Judge Upholds Smoking in Atlantic City Casinos Despite Worker Health Concerns
A key court decision in New Jersey kept the current smoking rules for Atlantic City casinos in place. Customers can still smoke in marked areas, limited to 25% of the gaming floor, while employees remain concerned about their health.
“We are gratified by the court’s decision to dismiss plaintiff’s complaint and deny its attempt to change the Smoke-Free Air Act outside of the legislative process,” said Mark Giannantonio, president of Resorts Casino and the Casino Association of New Jersey, to WHYY.
This battle between health advocates and casino owners has gone on for years. After failing to change the 2006 law through normal channels, workers took their case to court.
The numbers tell the story, studies from 2022 suggest profits could drop 25% if casinos went totally smoke-free. A short two-week smoking ban in 2008 led to a 20% drop in revenue.
The group Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects isn’t backing down: they say money shouldn’t come before their health.
Casino bosses say tough smoking rules could kill jobs. They worry about losing tax revenue and seeing gamblers head to other places.
Age makes a big difference in how people see it. Younger players like smoke-free gaming, but older gamblers think smoking goes hand-in-hand with the casino atmosphere.
When Delaware and Maryland kicked out smoking, their casinos stayed strong despite industry fears. Anti-smoking groups keep bringing this up.
The 2006 law gave casinos special treatment, letting them skip the indoor smoking bans that applied everywhere else. They’re allowed to use up to 25% of their floor for smokers.
This isn’t the end of the story. Legal experts think more lawsuits are coming, while worker groups promise to keep fighting through other channels.
