The New Jersey legislature passed jurisdictive changes that imposed strict limits on smoking in public places and indoors. Unfortunately, the legislation did not include smoking on casino floors. Since then, casino workers have been pushing the legislators to approve laws that ban smoking on casino floors.
The majority of legislators in the Senate and the Assembly, including the governor, are supporting the casino workers. 62% of residents in New Jersey are supporting the ban due to the health benefits they will get.
Parx Casino banned smoking on its floors in June 2021
Many casino patrons in New Jersey have the opinion that it is not the right time to impose a smoking ban. They say that it will negatively affect the casino business because many of their customers are smokers. Parx Casino, located in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, is one of the casinos that support a smoke-free environment on its floors. Although Parx does not have a physical casino in Atlantic City, the casino offers an online casino in New Jersey for anyone who wants to play in a smoke-free environment.
New Jersey casino industry resists ban on smoking
Even though casino workers have been pushing harder for a smoking ban on all casino floors, they have received consistent resistance from their employers. The casino executives argue that a ban will make their customers switch to other states where smoking is allowed. They also argue a ban might result in up to 11% loss of jobs. Health experts have provided detailed information about how smoking kills and the impact secondhand smoke has on non-smokers. It causes almost 34,000 deaths, and this can be avoided if smoking is banned on casino floors.
The problem of smoking on casino floors
Tobacco smoke is a common phenomenon on casino floors, including high roller rooms. Gamblers sitting on the tables smoke cigarettes and cigars. One casino worker who worked for twenty years at a casino in Atlantic City was exposed to tobacco smoke daily. A gambler who wants to gamble in a smoke-free environment can choose to use reliable online casinos. However, workers at land-based casinos have to choose between their health and work.
Surgeons in the US published a report in 2006 that warned about the dangers of secondhand smoke to non-smokers. A lot of casino workers suffer from diseases such as lung cancer, heart disease, and cancer despite being non-smokers all their lives. The workers formed the Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE) to push for a smoking ban. They believe this should be a priority by legislators and hope they will extend the smoking ban to casino floors sooner.