NEWS
Corporate responsibility beyond the gaming floor
Casinos that give back to their communities may reap big PR benefits, as well as do some good
Casino operators have a hefty agenda for corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the form of their efforts to prevent and help with problem gambling. But many are going beyond that, with projects that help local communities, charities and the environment in a plethora of other ways. Some give, outright. Hard Rock International, for example, donates “millions of dollars annually” to good causes such as WHY Hunger and The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. And Detroit’s Greektown Casino-Hotel last month donated more than 3000 books to two schools in the city, the Marcus Garvey Academy and Rose-Hill Academy. It had collected them through a drive for book donations that it called Turning the Page on Illiteracy, with volumes contributed by guests, employees and other local businesses. It now plans to develop the programme further with other aid for local education such as mentorship and school adoption. The Grosvenor G Casino in the
MGM has won awards for recycling food, glass and paper
northern British town of Stockton, meanwhile, auctioned off a dress that Miss Newcastle had worn for its launch. Proceeds went to Marie Curie Cancer Care, giving assistance to local people with terminal illnesses. Others prefer to create community
benefits through the way they run their own businesses. For instance, sustainability principles were taken into account throughout the design and construction of Casino del Sol in Tucson, Arizona, a new $130m project that opened in mid-November. Up and running, the casino will continue to contribute to the local environment in other ways, for example by working with the Pascua Yaqui Tribal Council on an initiative dubbed Sustainability Education Empowerment Development (SEED), aimed at conserving natural resources, reducing waste and decreasing pollution. And MGM Resorts International won a WasteWise Gold Achievement
award from the US Environmental Protection Agency this year, for its work on recycling food waste at its Las Vegas Strip sites. It has also won awards from other bodies for its glass, cardboard and paper recycling efforts.
Indeed, recycling by casinos may well be more than a token sustainability gesture, given the numbers involved. Last year, MGM’s Las Vegas operations recycled 8722 tons of food waste, more than twice the amount it managed in 2007. The food – which would otherwise be thrown away – is used to feed pigs at a farm in North Las Vegas. “With millions of people dining each year at our 165 restaurants and 11 employee dining rooms located on the Las Vegas Strip, MGM Resorts is committed to leading the way to reduce our waste [that becomes] landfill,” said Senior VP of Energy and Environmental Services Cindy Ortega. Besides food recycling, MGM has policies in place covering energy and water conservation, green building, and sustainable supply chains, and like Greektown it has also run projects benefiting locals, including donations of school supplies to hard-pressed educators in Clark County. Fostering good relations even with those who aren’t particularly likely to become profitable gambling customers makes good business sense for casinos, as major employers and occasional targets of governmental disapproval. Perhaps it’s an approach every operator should learn from.
INBRIEF
LABOUR DEAL Unionised workers at Motor City Casino, Greektown Casino and the MGM Grand in Detroit have ratified new four-year agreements with their employers.
WISE GUYS The Mob Museum in downtown Las Vegas will open on 14 February next year. Officially titled the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, it will explore the Mafia’s historic involvement with the gaming industry.
VLT CONTENT American Gaming Systems is to license GameTech International’s library of games for video lottery terminals (VLTs).
VIRIDIAN NOD Slovenian regulators have approved a range of Viridian widescreen games from Aristocrat Technologies.
IGT ORDERS International Game Technology (IGT) is to provide more than 130 of its IGT Premium and AVP products to Hit Group, Slovenia’s largest casino operator. Meanwhile, 40 per cent of the casino floor at Revel Atlantic City, which opens next spring, is to feature IGT machines, and the firm has also installed its sbX system at Fantastic Casino Albrook in Panama.
LOCAL HERO Aristocrat Technologies has entered the Las Vegas pub market, replacing existing technology at Sago’s Baja Tavern and Lounge with its Oasis 360 monitoring system.
OUT OF RENO Pinnacle Entertainment is selling its Boomtown Reno operation and a plot of land adjacent to the venue that it owns, for around $22m. M1 Gaming Reno and SJP Reno Property are buying the casino and hotel business, subject to regulatory approval.
RGA HAPPY The Remote Gambling Association says the European Parliament’s resolution on online gambling “demonstrates a clear shift in understanding and support”.
SLOT TECH International Brand Gaming is now supplying the Nitro-XL cabinet from Elite Casino Products.
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