Online gambling is outlawed in most states in the US, with a few notable exceptions - Nevada, Delaware, and New Jersey. But this might change in the coming years, as many states are discussing the introduction of online gambling regulation. No wonder - the business generates considerable income for the states' budgets, from taxes, and licensing fees as well. There's still one question, though: with the widespread availability of mobile gambling, and no control of the company over what people do with their personal phones, will online gambling infiltrate the workplaces?

What's it like in the rest of the world?

Australian companies are not allowed to offer - not even to promote - gambling services to locals. But Australians are not forbidden from gambling online at offshore operators, so they can play casino games at au.royalvegascasino.com whenever and wherever they want. 

Before the widespread use of mobile casinos, gambling during working hours involved leaving the office. Today, in turn, it only requires internet access. The spread of the smartphone made the internet a normal part of our everyday life. A study conducted in 2011 in Australia showed that 10% of gamblers accessed their preferred gambling websites using their smartphones, and this percentage has continued to grow ever since. Which means that people take casinos with them into the office without the employer even knowing about it.

The biggest problem is that there is no way of knowing how many people are involved in gambling games on their personal devices during work hours. Thus, there is no way of predicting how their habit will impact their performance, their personal finances, and their career as a whole.

Social activity vs. solitary entertainment

Office raffles, gambling pools, and similar activities, are generally seen as being beneficial to the office environment. These have the potential to bring co-workers closer together, to heighten their mood - basically, to be a shared recreational activity that builds team interactions. But when it comes to online gambling, things change quite a bit.

Internet gambling is a solitary activity, and it comes with several major risks for the employee, and the company as well.

Problem gambling and access to company funds

Gambling can be addictive, and can bring a person to downfall. But problem gambling doesn't impact the person alone, but all of his or her family, and often co-workers, and the company as a whole. 
Employees with access to company funds are perhaps the biggest risk of workplace gambling. There have been several cases of using company funds to feed gambling habits - like the one involving a receptionist who stole (and lost) $1 million  http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/money/76638521/Jail-time-for-gambling-receptionist-who-stole-1-million-from-employer  or the bookkeeper who did the same with $780,000. 

Workplace gambling - as long as it only consists of betting pools and lottery tickets - has a positive impact on the atmosphere of the workplace. But if casino games infiltrate the workplace, the effects can be less than desirable.