JOLIET – The parent company of Harrah’s Joliet Hotel and Casino is seeking bankruptcy protection but says the move will not affect the local casino.

Caesars Entertainment Operating Co., which owns the Joliet casino, announced Thursday it filed for bankruptcy protection in Chicago and hopes the court agrees to its plan to get out from under $18.4 billion in debt.

The company – a division of casino giant Caesars Entertainment Corp. – voluntarily filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 to “implement a restructuring plan to strengthen its financial position,” company officials said in a statement.

Despite the bankruptcy filing, company officials said its casinos and hotels would remain open and continue to host meetings and events, and ensured customers’ loyalty points would accrue and entertainment would happen on schedule.

The same will be true for Harrah’s Casino in Joliet, which will stay open for business. All operations will continue as usual, according to a company statement. Guests will continue receiving service.

“It’s all open for business at the Joliet casino. Operations are going to continue as usual … everything is staying the same,” a company spokesperson said.

Joliet Mayor Thomas Giarrante said he heard Thursday about the bankruptcy. He plans to reach out to Harrah’s Casino to find out more.

“I’m disturbed,” he said. “They’re doing well. They’re not doing as good as they were doing before. That’s a combination of things, such as the economy and smoking bans.”

The bankruptcy may have little effect on the Joliet casino, said Russ Slinkard, chief executive of the Joliet Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Caesars is a parent company of Harrah’s and its financial issues may not affect it much, he said.

“There may be something such as a job freeze, but as far as regular operations and participation in the community, I doubt those will be affected, frankly,” he said.

Harrah’s supports various community programs, such as Meals on Wheels, he said.

More than 30,000 people are employed at the debt-laden division’s 38 casino-hotels. In a video message posted online, Caesars CEO Gary Loveman said employees would continue to receive pay and benefits as usual.

Caesars Entertainment Operating Co. has been weighed down by sizable debt since several investor companies bought the casino giant in 2008 for $30.7 billion. It used $6.1 billion of its own cash, paying the rest with $24.7 billion in debt.

• The Associated Press contributed to this report.