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TROPICANA HOTEL & CASINO TO PAY $75,000

WASHINGTON, D.C. Tropicana Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, under an agreement reached with the Department of Justice, has agreed to pay $75,000 in civil penalties to settle allegations of workplace discrimination.

Under the agreement approved by Judge Robert Barton of the Department's Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer (OCAHO), the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) will train and educate human resources personnel on fair hiring practices at the Tropicana Casino & Resort and monitor its hiring practices for two years. OSC's investigation found that the company required non-citizens to produce documents issued by the Immigration and Naturalization Service, a practice Congress made illegal in 1990.

"This settlement serves the public interest and will make Tropicana an industry leader in complying with the law," said Special Counsel John Trasviña. "We found 978 violations of the federal anti-discrimination provisions. As this industry relies more and more on immigrant labor, our work is increasing. We want to make sure all companies have the tools and knowledge they need so that fair hiring practices prevail."

The settlement follows a March, 2001 settlement with a large Las Vegas, Nevada gaming industry company on similar charges.

Established by Congress by the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), the OSC is the only office in the federal government whose sole mission is to enforce IRCA's protections against citizenship status and national origin discrimination and "document abuse" in hiring and firing.

Employers with questions concerning the hiring process may call OSC's toll-free automated hot-line at 1-800-255-8155. Workers may call, toll-free, 1-800-255-7688. Multi-lingual assistance is available. Or individuals may write to:

Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related

website: www.usdoj.gov/crt/osc

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