ANDERSON — Centaur gaming is placing a “Bet on America” by reinvesting corporate savings from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act into its employees.
President and Chief Operating Officer Jim Brown received a standing ovation Wednesday morning when he announced more than 2,000 of the company's full- and part-time employees, as well as all returning seasonal employees, will get a one-time $500 check. Centaur Gaming will also pay all applicable taxes and the employee and company 401(k) portions on the bonus.
“This is with great pride and joy that we are announcing Centaur’s Bet on America initiative in celebration of the passing of the Tax Cuts and Job Act,” Brown told an employee-packed Terrace Showroom at Hoosier Park Racing & Casino.
Lori Broadwater, who’s worked at the Anderson casino since it opened 10 years ago, was overcome with emotion after the announcement.
“It means catching my bills up,” Broadwater said about the check.
But it's more than just the money, she added.
“Hoosier Park has always been really good to us, and this is just one more added bonus,” she said.
Centaur Gaming joins a growing list of well-known companies offering what have been dubbed “Trump Bonuses” in the wake of the passage of President Donald Trump’s tax bill late last year. Companies like Walmart, Bank of America and AT&T offered increased wages or one-time bonuses to employees.
The human resources consulting firm Willis Towers Watson, in an analysis of public announcements made by employers, found 88 companies as of Jan. 12 committed to making one-time bonuses ranging from $150 to $3,000, compared with 35 that have made adjustments to their minimum wage and 10 or others that have announced some other form of compensation or salary change.
Brown said the bonus is a way to pay back Hoosiers who have worked to help the company invest more than $860 million across its two racinos and three Winner’s Circles across the state.