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CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Case study: the greening
friendly solutions.”
of Atlantic City
Those solutions included changing lighting in
casinos and elsewhere to cold cathode, LED, and
C
SR policies at Harrah's Entertainment have a compact fluorescent technologies. “When
strong environmental element. In 2008 it considering the thousands of lights used at each
was the first casino firm to join the Climate property it is easy to see how this one initiative has
Leaders group of private-sector companies reduced energy consumption by 22.2m kWh” per
committed to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions, year, says Harrah's. For example, 4m kWh was saved
administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection just by the replacement of 150W incandescent
Agency (EPA), and the same year it won a regional bulbs with 8W cold cathode bulbs on the Bally's
Environmental Quality Award from the EPA. Tower exterior light show.
But what does this mean in practice on the casino Other changes include more sensitive controls for
floor? The firm's CodeGreen environmental ventilation units so that they only kick in when
initiative shows how broad policy can trickle down needed – again saving energy – and replacing
into the everyday detail of casino management. refrigerants and cleaning chemicals with greener
Harrah's has four properties in Atlantic City, New alternatives. Recycling is of course an element of the
Jersey, spanning 6.5m square feet of hotel, casino programme, as surprisingly is composting, with
and entertainment sites, with nearly 16,000 Harrah's providing some of its waste to other
employees. So implementing CodeGreen there was projects to be made into compost.
no idle task. And not all environmentally-friendly initiatives are
Says a company briefing document: “Our about materials and technology. Harrah's in Atlantic
approach to environmental stewardship was simple: City also supports the use of public transportation by
make immediate changes, fully engage our team subsidising employees' journeys on trains and buses,
members, and integrate long-term environmentally cutting their car use and the associated emissions.
measured in terms of tonnes per pound of revenue – programme and the CodeGreen project, which
by an ambitious 30 per cent before the end of next pursues environmentally-friendly practices across the
year, and has set up its own Green Supplier of the Harrah’s empire. (See Case study: the greening of
Year award to encourage those it purchases from to Atlantic City.)
follow suit.
The company recycles all paper, glass, cardboard, In the pink
plastic and cans; it uses only recycled paper; it has Harrah’s has also explored less obvious kinds of
changed its servers to reduce power consumption; it CSR that exemplify its potential, when well-managed,
gives employees interest-free loans and discounts on to add to the bottom line while achieving socially
bikes to replace their cars for the daily desirable outcomes as well.
commute; and it even provides staff with Take, for example, a more inclusive policy
water bottles to minimise the use of plastic toward gay and lesbian customers. Recently,
glasses which would be thrown away. Harrah’s ran its “Out in Atlantic City” weekend
Betfair’s range of CSR programmes may be of partying at its locations in the New Jersey
impressive, but it’s not unique, for what’s city, following similar earlier initiatives
noticeable is that companies aimed at attracting the pink dollar to
which have adopted CSR as a Las Vegas. These included
guiding principle – rather than promoting opportunities for gay
approaching issues like and lesbian marriages at Paris Las
reduction of energy use or Vegas.
support for the local Jeff Garofalo, a Las Vegas
community in piecemeal spokesman for lobbying group the
fashion – tend then to apply it Human Rights Campaign, was
to nearly every area of their quoted at the time of the Vegas
business. marketing push as saying that the firm
Harrah’s Entertainment, for “realises there’s a demographic here that
example, says that back in 2000 it was if you simply acknowledge they exist, that
the first casino operator to “adopt you have a little respect for them, they will
specific core principles to guide the be loyal. If you know you’re not going to
way we interact with employees, face discrimination when you walk
guests and the communities in which through the door, that goes a long way.”
we do business”. And Mike Weaver, VP of Marketing for
Its activities, many of them oriented three Harrah’s properties, said: “We
around charitable giving by the company’s employees decided the gay and lesbian travel market is a very
and its Harrah’s Foundation, also include the lucrative and appealing market financially. The
Harrah’s Entertainment Reaching Out (HERO) decision was very much based on this is a market that
OCTOBER 2009 35
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