of the applicant as long as its qualified for the position, I think only banks and government agencies are strict with regards to this. Gambling addiction can happen once you already hired since you have now the money to support your addiction which probably can affect your job if left unattended. There’s actually no way for the employer to know if you are a gambling addict, especially if you are just doing it online and in crypto gambling.

Anyone could really deny if they do see that they had been testing out or trying out to be screened on whats your personal interest.It might really be that crossing the line but since you are applying for a job then you
wont really be having any choice but to answer but you arent that dumb on not to notice on what they are trying to avoid specially when we do talk about Gambling addiction then you would be surely trying out to
cover up yourself or trying out to deny that you are an addicted person since you know that it would really be decreasing out the chance or odds on getting hired once they do know that you are an addicted one.
So far i havent experience this kind of question of all the screenings and interviews that i had encountered.

Should employers screen employees for gambling problems before hiring them?

The fact that people ask questions like that shows how incorrigible and corrupt our ideas of employment are. Why should anyone get to pry into someone's life like that?

What's next, do employers get a list of my medical history and my bank statements for the last 10 years?

I think employers should not be given such rights. It's in human nature to make mistakes. We should not be penalized by random strangers in the future for them

If that employee work in accounting matter and will hand the money for the company that can be asked but of course the applicant will not disclose it because for sure he wants to stay private and if he is already addict in gambling, maybe he is just trying to find a job so he can start working away from gambling and change his lifestyle.

We should not judge them and instead if you see someone getting into gambling, educate them about the possible risk especially on losing the job if he get caught. Gambling is a private matter, though companies have their own rules so if its not allowed in the company better to stop it.

This is a nice question but for people that only play with crypto and are patient enough to only play at home at their own comfy environment and with their home IP and not with the IP in work this can easily be bypassed by any gambler who want to apply for a job and don't like to let their boss know that he likes to gamble.That is as easy as this.

If you are addicted and you can't resist the urge of gambling no matter where you are and you also gamble at work chances are high that your boss will find out eventually and you will be kicked out and fired from the position or job you are covering.Unfortunately there is no middle way,there is either the option to be happy to just gamble at home or the other one which you are addicted and keep playing whenever you are and whenever you have the possibility to do so.

The employer though has no right to screen or further investigate people what hobbies they have in their private life.

^ If related to finance or in accounting, it should be trusted and there is no negative background but I think this will earn a reputation by the time it is not quickly hired. When we talk about money even though not a gambling addict possible theft because people do crimes for money when they need it most so potentially even not a gambling addict can steal money from their company, we have a greedy attitude when it comes to money.
So screening would be good also to know your employee before you hired them.

I'm not sure about it though, I mean when we apply there are some psychological test that you need to passed. So maybe there could be some signs already there that could alarm the employer already not to hire the individual. But there could be someone that can't be caught initially before it's too late. So it's going to be extremely difficult really, even if they would screen applicants rigorously, it's not a sure fire formula to caught this gamblers. And yeah, your addiction could start right after you are hired by the company.

This is another job for HR and probably will not take this seriously and since I’m close to our HR the company I’m working with is not looking for this kind of addiction, they are purely looking for the skills, experiences and educational background in hiring people, gambling history is not their priority because I believe it’s a personal matter though it can only be investigated once the employee is exposed to money transactions in the company, I believe they should be more strict to this one to avoid any problem like this.

Yes, skills matter to the hiring company, not if they have gambling addiction or not. But definitely if the job requires you to handle other people's money then there could be some additional test that you have to undergo to test you mentally if you are capable of handling it. However, there could be cases that the individual might be entice on gambling right after he got the job. So that is the tricky part for the company to know in the beginning as gamblers are known to be very good at hiding their addictions.

Other personal things and interest or hobbies arent something that important for any job interview yet they would really be mostly be asking about applicants skills and qualification.It is really not that relevant for them to

ask out such manner since gambling isnt something that should really be prohibited or for someone to avoid to play on because this is really just for entertainment purposes and not some sort of prohibited thing.

Anyone could play freely and it is really just a personal decision or choice whether they would be making themselves addicted to it or not.

There were similar threads here. It reminds me of this (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5403819.0) one where people brought up very similar points.

People won't be honest with employers if they really want to get the job and you can't really follow them or check their browser history. Gambling is a bit like a person's sexual preference. You won't find out about it unless someone is willing to tell you. You can't make them do a urine test or something to find out if they gamble.

They would only able to know if there are solid evidences or some complaints or reports made by other co-workers that he's doing gambling but in overall it cant really be that possible to know such stuff.
Person would be definitely be denying that they are addicted to gambling or any other things that do connects out about addiction since once we do hear off about this word then it do really create out
that negative vibe which might be the cause for you not to get hired and this isnt what we do like.Just like on what been said by others that this is just for fun and something personal
where others shouldn't really needed for them to know.

If the position is in the finance department and that applicant will touch funds or budget from the company.

I believe that the HR should filter some questions that will know that an applicant is a gambling addict. It is an important matter to know for the company if their future employee is addicted to gambling or not.

I've seen it on the news about how an addicted gambler spent the fund of a company unnoticedly.

Gambling can be a real problem for some people. They tend to lose control, spend large amounts of money, and lose track of time. People who suffer from serious gambling addictions can have extremely negative impacts on their lives. It can be difficult for an employer to accept someone into a position with such a problem. But, do employers really have a right to ask applicants about their personal habits before giving them a job? I don't think so. An applicant's gambling history is an entirely private matter that shouldn't be discussed or brought up in an interview. It's none of the employer's business what you do with your time away from work.

I think it would depend on the kind of job the person is applying for.
If they are applying for a job which has to do with management of important quantities of money of others, then I believe it would be okey to screen the person economic story (credit score, whether they are compulsive person, etc.).

On the other hand if the person is applying for a position which there is no way they could damage the company or they are not managing huge amount of money, then there is no need to break into their privacy when comes to gambling and other enonomic habits.

Your company, your rule.

For those companies that figuring it out what are your hobbies, they can ask questions related to gambling but let it leave to the hiring managers. They should be the one on task doing and finding out who are the addicted ones if there's any.

They can give series of exams to their applicants but in an instance, the serious severe gambling addicts can just lie on those interviews and exams if they're being asked and then they'll still be able to go through the process.

Still does not make sense for me to ask that gambling-related question even though the job was within the Accounting field.

Mostly, questions should be related to accounting-related works. That was the most important question to be asked and not the employee's life in reality.

Even if an employee has a gambling-related problem, it doesn't mean that person is totally doomed and can't work well during office house. What if that person is still responsible and disciplined and more likely can still do his job properly without a problem? That's the thing that the employer should look at not those other things not related to work.

Anyway, I don't even know if the such situation really happened. Never in my life have I heard that employers, HR department, or those who are assigned as an interviewer asked such a thing in an interview.

I agree with some of the posts on page 1 how it becomes possible, because an applicant will say no even if he is gambler, because if he says yes then he will not get a job to fill open positions. Gambling is not a bad thing if the person is responsible for his work and personal, by screening workers for that position the thing an employer will definitely look at is skill, but I think in the financial position there is an additional that is honesty.

And that what makes it hard that even a company would really be having that kind of set-up which wouldnt really ensure that they could filter out gambling addicts which as been said that they could
really just simply deny that they are involved with gambling activity or simply being an addict.Its true that this is really just depending on the company owner or whether into its hiring manager
whether he would be asking this matter or would not.For companies which do involves huge money then i would understand if they would reach out into that certain extent
when it comes to these kind of questions which everyone could neither deny or accept about gambling addiction.

This is not applicable to every company, imagine if you are just an applying for a lower position and being asked like this, if you are an applicant you should be more aware of data privacy and this is not necessary though the company can really ask for this but still depend on them.

If you are not ok with this one, then better to look for another company where you can feel that they value your privacy and your freedom. Gambling is not bad at all, we can't generalize the problem that happened to your friend OP, many gamblers still know how to handle their finances properly.

Some employers do background checks. Which would return prior criminal cases related to a gambling addiction.

Beyond that there may not be a credible means of detecting gambling addiction. For all intents and purposes the background of a casual gambler and addict would look similar.

A push could be made for employers to do more background checks and deter hiring applicants with prior criminal history. But I think that trend is frowned upon.

Its unlikely that employers will implement routine background checks which would screen those with a past criminal history related to gambling addiction.

If they had similar issues like this in the past, they can do this as a precautionary measure and if the position that is going to fill in is all about finances they can do this, companies have their own rules it may be intruding on their employee's personal matters but they want to see to it that the character fits the position and they will have no future issues on the person holding the position.

It will definitely help companies if they could actually screen their applicants but how would they really do it? It's tough since they could gamble privately online or at the convenience of their home. Their best chance is if they see them play on popular land-based casinos but proving that they are heavily addicted is another thing.

Usually a company has different criteria in terms of recruiting its employees. Some are not strict at all, some are moderate, but some are strict. Of course, this will also usually be proportional to the wages that will be given to the workers. And if the company really relates or is sensitive to finances, then I think it's okay if they make such regulations or collect the information. this is because gambling addiction may be bad for him and his work environment. However, if the person is in recovery or has become good, it's just a matter of looking at the other qualifications for that person, whether it is appropriate and appropriate or not.

I doubt the idea of screening applicants for gambling problems before employment would hold water. Who is to say the same employers don't have gambling addictions?  Digital technology has simplified gambling to the extent that one doesn't have to visit any special spot to gamble, that's not to say one can't visit such places occasionally and try a few spins and stack some real-life odds.
How does one rate an addict, if the signs that show addiction don't manifest?
A better way I think they check if one has gambling problems is by checking for qualms arising from bad debt. You know the kind of deficit that is an open secret. It could lead them to ask an applicant during an oral interview. What do I know?

No...? I mean, if employees were able to steal money from their companies, I'm pretty sure they're just that skilled (if you can call it a skill), addict or not. Let's not even mention that identifying an addict in itself would be rather difficult, but in the first place, any employee can steal from their companies if they were skilled enough and they wanted to. These are similar cases related to gambling but there are probably a whole lot more other cases not even related to gambling. I'd rather make companies actually improve their security against outsiders and insiders.

Does it make everything alright if that kind of question will be asked or being screened to the applicants?

Judge the employee in the way they are handling the work assigned to them. If they do it properly, the companies have nothing to do if that person is having a gambling problem. What if the one who apply was really good at that position but has a gambling problem, is that a reason already that the person will not be hired or being fired?

Sounds unfair and not a friendly approach to me.

If im an applicant then i wouldn't really tell in regarding on what my hobbies are which does really have that chance on making yourself looks bad specially if it comes to addiction or does involved some

behavior which might really be putting up some risk on some company.They would really be that meticulous if ever they would really be ignoring or rejecting people who are involved on gambling.

I heavily agree on post above that its their rules since they do own the company or having the control of it, no matter or whatever rules or laws that had been implied
then it would be just basically needing for it to be followed by those people who managed on hiring people.

I guess it's the same as other jobs though, you go to interviews and I don't think that the employer will be interested on your personal life. But there could be jobs that require a full check, like court records and others. Of course, there could be data that it not going to be released to them because of privacy. So I would say no, and maybe the best thing to do is to really monitor them, tell your managers if they will see some signs of early gambling addiction or any problems that might arise in the future.

Like if your job handles money or accounting. Embezzlement is a common crime among accounting employees, when they are in it the temptation is strong to feed the addiction. Just like how we do in online casinos these days. Sometimes portfolio decreases because we took some funds to bet in casinos. I rarely do it but yes it happens and I'm not even an addict.

In my opinion employers should have the right to select the employee's profile they want, because after all it's a p2p deal between both parties exclusively which shouldn't involve anyone else. If a businessman doesn't want a gambler on his payroll, that is his right to not want to hire gamblers, even if they aren't problem gamblers, there is nothing they can do about it.

The same is valid for another aspects and characteristics including age, gender, health conditions... Not every companies will use this metodology when choosing their employees, though, so it's not a big issue if a gambler is denied by one of them, since there will be still many others where he can apply for a job.

Any job that relates to keeping or recording funds needs a high level of financial prudence and self control. Hence, checking if an applicant has gambling problem or addiction is recommended. But the truth is nobody would agree to inform an employer that he has gambling problem. Maybe the firm would have to get the information from past employers, friends or family members. This because in my country their is now reliable database to check the criminal status or employment records of applicants.

Without a doubt someone that is managing a lot of money will be investigated way more profoundly than your average employee, and without a doubt criminal records will play a part in that investigation, so anyone that had any kind of addiction problem will probably never be considered for those kind of jobs, which shows why it is important to keep your records as clean as possible as you will never know the opportunities that you could lose due to any slip you may have had during your life.

It is usual for a business owner to want to know the background of his employees to avoid problems that could occur in the future. But usually, employees who don't have problems can later cause problems in the future because everyone can change, whether it turns out to be good or bad. Here the employee needs to have the honesty to be able to tell about himself so that the casino owner can find out and maybe be able to provide a solution before he accepts that person as his employee. But that is very rare in a business place because usually the company only sees educational data, a glimpse of him, where he has worked before. For others, the company will check later.

if they can find them out? then of course i don't wanna hire an employee that has been hard involvement into gambling because one way or another? gambling will surely be a boundary of problem from his part , maybe not in the beginning but eventually this will be a serious problem from the employer and of course the employee.

Employers have the right to pick their employees especially if the job requires in dealing with people directly, I wouldn't want to risk that a customer would caught an employee gambling when they are on duty. Also screening applicants with gambling addiction would be hard since they can just deny it.

because it is their company and money that will loss along the way if they choose the wrong employee , and besides why would hire someone who is badly involving is gambling when there are lot of applicant that competent in the position and with no hassle in long time?
maybe those gamblers should realized that they must not turn their self in gambling more so they will not be penalize in finding job in the future.

Yes, just as employers should also carefully screen applicants for other possible mental disorders. There is a reason why potential employees have to go through different levels of neurological and psychological exams before being accepted for a certain job. There is a reason why series of interviews and background checks will have to be conducted on a job candidate. This isn't only for the employer to successfully pick the best person. This is also to keep the company safe and secured.

I remembered there was a huge company in my country that went bankrupt and closed after decades of operation because of an employee who's addicted to gambling.

Having said this, monitoring and screening should be done not just to potential employees but also to current employees.

i think there were circulating issue years ago when employers are checking facebook accounts of employees.
if the employers have the means to check. pretty much they have limited to what they could check since online gamblers are doing it privately  on their phones. even their wives today is likely not aware their husbands are betting on sports or playing poker on the phones.

I have some friends that gambled almost all their Life but still manages to work completely good, they are even one of the best employee in their field so I think this is depending on how the employee work and how is the managerial team taking this into account.

Yeah they might be gambling but after the work or at least with the amount they are only willing to lose and not a type of addicted gambler  who spend all their money to sustain their addiction.

Maybe the question will be how to screen it? through interviews? Surely every prospective employee will be prepared to answer questions well, including questions that may be trapping so as not to reveal his habits that reduce his chances of being accepted for work.
Or through testing? I think this is still unclear.
Actually, if an employee of a company experiences addiction, it will be seen from his work performance and the company can investigate before anything harmful happens because the employee steals or something else.

If necessary, the gambling company can conduct interviews to screen employees trusted to occupy the position, especially if the position is related to finance.
With the interview and screening, it is hoped that the company can get honest employees who can be relied on in their work and provide good performance.
However, this may take a bit longer than the usual interviews companies do because this screening aims to select the right employees.
I'm sure the gambling companies can find the right people who will work for their company.

I knew a lot of problem gambler that has no job at all but rather have there own business as source of money. Only few regular employee has the courage to soaked in gambling activities because they don't have time for it due to there job this is the reason why the employer doesn't care about this on job interview because they knew that only few problem gambler will have courage to go on job interview.

But incase there's someone will, I don't think it will be a problem because he is working 8hrs a day which means he will be away in gambling most of his time.

It should be since one of the jobs of an employer is to do a background check of the applicant to make a safe and secure environment for other employees and to safety the reputation of the company.  History of gambling habits and other vices that may lead to addiction must be checked by the employer.  This is the reason why the applicant is being interviewed and asked questions including their habits, hobby, and some needed personal information. Some company also make a background check on the employee to make sure that all data submitted is correct.

You are asking this as if the employers must be required by the law to screen their employees for addictions(not just gambling, but drug or alcohol abuse). I'm not sure about such labor laws being implemented anywhere around the world.
In reality, every employer decides whether or not to test his job candidates for such addictions.
I'm not an expert on labor legislation, but refusing to hire a person because he has an addiction can be considered as discrimination.
This might be the same as refusing to hire a disabled person, because he or she is disabled.
I don't know how such addictions can be spotted in a job interview. Simply asking the candidate "Do you have any addictions?" won't work.

- I have experienced many times as an applicant, and almost all the companies I have applied to have never asked me about gambling.

  But if I amone of the employer, maybe it would be good for me to know that from an applicant during their interview. Because it can be included in
  my company when the time comes that I have an employee whom I don't know is addicted to gambling. It might even be a reason for my future
  employee to steal from my company just because of an applicant's gambling habit. But this is just a scenario as I said.

It's ok to screen applicants if they have past gambling problem but that shouldn't just be the reason if he will get rejected. There are gamblers who know their boundaries and doesn't bring their personal issues or habits on their work. Though there are gamblers who have extreme addiction that could resort to some crime to the company or their workmate but only few would go that far because they could go to jail if they really do it.

I understand your concern that companies need to protect themselves as much as possible, but this should always be a trade off against the privacy rights of the employees. Should a company really know everything we do in our free time and that on a continuous basis? What if you go one week per year with your buddies on a man only trip to Las Vegas to have some fun? This could have series consequences if your employer knows it, even if it doesn't affect the work performance at all. In my opinion should all jobs that handle money have atleast one layer of supervision to protect itself from theft. But only targeting gamblers seems a bit excessive, I think there are many thieves who are not gamblers.

That is really disruptive as well. I mean you should always be honest to your boss and your workplace. But you know the fact that they do not want to hire you if you are addicted to gambling. So its very hard to not lie about it. But I agree with you as I am very sure many people lie about it so when they were researched its shown. Working life is really hard in today's world in the end.

Maybe only companies engaged in gambling will ask about gambling, because indeed all work does not always depend on it, maybe another time some of your friends will discuss gambling, but when it happens and we already understand very well about gambling then I better keep it a secret and watch my friend give information about his gambling, So that in that way your secrets about gambling are kept safe without being known to many people.

I do not see this as the violation of privacy right, according to OP, it is just screening which can be a text, an examination or an interview, the employer is not checking the employee personal life like checking his mobile phone or personal computer or looking for other means like contacting gambling sites if the employee registered on their gambling site and if he his losing very much. Being screening does not mean it is violating privacy right. If the employee doesnkit like the screening, he can quit.

I am not saying I am supporting this too, how can employers even think to such extent, what they are concerned about is the progress of the company, with the right supervisor and monitoring, it would be hard for a worker to misbehave, but if the worker misbehaved and mismanaged the company's money, he would serve a jail term.

For the sake of maintaining good records and proper accountability i think it is a welcome idea if employers decides to screen potential employees for gambling problems before any employment especially if the will be working in the finance sector. The fact is this gambling issues can ruin an organisation if an addict gets to work in the financial sector of such organisation there are high chances such  employee might get tempted to manipulate the companies balance sheet or account records to satisfy their urge

they can or not ? still it is a company policy or interest to what is best for their business but of course it is now always a bad employee having a gambler employee so it is their way of showing how they wanted the company to run.

If I were the boss? I will choose who is the most qualify no matter if they are a gambler or not.

How can you possibly know that? I mean most of the time, one can actually deny.
Also, not everyone who got addicted with gambling losses it's mind and steal company properties. It could be that they're looking for a job to support their gambling needs. We cannot simply put justification on a person's vices. What really matters when employing someone is his quality of work, regardless if he's a hardcore gambler as long as he delivers and produces good outcome with the company.
Well, companies also have the right to deny applications from gamblers as they see these people the problem in the future.
However, how would the company possibly know an applicant is into gambling, if one can simply deny?

I personally don't think so. However, help should be offered. I know therapy can only do so much, but the reason a lot of people turn to gambling is because they're poor, and they're trying to get out of that. That might sound counter productive, but I bet most of us know that this happens, and usually it results in them being even more worse off.

The system is basically designed to keep you poor, and I can't blame someone for looking for an alternative. However, I'm not advocating the crimes committed in the OP, obviously. However, I do believe more help should be provided by the government for struggling families, since they only get into gambling for a reason.

Maybe, gambling companies should have proof of income like credit cards have, and a approval system put in place, but then we're starting to get into KYC territory.

It depends on the position, if his position doesn't have to do with financing then the employer doesn't have to screen him its discrimination, but the employee will understand when it comes to money because the manager will trust him with the company's money and they need a very good candidate that is living clean, the candidate has a huge responsibility in his shoulder so the employer has the right if the candidate is a compulsive gambler.

This is the reason why there's a training for their employees to make sure and at the same time is there's a contract to their employees to make sure it is all filtered and they caught back those. Also it is a huge responsible being part of the gambling casino because it is all about the money and winnings that might lose the profit of the company itself.

I agree with you, this question is too personal if a company is interviewing prospective new employees asking things like that, the problem of hobbies is fun for everyone regardless of the type of hobby, as well as the hobby of gambling.
Everyone has the right to like their respective hobbies as long as it doesn't harm other people, the company or family. the behavior of a person as described by the OP, does not reflect and identify that every gambler will commit a criminal act, a scammer/fraud. so the point is, only a small number of gamblers commit criminal acts to fulfill their addictive desires, if a worker's personality is good, then he will not commit unreasonable acts even though he likes gambling.

I think companies that want to accept new employees will not check for more details on the prospective employee, especially if later the new employee's position is just an ordinary employee. Although the new employee will be placed in a position related to finance, I think they will use a psychological test to see how an employee is. This is common in many companies. Maybe if the employee has worked at the company for a long time, the manager or company can discover the employee's habits to observe or suggest employees change towards self-improvement.

Well, the hiring managers could do some trick and strategies for them to have it done and do the background check if the person they're about to hire is a gambling addict or not.

That's going to make the company safe from future problems since, it's not just the reputation that's important to them but also the hiring process that is costing them money and time.

OP, if I were the boss of the company then I would have screened completely because I thought it would be good for my company. It's not that I hate gamblers, but it's good if the employees I have can appreciate his hard work for something that is valuable to him, his family and others. However, I have no right to regulate other people's lives outside the context of their professionalism at work. It's his life, and that's his right but I just want them to be able to focus on work without being distracted by his gambling habits.

But there are many cases where these employees are not able to work properly after they become very bad gamblers. They lose focus on their work and can even bankrupt their owners financially. This happened to several store employees whose owners I knew all along.

This is one of the good reasons why you must be an experienced inventor, CEO, or casino game founder to be able to know and understand the whole system and how its been run, some work with other reputable organization to gain this knowledge and experience beforr embarking on their own casino then employs operators, but his operators also needed to be monitored by you because all access must not be vested on them all, else they make abuse of it to their oen interest, but when you're tech savvey, that alone will make them realize that you need nkt to hesitate a legal action on them if found misbehaving, lot of people and casino owners have been deprived lots of acess to their funds in an irrecoverable manner by the employees who serves as gambling operators, let's learn to do things all by ourselves.

I agree with Mauser here
we shouldn't normalize giving up privacy rights, it's a slope that is hard to revert once we do
if a person has a gambling problem, let's say, but that doesn't affect their performance at work, why it would be an issue?

I don't think employers must ask such a thing unless the job description is related to finance. As long as the job description doesn't include the financial management of the company, I don't think asking about that private matter would be important. As long as the employee is providing a good service and gives his best performance at work, his gambling background doesn't have to be a big deal.

That's really hard to find out if the prospective applicant is a compulsive gambler but the company can sign the applicant to disclosure contract that if they find out that he is into gambling he will voluntary resign, the company should still do an investigation on the character of the applicant especially if he's holding a sensitive position on their finances, its easy to check on physical casinos but hard on online casinos.

If he's in finance jobs relation, it will be easier for him to corrupt the company funds. But the other jobs that doesn't have relation with finance could make a behind agreement with the finance jobs and he will get money to gamble.

I think a good and healthy employee must not have any gambling problem because you wouldn't know what they will do if they're already familiar with your company and close enough with other employees.

I think it's important because this can cause job-related conflict in the future especially if an employee is really addicted to gambling. That doesn't mean that his not fit and needs to seek professional help first. If the interviewer would get to ask any gambling related questions, he should not ask them directly because it might offend the applicant. He should ask it in a good manner.

If I were applying for a position that is directly handling money for the company, perhaps I am subject to such screenings. But if my tasks do not include handling any money for the company whatsoever, I don't think this should  matter to them at all. I am there to work for them and be paid, and whatever I do with my salary afterwards is not of their concern so long as I do not tarnish or use their name to associate with my activities.

Employers should not treat their employees as if they own them. That's not how it works.

I don't think that will be necessary to do because a lot of gambling addicts do most of their gambling online only a few do it offline or physically. It will also be seen as an embarrassment to the employee as gambling is something that has to do with their personal lives, the only thing I would suggest in this case is to check their curriculum vitae then the company wishing to employ such a person can make a private investigation just to be sure if the person they wish to employ have good records it must not be based on gambling addiction.

I think some game companies have done some restriction for their workers, they stop them from playing the games but to only concentrate on staking for the customers. This really works because no matter how they are tempted to stake for themselves, they look at the rules of not playing by themselves and this limit their involvement in the games which will also discourage them from playing with the company's money. The penalty for betting by employees is an immediate sake from the job if caught.

If I own a company and my employee is a gambler I don’t really care but it depends on the position the person is heading in my company. If the employee is in charge of account section them definitely I will screen the employee out, I can’t really risk my funds with a gambler, have seen gambler’s doing illegal things just to make money to gamble, am talking from expensive, have seen people steal just because of money, so I can’t risk my money but if the gambler is not in account section then I don’t have problem with that.

There has to be some sort of balance in knowing the private hobbies of the person and their respective interests to the company.

Regardless, I think companies should not mandatorily infringe the privacy of their employees just because they gamble. Even if they have such hobbies but they still meet the expectations of the company, then I see no reason for these employers to screen their applicants. This should only be done if their output is hindered due to the intense and extreme causes of gambling addiction.

As much as this is favourable to the employee, employers should not screen but rather promote a healthy workspace that encourages different lifestyles. They should, in no case, meddle with their private affairs.

I feel like there's no need for employers to do that even though there's a possibility for problem gambling to affect their employees it's still unlikely they'd destroy their reputation and career when the downside is much bigger compared to the little upsides they'd get if they decide to go there. For me if my employees are doing well regardless of the problem they have with gambling then it shouldn't be brought up unless it's starting to affect their performance in work as well.

I think many workers or employees are involved in gambling, especially online gambling, and most of them only use their own money from salary.
to ask or some kind of interview to ask questions related to gambling I don't think they will be honest because it's their right, and only stupid workers or employees who commit theft or fraud in financial matters are taken to play gambling. And if I were their employer or boss, I would fire them and that would be the next lesson not to waste their work and not make the same mistakes.

Definite "Problem Gambling"
Since that sound very vague and depend on what kind of people think about it. Some even consider one or two bets per week is a problem. Of course not, it was a very harmless and typical trick for HR to nitpick you and reduce your wage on the employment. I didn't realize HR can not cite "Problem Gambling" to shit on your CV for jobs. So what? We're on the same level of homeless or druggie now?

This is not only related to gambling, people often stole their company money in different forms and for various reasons but people who did for to satisfy their gambling urge may not even close to 0.1% of all the reasons we get from thise employees once they get caught. Employers should have better financial structure to avoid these kind of actions from employees.

In most cases, company that have a strict background checking will be asking for this kind of information but like you I also don't agree
that employee should be asked regarding to this kind of private information, sort of hobby or a part of being entertained. If the person still meets the qualification, just allow him to fill the position and let him do his work.

Personal life should be taken a part from the business side, interfere only if there's already a problem that occurs which affecting the employee functionally around the company.

otherwise, if he's not being affected, then let him do whatever he wants he deserve the salary and it's on him to where to take it.

It seems that most people do not agree with the inspection because of the right to privacy. But if we look at it from an entrepreneur's point of view, this will still be a problem especially if something like this has happened before. In fact, no matter how private workers are about their personal activities, the problem is that gambling addiction can lead to potential crime in the workplace. More selective acceptance of employees must still be applied and does not mean rejecting them without any consideration at all. There are several methods that can guarantee that everything will (at least) go well, such as confiscation of employee original documents as long as they are bound to become employees.

I don't agree with you. Even if a person is into gambling it does not mean that he is irresponsible for work or money. There are plenty of professional poker players who are no worse than employees who do not gamble. 

In general, I think it's not just a breach of confidentiality but rather the fact that an innocent person is discriminated against by this approach. 

Cases of theft and gambling by workers as the OP mentioned, are common in every country, especially workers in private companies, where there are several cases that end up in law enforcement and end up behind bars.

Speaking of worker screening, at first the employer thought the person was good, of course many employers didn't know the worker was gambling or not, in general, It was discovered that after several months of work the company's money was often lost and the bookkeeping was not appropriate, for that in my opinion, there is no need for filtering, what needs to be done is: installing CCTV at points and company rooms, especially cashiers, the possibility of theft can be avoided, if workers are also addicted to gambling, Of course he would use their salary money, without losing the company money.

Well, it seems to me that it depends on the field where the candidate who is hired works, and since in reality gambling addiction can become a significant problem for the employer if it is related to the employee's access to finance or some kind of information in critical areas.

In short, NO! There first off isn't any way that they would be able to do so.  Secondly, it's none of their business what they do in their off time outside of work if it's not illegal and doesn't effect their job performance in any way.  Employers do enough nonsense when it comes to making hires, such as drug tests ...so this is hard no for me.

I don't think the company has the right to restrict its employees from gambling outside of their work activities, but the company has the right to prohibit their employees from gambling if indeed they do gambling during working hours, I think, gambling is a personal right as long as he doesn't harm other people or the place where he works, however, if the gambler has used the money and gave the company a loss just because of his gambling activities, of course the company has the right to fire him or even demand compensation from the employee.

It's not up to employers to check background of employees. If they're gambling at work, sure, they can be fired, but this is pretty much the case with all else. If smoking at work is forbidden and they smoke you can fire them, but you can't fire them for smoking at home and they don't have to tell you if they smoke at home. It's their private thing and so is gambling.


You're wrong. They cannot ask for specific behavior and if they do you don't have to answer. It's like if they asked you if you have a girlfriend. It's private info they can't ask about it.

in every country in the world there are laws, and in this part of laws it is well divided to the point that there are labor laws, even if someone owns a company, that person cannot say: " are you addicted to something? " that type of question in the job interview may lead the job seeker to file a criminal case in court and the court will order the company to indemnify the person who was asking for a job because it understands that you cannot discriminate against people, people have the right to do so. When the company hires someone, it is hiring an employee with X, Y and Z skills. The company cannot be investigating people's personal lives.


even if the person is hired and steals money, this task of investigating is the task of the police because it is a crime, the company has no right to investigate the personal life of employees


again: all countries in the world have clear labor laws, and all companies must respect these labor laws, a company has no right to discriminate and judge anyone's life. the company has nothing to do with employees' private affairs, what happens outside the company is not the company's responsibility. for example:

when a person is hired to be a director of a company, cannot that person be addicted to drinking? how many people are addicted to alcohol and drugs and are presidents of big companies? there are a lot of people. But why aren't these people fired? the answer is simple: because these people behave well at work and the company has no right to interfere in the personal affairs of the company president


no, this is against the law, the company cannot investigate the private life of employees, this can be considered a crime and can lead the company to pay a heavy fine. from the moment an employee leaves work he has the right to do what he wants in his private life. if the person is addicted to alcohol, sex, gambling, these have nothing to do with the company, they are private matters for the employee.


Governments have put clear labor laws, a company has no right to interfere in employees' private lives, this is clear in labor laws. The company hires employees based on skill. look as an example:

how many people do you see leaving work and then going to drink? there are a lot of people. and we all know that most of these people are addicted to alcohol

Yes, of course, the company does not have the right to prohibit employees from gambling outside of working hours, but they have the right not to hire people with gambling addiction if it can somehow harm the company's activities or image, depending on what position the employee is applying for.

You got a point but often times people with addiction often messed up their work.  The company does not concern with how the employee spends their salary but the effectiveness of the employee during their duty and how they abide by the regulation of the company.  So to avoid unnecessary headaches, the employer checked the background of their employee even asking for a good moral certificate, police clearance, medical clearance etc.


Well during working hours, employees are supposed to dedicate their time to their work because they are getting paid for it.  And background checking does not mean employers are owning the applicant.  This is just for safety measure.

Its really not of their business on asking out on things that you've been doing specially those personal choice that you do made.Its not their right on knowing it but since you are applying for a job then there's a

chance that they might be asking it and you dont have choice but to answer and its up to you whether you would really be that honest or would be simply ignoring and making lies in regarding to it.

Gambling is an activity or entertainment and there's nothing wrong if someone do make out involvement or not.Just make things everything on control and you are just fine.

For the instance that I have made, the game house don't allow anybody to stake for themselves but if it is above closely hours, you can play from somewhere that is not the company because you are expected to have closed.

No matter the field of the candidate or employees, whoever has the tendency of stealing will eventually go with that because it is on the blood.

Addicted to gambling or not, people would still do things like stealing or getting something which arent theirs which is totally the reality of this world.
People are different when it comes to mindset and plans that they do have in mind.Some do really wants to play fair and some wants the fastest way
on attaining things without doing much hard work and this is why they do really end up on illegal way.

According to the friend of mine who is addicted to gambling,  he told me that he doesn't really gamble, and does not feel it when ever he does not have money,  but the addiction takes its full force on him immediately money enters his hands,  to the extent that he feels restless until he has gambled the money away.

So,  what point am I trying to make from the above story?,  most addicted gamblers don't actually gamble when they have no money,  that is no job or source of income,  their gambling addiction grips them as soon as they start earning money or find a source through which they can be getting money.

So for me,  I think the screening for gambling addiction is not needed, as it will be difficult to catch an addicted gambler that way,  I can only suggest that the employer suspend or sack the employee immediately it is discovered that he or she is an addicted gambler and have been stealing from the company/employer.

A person lands into the act of stealing and similar things when he isn't able to make progress or meet his needs. As said, even the person who isn't involved into gambling does stealing of money. With addicted gamblers one day he could've made a mistake by playing with others money, and the same continues when he/she doesn't have the money to spend. Screening applicants for problem gambling won't be possible. Because, these kind of acts happen out of situation and not by intention.

That would be very George Orwellian to have to undergo detection for mind crimes, you could bet alot and it not be a problem.   The main thing employers sometimes do screen for is a credit check perhaps  in some jobs you cannot be in debt or suffering pressure financially because of the problem that might bring with it to your performance.  I know bank employees have to be extra vigilant on debt and be willing only to bank with their employee but in that industry its understandable.   Most firms its none of their business, at most a check on any prior convictions beyond that is paranoid.

These kind of information are illegal in some countries to be obtained due privacy laws and it's clear illegal obtain such data.
Plus they can't save these information. or share with a third part.

in general most of the times it's well known if someone has gambling problem likewise there are some precedents on criminal records...
Or there are also other serious issues (e.g. coming late at job, appear violent with colleagues, taking big debts, etc)

I think it's a hassle for employers to do background checks. I don't know how employment works in other countries but here, employers are asking their applicants to provide Police Clearances and NBI documents. That document is proof that the person is free from criminal records.

And yes, I agree with your last statement that it's really unlikely that companies will screen their applicants about anything related to gambling addiction even if that department is more of handling money. What they are looking is if that person is really capable to do the works.

Privacy is not absolute. If you're applying for a job, you will give your complete name, complete address, brother and sister's names, parents' names, wife's name, children's names, their birthdays, their jobs, their contact numbers, your schools, your religion, and so many other information about you. Moreover, you will be interviewed about your plans in life, your likes and dislikes, your opinions on things, your hobbies, and so on. The company would talk to your previous supervisor, your neighbor, your university teacher, your friend, and so on and ask about your life. You would also be sharing whether you have illnesses and certain physical conditions. They would even inquire whether you have tattoos and piercings in your body. And beyond what you directly provide, neuro and psychological exams even get to know your tendencies, your character, your attitude, your behavior on certain occasions, and so forth.

These information do not necessarily suggest whether or not you're fit to have the job.

I don't think employers should do any kind of problem gambling tests or similar, unless the job is at a casino or something.

There are many ways in which things can go wrong when you hire someone, not just problem gamblers, and you can't possibly test the employee for everything.

You need to have a proper face to face assessment of the person and see if he or she is able to do the job and if you're willing to trust that person. That's pretty much it. It's a bit of a gamble to hire someone, but that's part of being a human, it's a human relationship in the end.

Maybe that's true. But if the company suspects an employee is trying to start a crime, the company can hire someone to find out what he is doing outside of working hours so that if there is evidence that points to a crime, it can be dealt with immediately. Thus, the company also tries to prevent unwanted things from happening in its business and to find out whether its employees are good or can negatively impact the company or other employees.

 - You are right in that matter Sir because I remembered what a close friend told mine, who owns a business, he told me when he had an employee who had a gambling habit, he found out when there was a problem in his business with money missing from their branch, and he discovered that what his business sold was taken by his employee who was addicted to gambling because he owed a lot to the gambling business, so he dismissed it for termination and even filed a case because A lot of money was also taken from the advantage of his business.

They should, but in my opinion, it doesn't really matter. If they will ask it during the interview, it could be easily avoided, and they won't know if the person is telling the truth unless they are going to use lie detector. Also, even though a certain individual has no problem in gambling addiction, it could be develop while he is working in a certain casino because of so many things.

I believe one of them is because of an influence of a certain individual who is good in brainwashing people to make the plan get a high chance of being successful, like stealing casino money etc.

I am not that strict because I know that each person has their rights in working  and in joining company , no matter if they are gamblers or not because what is important is that how they will follow the rules and obey orders .

the company will pay depend in their performance , if the company find them not competitive then maybe kicking them that day is basically correct.

Well said, whether they're problem gamblers or gambling addicts is not at all an issue. The prime factor that needs to be considered while hiring a person is his skills and whether he suits the position for which he/she is being hired. After that if he isn't able to finish his tasks by time kicking off is the right choice.

They are skilled thieves if they manage to steal and never get caught not even on a surveillance camera. Not all who do stealing are addicts but each of them has a different reason. There's that they steal for the sake of their family but if I were them I won't do that because they are already working on that company, which means they can earn money already. If they really need a money and it's still a long way to go before their pay check arrives, they can always do a cash advance from their employers.

I am sure that every good employers will always agree with that, only to retain their workers. I think there are no rules from screening an applicant so the op's idea is always possible to conduct.

If the employers know how to do effectively and they think that it is something good to be implemented, why not? However I have never heard there is a company do such screening to their potential employees. Stealing company's money may happen not only because of gambling problem but there are many other various reasons. If the main purpose is to minimize this bad thing, the security of the company should be improved so the chance for their employees to steal money is low.

It is a matter of thought, and mostly looking into it same situation has happened in my place of work where someone uses money that was meant for a staff to deliver goods to clients was used to play virtual game in a local betting shop opposite the company thinking to replaced the fund immediately his selected virtual games played successfully. This was very disastrous and a though issues from him, immediately he lost the money from gambling he ran to me crying that he used the money cashier gave to him for delivery on gambling and now he lost the money and didn't win. Though i do have human sympathy and not being so apparty, i did replace the money from my personal pocket and asked him not to gamble next with company's fund. That was how i saved him from losing his job.

Also noticed that gamblers are always out of funds that is, being out of cash at all times since they almost gamble with their funds i have witness many cases which is why a gamble addict find it difficult to live a debt free life.

Lastly i would say if anyone is making employment there should be a recommendation letter from their local authority's to attestify if they have any bad records concerning money misconduct in their locality or within the previously worked company before making an employment to avoid further damages from the company.

Asking them directly does not mean or related to any offence or human right violation, during interview, the interviewers ask questions in good manners, the interview would be good and official. But anyone can mismanaged money, it can be for other reasons which may not be related to gambling, not only gambling addicts can mismanaged money, there are many other money mismanagements that are not related to gambling, most of it are related to the company not able to keep track of their funds as fast as possible and appropriately.

I know of a very big betting house around my area. The employer only employs girls to work for him. He has close to about 10 girls as staff working for him and he made a young guy as the manager to be covering and run around for the affairs of the betting, to keep it going.
I think this might be one of the reasons for his taking such a decision of employing only girls cos he knows the dangers he might face in employing guys at times runs in the betting house

If their products is related with something useful or which can be called as collectors item then maybe its good to include the gambling addiction screen so that they can make sure that their employees is in good state of mind. Because sometimes having this issues is really a huge problem not only with the company but also with their fellow employee since those guys can disturb the harmonious workplace on the company.

Maybe because of the risk of these collectibles ending up being stolen by the addict? I guess that in every business where, by definition, there will be some money or value attached, the risk is there. But the employer has not the right to ask about addictions in many jurisdictions, the same as asking for political/religious/ideological/sexual inclinations, or if you want to have a baby soon or not.

If they were involved in a crime then yes, but info only about gambling addiction with no crimes attached I don't think they can ask it.

No employing only girls may not be the reason that he has done that to avoid his money used for gambling by his workers because this time around girls are getting more active in gambling and otherwise he shouldn't have employed a boy to be the manager. He may have his own reason but I don't think it is for the reason that we are discussing here. Remember women are discreet enough more than men so they can even hide all the traces that can link the owner to think they do bet behind him. I have witnessed a young girl working in a bet store and she bet secretly, when she wins she does the cash out from the boyfriend's account.

Most of the time the reason why the employers hire girls is they know the capability and loyalty of those and of course at the same time is to get easily a lot of customers because of the possible aesthetically pleasing appearance of them at the same time, but of course, it is good to have a balance thing in the work to make sure it is to be fair with the skill set requirement of the job they needed.

Most establishment hire girls especially teens that have a good figure to attract customers.  It is part of the marketing strategy of the owner.  I do not think that the reason why the girls are only hire is because of your stated reason.  Admit it or not, in an establishment dominated by guy clients, the best thing to attract them and return is to have something that interest them.  And this time the best lure is hiring girls to serve in the establishment.

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The reason for an interview is to get a bit of information from the personal background of the person.  So questions like addictions and stuff can be asked directly to the applicant, of course it can be asked in a rude manner or in a nice way.  This depends on the interviewer besides it is the applicant that needed the job while the employer have way more option to fill the job.

point is, a gambler addict, or alcoholic/drug addict wouldn't be able to manage finances well on a company, let's say?

food for thought

maybe they can have emotional control and some dose of escapism
some people will probably be able to separate work and personal life.

I mean it's really difficult to screen for that but anything criminal will come out in any background check. Whether gbling related or not I think most reputable jobs will do a background check.  If I'm hiring someone with extensive gambling criminal history they ain't getting hired.

So it's still a case-by-case basis, and most of the jobs around will surely not have these collector's item for their employees to guard. Again, this screening should only be present on jobs that need it, but for most jobs out there, why would you want to know what your employees do with their hard-earned money anyway? Or where do they spend their money for their entertainment? Gamblers are just like any other person occupied with their hobbies that they spend money on, so why should there be any need for prying that much?

I agree, it's exactly wrong to ask applicants that type of question because definitely it has nothing to do with the job that they are trying to apply. Hence, if they passed all the interviews and they look fit for the job then they still needed to undergo a provisionary role (maximum of 6 months) first to see if he or she really fits to do the job before handing them the exact contract.

Even myself I have never been questioned about gambling addiction in my past employers. Although I won’t be surprised if they ask personal questions like that, but what they are often concerned are just my skills and capabilities and if I can be an asset to their company. However, with a lot of gamblers around whom some have already gambling problems, it’s not an offensive question if they want to know if you’re into gambling particularly if you are applying for a job that has something to do with money.

True, Employers wouldn't really ask straight questions about bad things about their applicants since they can't expect the applicants to answer honestly because it can affect their application to the job they are applying. They would just cover up with indirect questions that can reveal your bad behavior and history. I believe that there will be no employers asking the question of being an addict to their applicants unless they are on a gambling business.

every sector or every company in it there will certainly be some of them who gamble and go undetected. because they are more likely to cover up their gambling habits. Screening applicants whether they are gambling or not will be difficult to do, as they are good at covering it all up.
Even at first they didn't gamble but after work they started to gamble. This is also the result of various kinds of pressure from work or other problems, gambling is used as an outlet to relieve stress. especially now gambling is very easy to access, no need to come to the casino, just open the smartphone screen and visit gambling sites, everything can be accessed easily and payments are made easily and quickly. so there is no point in screening applicants to gamble or not. all will be caught third there are cases as described in this thread.

Nope, I kinda disagree with your opinion on this one. Other than if gambling would be a conflict of interest on the company, I see no other reason why a company would do a gambling screening to their employees and applicants.

There's already a background check being done for applicants and I think that would be enough as a screening for them. Also, not only gambling addiction could cause such an employee do such a thing against the company.

Even though employees do not have gambling addictions during the time of employment, this can be grown over time with consistent gambling activities of employees whereby they keep participating in gambling. Gambling is just like a spirit that can influence anyone with time if they keep friends that are always gambling every time or being in a place where there are frequent gambling activities.
I thing maybe it will be good for employers to screen workers to keep account of the nature of gambling urge. Everyone can falls being a victim of gambling addiction with time.

I guess most applications includes paperworks from FBI or any police records.
Exhausting yourself in finding out on whether or not your applicant is a gambler or not maybe pointless.
That's his private and personal stuff anyway as long as it will not affect his performance and productivity then I guess all employers will be cool for that.
You can fire him eventually if you noticed a huge decline of his productivity because he's affected by his vices already anyway.

You could really make out some warnings first as an employer and not making out some immediate firing of employees just because of one mistake.Give them some chance and if the time that they do still failed out
on following on whats you had instructed or simply with those second chance then this is the time you would really be making out some ultimatum.Playing gambling or any hobbies on a particular person is really just
that a personal kind of thing.Whether you do engage yourself with gambling or not it wont really be their business.Its true that this would really be talking about productivity because this is the primary
concern on why we do hire up people on a company and not to make out some involvement or trying to get some personal intent on stirring up personal things on someones life.

While it is true that anyone can fall into addiction, it is also true that people have different levels of susceptibility to it, there are many people which can gamble or drink alcohol in a responsible manner, however there is a minority that are unable to control their impulses and develop a self-destructive behavior when doing one of those two activities and they become addicted, it is because of this we need to always be alert and see if we are developing some problems dealing with our behavior when we are doing an activity which has bigger chances to produce that self-destructive behavior on people.

Honestly it can be very hard for someone to know that they are quickly developing an habit that could pose a thread to our lives later on because bad habit is something we quickly become addicted to without much pressure. It can be easily noticed in others if they find a bad habit in us but can be difficult for us know that we are developing an addiction that could affect us later.

Everything depends on how we see it and we should always ensure that we screen our characters everytime to know when we are doing the wrong or right thing. You know that addiction can be difficult to leave if care is not taken

Being a gambler is out of the question, he can get hired if he met all the requirements but if a person is found to be a gambling addict, then that is a different story.  Because being an addict already lost their control over themselves, thus, it will greatly affect their performance.  Though I agree that asking employee directly is somehow unethical but it can't be helped if the position needs a person who has no history of gambling addiction.  Else, if the position doesn't concern even a person is a gambling addict then there is no use in asking the applicant about his gambling  directly

Depends on certain conditions because if a person have bad habits which could lead to destruct something or create something bad ambience to your company then I think its the right for some employer to include this as their selections. Would not hire rather if a person have certain condition because its hard to trust those kind of people especially if they are addicted to much on gambling because we know they are capable to do bad things just to gamble.

It's companies' privilege and prerogative it's not that they are discriminating against their applicants but employers can justify this by telling people that it's for the protection of the company, some companies have contracts that their employers should not be involved in specific activities while they are employed and this is legal to protect their company and their status in the industry, it's not only gambling but on many activities that are related to your company policy, employees are part of company values you can't separate it as long as you are employed and under contract.

Unfortunately, some won't disclose their gambling habits during their application.
And who would have done so? So sometimes, even the company will screen their applicants, it won't show yet.
But they will observe the effect of gambling while the employee is already working inside the company.
They can either give a warning or just terminate the employee, if they will see possible issues coming up.

I don't think employers are able to screen for gambling problems. How would they be able to do that? Waste of time and resources for them. It is not like someone steals money from the company everyday to feed their gambling addiction. They can't screen their employees, but I am pretty much sure that if they somehow gets to know about their gambling problem (even if they don't steal money from the company), they will get into trouble and likely lose their job.

 I'd like to say that what I do in my personal time is my business and should an employer ask that, it's not something that she be worried about, just answer. Although just like every employer, their major concern is to know if you truly can handle the task, if you discipline enough to abide by rules. It's just that most gamblers find it difficult to keep inside that need to gamble the moment they are faced with money..
 I think some employers would only screen the potential employee for a gambling problem only if they've had such a prior experience with past workers

Totally a waste of time because you cant know if those applicants would be telling the truth or not once you do ask them for some personal things like hobbies or any activities that they are involved with.
The way on where people could be  caught up on doing gambling activities is on the time that they've been already get hired and then doing all of those things which there's someone could
make out some report but knowing previous or things in life before getting the job is impossible.Everything could really be denied if they wanted to.

The issue here is that there is no way to confirm if the employees are gambling addicts or not. Since there is no need to register officially at the gambling site and gambling sites do not share the KYC details, the employees can very easily get this screening bypassed by hiding the fact that they are gambling addicts.
Yes, once they are hired, then people can get to know more about them, their habits, etc but it is difficult to find out whether a person is a gambling addict or not, before the hiring.

That is what would likely happen, but if I know about my worker that is addicted to gambling, I will indirectly advice him, the best to do is to sake him, but I won't, I would more focus in making sure the inflow and outflow of money is well supervised in a way he would know that I could know as fast as possible if anyone make some manipulations. What I would be more concerned about is if the employee is productive and hardworking. Not only gambling addicts can scam you because of money problem they are having, there are other reasons people can scam you.

This is not a new phenomenon, but did you know that workers sometimes steal not to gamble, but because it is a part of them, and they are recognized to be kleptomaniacs.
Is there any privacy you preserve if you work for a corporation that requests your data and credentials? You've given them virtually your whole career as a curriculum vitae, including your school qualifications. If that guarantees a job, I don't see why you shouldn't take a gambling test as long as it doesn't contradict any of your beliefs.

Maybe the company will know more about its employees when they have been working for the company for a while because usually once a month or every few months, there will be free time for all employees to enjoy a family atmosphere. From there, each employee can chat freely without having to discuss work, and that's where they can find out what each worker's hobbies are. But if they were in the same division, they would probably know each other faster because there would be chats about various things, including personal matters.

I believe you, there no way an applicant will disclose this kind of information knowing that he will not be getting the position once the hiring officers know his gambling background, they will surely denied things and the only way that it can be revealed is when problem start to show up, but if there's nothing that will affect the employee's job role there's nothing that the company should held them responsibility.

It's their life, and it's outside the business, unless, again, if there's any effect with the job and the company.

Employers can quickly terminate the employee, it's part of their right when proven that there's a problem with the person involve.