“I feel like it’s capitalising on the poor”: electronic gaming machines, neoliberalism and the invisibility of social work

Electronic gaming machines are normalised business within Australia’s hotels and clubs. Concentrated within low socio-economic and disadvantaged communities, this high-intensity form of gambling creates the often-hidden addiction of problem gambling and the associated widespread social harms. This qualitative study uses radical social work thinking to explore gaming venue employees’ perceptions and experiences of implementing ‘responsible gambling measures’, ostensibly aimed at mitigating the social consequences and harms of problematic gambling. Our analysis reveals that neoliberal ideologies mean that gaming venue employees support ‘freedom of choice’ narratives, which ignore the structural influences at play when an individual becomes an ‘irresponsible’ consumer/gambler. Social workers must be cognisant of the ways in which the notion of the ‘(ir)responsible gambler’ skews how problem gambling and problem gamblers are viewed. The social harms from electronic gaming machines are complex and widespread, and deserve more recognition and attention in social work practice, policy and research.