Just as UK newsreaders were once hired for their irreproachable accents as well as their appearance, casino employees have long been selected for their presentable image. The Borgata Casino in Atlantic City has brought the issue of job discrimination back into the news by introducing a weight policy. Random weigh-ins are designed to ensure that no Borgata Babe, male or female, outgrows the uniform that goes with the job.

Staying slim or losing the job is now being challenged on three fronts, one of which is a lawsuit in New Jersey. There are two complaints before the state civil rights division and the National Labor Relations Board is considering a claim that the Borgata introduced new employment criteria without due union consultation. However, the Borgata is perceived as having a strong case for its insistence on employee appearance standards.

The whole issue is far from being a new one but it has relevance way beyond Atlantic City. The Playboy Bunnies were hired for their personal attributes and regularly weighed and kept in line with company policy by vigilant Bunny Mothers, and the Hooters restaurant chain has caused controversy over its hiring practices. It boils down to an employer’s right to create and maintain a brand image versus an employee’s right against discrimination.

New Jersey has a good track record on employment issues and its decision on the Borgata case may influence the direction of other states’ employment laws. As the Borgata’s weight policy falls outside present protections against discrimination, the company is seen as having the best of the argument. The weight criteria does not discriminate against skin colour or height and is applied equally to men and women, facts almost certainly discussed with company lawyers before the decision to introduce the policy was made.

The Borgata Babes are considered by the management to be an essential part of the company image and, unlike the other casinos at present, it provides for no alternative uniforms of a less revealing nature. The Local 54 of Unite Here complaint against the Borgata is due to go to arbitration this month. Meanwhile the Borgata maintains its position of defending its weight policy.

After less than two years since it opened the Borgata is the top-grossing casino in Atlantic City, aiming its marketing at young, high-earners from New York and Philadelphia. Although stirring controversy and dividing opinion over the weight issue, it would seem that its policy decisions have so far been good.
(E-06.07.05)

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