Judge allows smoking in Atlantic City casinos, blow to workers

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — A judge on Friday allowed smoking in Atlantic City casinos, providing some relief to the city’s struggling casino industry but turning a blind eye to workers who have long sought to breathe clean air inside casinos.

The ruling by District Court Judge Patrick Bartels was a major victory for the city’s nine casinos, most of which are winning less money from land-based gamblers than they did before the COVID-19 pandemic.

But it was a major setback for workers who have been trying for four years to ban smoking in their workplaces, first by trying to get lawmakers to change the law, then by filing a lawsuit. A lawyer for the workers said she will ask the state Supreme Court to expedite the case.

The casinos had warned that thousands of jobs and millions in gambling revenue and taxes could be lost if smoking was banned.

“We are pleased with the court’s decision to dismiss plaintiff’s complaint and reject the court’s attempt to amend the Smoke-Free Air Act outside of the legislative process,” said Mark Giannantonio, president of Resorts Casino and the Casino Association of New Jersey.

He said the industry, the city and the main casino workers union, Local 54 of Unite Here, “have taken significant steps over the years to create a healthier environment for employees and guests, including limiting smoking to just a fraction of the floor space.”

“We look forward to continuing to work with stakeholders on a solution that addresses the health concerns of our employees while protecting the collective interests and well-being of Atlantic City’s entire workforce,” Giannantonio said.

Anti-smoking officials pledged to continue their efforts to make casinos smoke-free.

“This fight is far from over,” said Lamont White, a Borgata dealer and a leader in the anti-smoking movement. “While today’s outcome is disappointing, our resolve remains unwavering.”

White said the ruling gives lawmakers “even more reason to take responsibility for finally doing the right thing and passing the bipartisan legislation that New Jerseyans overwhelmingly support,” he said. “It’s time to make things right for the thousands of us workers who continue to work and live without the same protections that every other New Jersey resident receives.”

Nancy Erika Smith, who argued on behalf of the workers, strongly opposed the ruling and vowed to appeal.

“While the rest of the nation moves away from poisoning workers for profit, New Jersey stands in shame,” she said in a written statement. “As long as the governor, the legislature, and the courts allow the ultra-wealthy casino industry to poison its workers, we will continue our fight.”

Whether to ban smoking is one of the most controversial issues, not only in Atlantic City casinos but in other states where employees have raised concerns about secondhand smoke. They are waging similar campaigns in Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Kansas and Virginia.

Currently, smoking is permitted on 25% of the Atlantic City casino floor. However, those areas are not contiguous, and the practical effect is that second-hand smoke is present in varying degrees on the casino floor.

The lawsuit, filed in April by the United Auto Workers, a union representing dealers at Bally’s, Caesars and Tropicana casinos, sought to overturn New Jersey’s indoor smoking law, which bans smoking in virtually every workplace except casinos.

In a May 13 hearing before a judge in Trenton, Smith raised issues of equal protection under the law and what she called a constitutional right to safety. However, the judge said that the employees’ “reliance on a constitutional right to safety is not a settled right” and predicted that they would likely not prevail with such a claim.

The state Attorney General’s Office highlighted the possibility that a smoking ban could reduce tax revenues that fund programs for the elderly and disabled in New Jersey.

Atlantic City briefly enacted a smoking ban in 2008 but quickly repealed the ban after casinos saw revenue drop nearly 20% in two weeks, said Seth Ptasiewicz, an attorney for casino workers who want to keep the current smoking policy.

Opponents of smoking dispute that casinos would lose revenue. They point to a study showing that casinos that quit smoking perform better financially without smoking.

The anti-smoking activists filed the lawsuit after years of failed attempts to persuade lawmakers to change the law.

Shortly after a bill to end smoking passed a state Senate committee, other lawmakers introduced a competing bill that would continue to allow smoking on 25% of the casino floor but reconfigure where it is allowed. No employee would be forced to work in a smoking area against their will, under the bill.

No measures have been taken for months.

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