Smoke Comes Under Casino’s Eyes

The usual saying is that there is no smoke without fire. In this particular case, the smoke seems to have set a prominent Las Vegas casino on fire. Of course, this is all in the figurative sense. The Wynn Las Vegas is facing legal action on account of unregulated smoking within the premises. This type of case casinos usually face because of disgruntled gamblers and visitors. Many people are averse to the smoky kind of crowd prevalent in the casinos. In the Wynn Las Vegas, a former employee filed a class action lawsuit against the casino. The charges are that the casino is not doing enough to protect the employees from smoke inhalation. Now, this case does have a justification to it. Many states and countries have banned smoking in public places for the very same reason. Second-hand smoke inhalation makes people victims of passive smoking.

Was It Because Of No Precautions At All?

The Wynn uses a technique called “pathing” to help the non-smokers avoid such a problem. But, there is no such provision for the employees. This is the case in point here. In “pathing,” the casino moves all the non-smoking players away from the place that is exposing them to smoke. They take the non-smokers to the centre of the casino in the especially marked smoke-free tables and machines. If, on a particular table, a player is uncomfortable with someone else smoking, they make that table non-smoking too.

This is all for the benefit of the players. But, the legal case is because the employees still have to endure passive smoking at the tables where smoking is not prohibited. This is the mainstay of the case as it stands. This is why Wynn is under a lawsuit of $5 million dollars, which is filed by its former employee Kenny Kastroll.

Can The Lawsuit Come Through

The chances are indeed strong. The judge’s ruling states that the Wynn Las Vegas may have to bear liability in this particular case, and the suit might go on. Among all this turmoil, for Wynn, a bigger question is in the offing. If the former employee wins the lawsuit and proves that the employees have a valid reason to object smoking inside the casinos, this might lead to some sort of domino effect. Employees in all casinos and hotels may file their lawsuits too. This could be the final blow for the already teetering casinos of Las Vegas.

The other thing that could happen is that the casinos could foresee such a problem and impose stricter rule or new health regulations to protect employee’s health interests. This could mean anything, for example, curbing smoking in the playing area, a designated smoker’s room, or a blanket ban within the casino premises. Such a move would be wise, given the size of this lawsuit. But it could also spell doom for their business.

Gambling sessions can tend to run hard and long. If you keep a smoker away from the sticks to long, the person may just give up on the gambling part. All this remains to be seen. It all depends on the direction this case and its future ruling proceeds in.