The trade union Casinos de France announced land-based casinos in France will reopen Tuesday, December 15 under strict Ministry of Internal Affairs guidelines for Covid-19. The union said the reopening of casinos is essential for the well-being of French citizens and for the economy of several cities.
A second national lockdown was ordered for the nation on October 30 and originally was planned to end on December 1. Only basic and essential businesses were allowed to remain open during that period. Casinos, betting shops, bingo halls and other leisure facilities remained closed.
Casinos de France noted during the shutdowns consumers have turned to illegal websites which have proliferated and offer no consumer protection measures, nor do they attempt to limit addictive practices. Also illegal websites do not follow anti-money laundering practices and can serve as a conduit for criminal activities.
The union indicated the gaming industry was among the first to implement strict health and safety protocols when casinos and related businesses reopened in June following the first national lockdown earlier this year. Those new protocols included mandatory face coverings, physical barriers and frequent sanitizing. When they reopen December 15, Casinos de France said casinos will implement stricter occupancy limits and require all visitors to register for traceability, if necessary, in compliance with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation.
In addition, the union said casinos will increase the frequency of sanitation, take customers’ temperature before they can enter and promote the use of digital tools such as TousAntiCovid, the nation’s contact tracing app.
Casinos de France noted the casino industry represents 15,000 direct jobs and 45,000 indirect jobs and generates $1.7 billion year in gaming revenue taxes, including $482 million for local communities.
