Settlement Reached Over Alleged Firing Post-Heart Attack Caesars Entertainment's Horseshoe Casino in Baltimore has agreed to pay $150,000 and implement workplace reforms to settle a disability discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The case centered on the alleged wrongful termination of a table games dealer who suffered a heart attack at work. According to the EEOC, after the employee underwent surgery and sought to return to his job, the casino conditioned his reinstatement on having no work restrictions—a requirement the agency says violated federal law. The casino also allegedly failed to engage in an interactive process to identify reasonable accommodations and refused to rehire the employee.
ADA Compliance Requirements "Federal law prohibits employers from refusing to allow disabled employees to return to work because they have disability-related restrictions and it requires them to engage in an interactive process to identify and provide reasonable accommodations," said EEOC Philadelphia Regional Attorney Debra Lawrence. "The EEOC is committed to ensuring that workers with disabilities are protected under the law." The settlement includes a three-year consent decree that bars the casino from discriminating based on disability or retaliating against employees exercising rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Caesars Baltimore Management Co., LLC, CBAC Borrower, LLC, and Caesars Entertainment, Inc.—operating jointly as Horseshoe Casino—are named defendants. The decree also mandates management and employee training on disability accommodations and includes provisions for ongoing monitoring and reporting.
Why It Matters
The settlement reinforces hospitality operators' legal obligations under the ADA to accommodate disabled workers and engage in formal interactive processes before denying return-to-work requests. For casino and hotel employers, the case underscores the financial and reputational risks of inflexible accommodation policies.
For more insights and trends in the food and beverage sector, check out more articles in The Food & Beverage Magazine family of publications.
Written by FBM Publications Editors
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly did Horseshoe Casino Baltimore do wrong?
They fired a table games dealer after he had a heart attack, then refused to rehire him unless he had zero work restrictions—a direct violation of ADA law. The casino also skipped the mandatory interactive process to identify reasonable accommodations, which is a legal requirement under federal disability law.
How much is this settlement costing Caesars?
$150,000 in damages, plus the cost of implementing a three-year consent decree that includes mandatory disability training for management and staff, ongoing compliance monitoring, and reporting obligations. That's real money and real operational overhead.
What's this 'interactive process' everyone keeps mentioning?
It's a federal requirement where you sit down with a disabled employee, understand their medical restrictions, and work together to find reasonable accommodations that let them do their job. Horseshoe skipped this entirely and just said no—that's what got them sued.
Does this affect how I handle post-injury returns to work?
Absolutely. You cannot condition reinstatement on having zero restrictions; that's per se illegal under the ADA. You must engage in the interactive process in good faith and offer reasonable accommodations unless they create undue hardship. Document everything—this is where most operators get tripped up.
What does the three-year consent decree actually require?
Mandatory ADA training for management and all employees, written policies on disability accommodations, a complaint mechanism, and regular reporting to the EEOC on disability-related decisions. Caesars has zero margin for error here; any slip-up can trigger enforcement action.
