Workers Call on Governor Sherrill to Advocate for Smokefree Legislation as She Addresses East Coast Gaming Congress

Atlantic City, NJ — On Wednesday, dozens of casino workers and public health advocates gathered at a rally to call on New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill to take a firm stance on the state’s casino smoking loophole, which has exposed Atlantic City casino workers to toxic secondhand smoke for the past 20 years. Casino workers rallied outside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino just as Governor Sherrill arrived to deliver the keynote address at the East Coast Gaming Congress. The timing was symbolic, down to the very day, marking the 20th anniversary of the enactment of the New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act — the very law that created the loophole. 

The rally comes at a critical crossroads for the Atlantic City casino industry. With New York City moving towards opening new smokefree casinos and the New Jersey Supreme Court likely to take up casino workers’ case to close the casino smoking loophole, the momentum for change has never been stronger. The message from speakers at the rally was clear: New Jersey’s legislators must recognize the growing support for smokefree legislation and act now to pass a 100% smokefree bill

KEY POINT: “Four states in the regional area of New Jersey, including New York, Connecticut, Maryland and Delaware, require their commercial casinos to be smoke-free,’ Cynthia Hallett, President and CEO of ANR, said. ‘In the nearby area of Philadelphia, Parx Casino, which went voluntarily smoke-free during COVID and remained that way because of customer and worker preference, is the highest-grossing casino in Pennsylvania.’ She said many officials within the casino industry understand that tastes and behaviors have changed with regard to smoking, and that those tastes and behaviors should be addressed to keep people coming back to the brick-and-mortar casinos. “The seven most dangerous words in business are ‘We have always done it this way,” she said.

See Coverage:

WHYY: New Jersey casino workers call on Gov. Mikie Sherrill to support their demand to ban smoking in Atlantic City gaming halls

NBC Philly: Workers Rally for smokefree casinos in Atlantic Casinos

CDC Gaming: Atlantic City: Casino smoking foes call for August sick-out

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Casino Employees Against Smoking (Harmful) Effects (CEASE) is a group of thousands of casino dealers and other frontline gaming workers that formed after indoor smoking returned on July 4, 2021 in Atlantic City, NJ and has expanded to states around the country. CEASE is fighting to permanently remove smoking from our workplaces.