By Stephanie Loder
Casino Workers Against Smoking Effects (CEASE) won’t stop rallying until New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy bans smoking inside Atlantic City casinos.
CEASE again took to the streets with protest signs on Nov. 21 on the final day of the 2024 League of Municipalities conference at the Atlantic City Convention Center in Atlantic City where Murphy was scheduled to speak.
It has been more than 15 years since the state legislature passed New Jersey’s clean air law which created the loophole.
Protesters – comprised of casino workers – want Murphy to close the loophole in the 2006 Smoke-Free Air Act using state Senate Bill S1878/A4541, which is pending in the state legislature.
They’ve been making the same request to Murphy for years.
If signed by Murphy, the bill would eliminate the smoking ban exemption for casinos and simulcasting facilities.
Murphy, a Democrat who is going into his last year as governor, supported banning smoking inside Atlantic City casinos while he was running for re-election.
“Governor Murphy and our lawmakers can’t keep overlooking the health risks casino workers face every day,” said Ricky Foster, a casino dealer in Atlantic City.
“They’re here (at the conference) talking about improving the lives of residents, yet they’ve ignored a simple, common-sense solution that would immediately protect the health and well-being of thousands of casino workers and patrons,” Foster said.
In 2023, CEASE asked Murphy to urge the legislature to send him the bill that would end smoking in the Garden State’s nine gaming halls.
But the bill remains stalled. CEASE continues to protest.
“We cannot keep waiting for action. The time for talk is over — Governor Murphy, we need you to step up and lead on this issue. Our lives depend on it,” Foster said.
While the state Senate’s casino smoking band bill is supported by Atlantic City’s governing body, a city ordinance permits smoking inside resort casinos on no more than 25 % of the gaming floor.
Many casino workers say they have suffered long-term effects of inhaling secondhand smoke on the casino floor. Some workers have reported that they were diagnosed with cancer and other conditions related to second-hand smoke exposure.
Atlantic City casinos contend that indoor smoking is an option to keep business going.
The Casino Association of New Jersey warned in a previous statement that “Going completely nonsmoking would place Atlantic City casinos at a competitive disadvantage with other nearby casinos that allow smoking” and “would have a significant adverse effect on Atlantic City, resulting in a decline in customers which would cause job loss, and ultimately a decline in tax revenue.”
CEASE members don’t agree.
“Casino workers in New Jersey have had to choose between their health and their paychecks for almost two decades,” said Pete Naccarelli, co-founder of CEASE and a casino table games dealer.
“It’s time to end this hypocrisy and give casino workers in New Jersey the same health and safety protections as nearly every other New Jersey worker. It’s long past time to close the casino smoking loophole,” Naccarelli said.
Smoking inside Atlantic City casinos was banned between March 16, 2020 and July 4, 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
CEASE argued at the time that lifting the ban was bad for the health of casino workers.
“Ever since indoor smoking returned to our workplaces on July 4, 2021, we have been fighting to protect our health by closing the casino smoking loophole in New Jersey law that gives the casinos a special exemption that no other business receives,” CEASE stated in a previous letter.
