An appeals panel has ruled that a casino does have the right to regulate the weight of cocktail waitresses, a loss for servers at Atlantic City’s Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa.
A group of 21 servers at the casino sued over the property’s regulations of their weight, which is part of the casino’s “Borgata Babes” marketing efforts.
A state appeals court ruled that the Borgata casino’s personal appearance standards are lawful, but also in the ruling, the panel said part of the suit should be returned to a lower court to determine if 11 of the women were subjected to a hostile work environment over the standards’ enforcement, according to a report in the Associated Press.
The appeals court noted that the weight policy was fully disclosed when the servers took their jobs.
The casino released a statement supporting the ruling.
“We have long held that Borgata’s personal appearance policy is fair and reasonable,” said Joe Corbo, the casino’s vice president and legal counsel. “We are pleased that the three appellate court judges agreed with prior rulings that our policy is lawful and non-discriminatory to women.”
An attorney for the servers told the AP that the ruling is disappointing and frustrating.
“Sexual objectification has been institutionalized and is being allowed to stand,” attorney Deborah Mains said. “It’s difficult to separate the harassment claims that the court is recognizing from the overall theory that the working environment is hostile because of the personal appearance standards.”
The ruling overturned part of a 2013 lower court decision throwing out the lawsuit by former and current cocktail servers, the AP said.
