Caesars, parent named in lawsuit
Jump to full article: Las Vegas Review-Journal, 2009-07-24
Author: HOWARD STUTZ LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
Intro: A dealer who spent two decades at Caesars Palace has sued the Strip resort and parent company Harrah's Entertainment in federal court claiming that exposure to secondhand smoke forced her to quit her casino job.
In a lawsuit that attorneys are seeking to have certified as a class action case, former blackjack dealer Tomo Stephens claimed Caesars Palace isn't doing enough to protect its workers from the dangers of secondhand smoke.
The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas, contends Caesars Palace, since being acquired by Harrah's in 2005, has removed nonsmoking gaming areas from the casino floor, forbids employees from designating certain gaming tables as smoke-free and encourages smoking among its customers.
"The point of this lawsuit is not to ban smoking in casinos," said Jay Edelson, a Chicago-based attorney who filed the action. "The real goal is to change what they're doing. At least offer areas that are nonsmoking where employees can circle in and out. We are not trying to stop smokers from gambling."ional Institute of Occupational Safety and Health that assessed the levels of second-hand smoke in three casinos.
The study found that chemicals associated with second-hand smoke exist both on casino floors and in the bloodstreams of casino employees.
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