Atlantic City Casino Workers Undeterred After Smoking Ban Defeat in Court

Casino workers who lost a bid in court to end the legal carveout in New Jersey that allows smoking on Atlantic City casino floors say that they are planning to go on the offensive as they search for other paths towards changing the law.

Casino Employees Against Smoking’s Effects (CEASE) said Wednesday that it would begin a digital ad campaign targeting the districts of lawmakers who could advance legislation that would ban smoking in casinos. 

Ad Campaign to Feature Children of Casino Workers

On Friday, Judge Patrick J. Bartels dismissed a lawsuit brought by CEASE and the United Auto Workers Region 9 which had sought to end the casino industry’s exemption to New Jersey’s 2006 Smoke-Free Air Act. However, Judge Bartels found that the cutout didn’t violate employees’ rights, as the narrow focus of the exemption meant that workers could find jobs in other industries to avoid an environment where smoking takes place. 

CEASE has members at all nine Atlantic City casinos, while the United Auto Workers (UAW) represents workers at Bally’s, Caesars, and the Tropicana. 

The planned ad campaign is titled “Kids of CEASE,” and features children of casino workers expressing health concerns for their parents who work in casinos that allow smoking. 

“I have two kids, aged 17 and 11,” Borgata dealer Pete Naccarelli told the Associated Press. “I want to be there for them when they graduate, when they get married, when they have kids. We do not want to  be collateral damage for casinos’ perceived profits.”

Casino workers aren’t stopping at ads. On a Wednesday media call, Naccarelli and UAW Region 9 director Daniel Vincente called out Assemblyman William Moen Jr. (D-Camden), blaming him for holding up a bill that would end the casino smoking carveout. State Senator Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex) said Wednesday that he’ll push for the bill to receive a full vote in the New Jersey Senate when the legislature returns to session after its summer break, while New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has said he would sign such a bill if one crossed his desk. 

UAW Drops Out of State AFL-CIO Chapter

Also on Wednesday, the UAW announced that it was pulling out of the New Jersey chapter of the AFL-CIO after fellow unions, including Unite Here Local 54 – the largest union for Atlantic City’s casino workers – came out against them in their recent lawsuit.

“I cannot express how furious our institution is at the Jersey state-level AFL and the other unions that filed an injunction status against us,” Vincente told reporters. “That organization has been actively undermining our efforts to protect the health and safety of our members.”

United Here Local 54 President Donna DeCaprio reacted positively to the judge’s decision on Friday, in stark contrast to Vincente and the UAW. 

“Local 54, together with the vast majority of the labor movement, as well as the Atlantic City casinos, has been instrumental in creating a safer environment for both workers and customers,” DeCaprio said. “We will continue to focus on solutions that both improve workers’ safety and protect their jobs.”

The UAW, CAESE, and other groups have disputed the idea that the carveout protects jobs, pointing to studies that suggest smoking bans haven’t had a noticeable impact on the bottom line for casinos in recent years. They say that this is about one thing only: worker safety.

“We’re drawing a line in the sand on this. Our people’s lives are at risk. We have a moral obligation to take up this fight,” Vincente told reporters. “If you ain’t willing to do that, you’re not a friend of the labor movement.” 

(Image: Wayne Parry / AP)