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Updated: August 5, 2011
Overview
Secondhand Smoke in the Workplace
Smoking Laws
Workplace Policies
Lifestyle Discrimination
Thinking About Going Tobacco-Free?
Resources
Citations
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Workplace smoking bans reduce both smoking prevalence and smoking intensity and, when self-enforced, these bans are highly cost-effective.
Source: Treatobacco.net. Key Findings. Available at: http://www.treatobacco.net/en/index.php. Accessed August 3, 2011. |
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Overview
As the public becomes increasingly aware of the harmful health effects of tobacco use and secondhand smoke, it becomes less and less socially acceptable to smoke in public or at work. Many states have taken a stance against tobacco use and have passed laws restricting smoking in public places (including the workplace), to reduce the public's exposure to secondhand smoke.
Benefits of Banning Smoking in the Workplace
Secondhand Smoke and the Workplace
- The home and the workplace are the two places where people are exposed the most to secondhand smoke.1
- Levels of secondhand smoke in restaurants and bars were found to be 2 to 5 times higher than in residences with smokers and 2 to 6 times higher than in office workplaces.2
- Exposure to secondhand smoke at work increases a nonsmoker's risk of heart disease by 25%-30% and lung cancer by 20%-30%.3
Financial Cost of Secondhand Smoke
A 2005 study concluded that secondhand smoke costs the United States economy about $10 billion per year- approximately $5 billion on direct medical costs associated with secondhand smoke and $4.6 billion on indirect costs such as lost wages due to lost work time because of illness, and disability.4
Health Risks of Secondhand Smoke
- There are 250 toxic chemicals in secondhand smoke; 50 cause cancer.5
- There is no risk-free level of secondhand smoke; any exposure can cause serious health problems.5
- Secondhand smoke causes:6
- Lung cancer.
- Heart disease.
- Respiratory problems in children, such as lower respiratory illnesses, asthma, and lower levels of lung function.
- Low birth weight babies.
- Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Smoking Laws
There is no federal law prohibiting smoking, but many states have enacted laws that make it illegal to smoke in public places in order to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke.
All 50 states and the District of Columbia have laws/policies restricting or prohibiting smoking in certain places. Laws concerning smoking in the workplace vary by state. Since there are still states that do not have laws prohibiting smoking in the workplace, many employers have instituted their own workplace policies that prohibit smoking.
State law completely prohibits smoking in private workplaces (as of January 1, 2011):7
Arizona
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Hawaii
Illinois
Iowa
Kansas
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Jersey
New York
North Dakota
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Utah
Vermont
Washington
Wisconsin
State law prohibits smoking in most places, but certain types of places are exempt (as of January 1, 2011):7
Arkansas
Colorado
Minnesota
New Mexico
Tennessee
State law allows smoking in separately enclosed, separately ventilated rooms/area (as of January 1, 2011):7
California
State law restricts smoking to designated areas, or allowed in most types of places (as of January 1, 2011):7
Alabama
Alaska
Connecticut
Georgia
Idaho
New Hampshire
Oklahoma
State law has no provisions surrounding smoking in the workplace (as of January 1, 2011):7
Indiana
Kentucky
Mississippi
Missouri
North Carolina
South Carolina
Texas
Virginia
West Virginia
Wyoming
For more information about state smoking restrictions visit the American Lung Association's report: State Legislated Actions on Tobacco Issues 2010.
Legal Liability
Employers who currently allow smoking in the workplace may face legal risk through workers compensation claims, disability claims, and common law duty.
- Worker's Compensation: An employee can file a claim for an injury or illness from secondhand smoke.3
- Disability Discrimination: An employee can file a claim if he or she has a disability that becomes worse or is complicated by secondhand smoke.3
- Common Law Duty: An employee can file a claim that the employer has not provided a safe work environment; under common law duty, employers are responsible for creating a workplace that is safe for employees.3
Workplace Policies
Eliminating smoke from the workplace is the only way to protect nonsmokers from the dangerous health effects of secondhand smoke. Separating smokers from nonsmokers and/or instituting filtration/ventilation systems do not eliminate the danger.1 In addition, studies have shown that those trying to quit smoking are more successful when their home and workplace are smoke-free.8
- Since there are still states that do not have laws prohibiting smoking in the workplace, employers have instituted workplace policies on their own that prohibit smoking.
- The most progressive employers have created tobacco-free campuses, workplaces where all tobacco use (all smoked and smokeless tobacco) is prohibited anywhere on the property.
It is important to note that research shows that restaurants and bars that go smoke-free do not suffer financial losses as a result.9
Banning Smokeless Tobacco
Full-time employees are more likely to use smokeless tobacco than those who work part-time or are unemployed.10 Employers may want to consider prohibiting the use of smokeless tobacco in the workplace in order to discourage employees from using it as an alternative to smoking cigarettes. By prohibiting all forms of tobacco use in the workplace, employers may be able to diminish the use of tobacco among employees and thus reduce the health problems and costs associated with tobacco use.
The use of smokeless tobacco can be unpleasant for other employees because of frequent spitting. Also, the disposal of chewed and spit tobacco may lead to higher cleaning and maintenance costs for employers.
- As indoor smoking bans increase all over the country, cigarette smokers are finding it more difficult to maintain the habit. Thus, the tobacco industry is increasing the promotion of smokeless tobacco, hoping that rather than quitting altogether, smokers will transfer their use of cigarettes to smokeless tobacco.
- In 2005 alone, tobacco manufacturers spent $250 million on smokeless tobacco advertising- an unprecedented record.11
Lifestyle Discrimination
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Evidence shows that there is an increasing trend in the use of other forms of tobacco such as pipe, cigars, and smokeless tobacco, which also produce nicotine dependence.
Source: American Psychiatric Association. Practice guidelines for the treatment of psychiatric disorders. Washington: American Psychiatric Association; 2005 |
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In the pursuit of creating a smoke-free workplace to improve the health, safety, and productivity of employees, employers must be sure to make this transition positively.
- More than half of the states in the U.S. have "lifestyle discrimination" laws.12
- Lifestyle discrimination laws prohibit employers from treating employees unfairly based on their lifestyle choices.
- An employer cannot punish or fire an employee based on a lifestyle choice (i.e., smoking) when the employee engages in this activity outside of work and off company premises.
To find out more about Government Regulations on HIPAA Nondiscrimination and Wellness Programs visit the National Business Group on Health's Public Policy Alert.
For more information about whether employers can offer discounted health premiums for nonsmokers without violating federal laws visit the National Business Group on Health's Issue Brief: Employers Can Provide Financial Incentives Such As Contribution/Premium Discounts to Their Nonsmoking Employees Through a Bona Fide Wellness Program.
Thinking About Going Tobacco-Free?
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| It is recommended that an employer take 6 months to 1 year to plan for and fully institute the new policy. |
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Before going smoke-free employers may want to consider the following questions.
- What is the intended goal of the tobacco free policy?
- Do you want a workplace that is 100% smoke-free indoors?
- Do you want a workplace that is 100% smoke-free both indoors and outdoors?
- Do you want a workplace that is 100% tobacco-free (prohibit all types of smoking and smokeless tobacco)?
Resources
There are excellent tools available for employers that lay out the step-by-step process of going smoke-free. See Save Lives, Save Money: Make Your Business Smoke Free (CDC), Making Your Workplace Smoke Free A Decision Maker's Guide (CDC), and Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs 2007 (CDC).
Citations
1 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The health consequences of involuntary exposure to tobacco smoke: a report of the Surgeon General. Washington, DC: Office of the Surgeon General; 2006. Available at: http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/reports.htm. Accessed April 18, 2008.
2 American Lung Association. Secondhand Smoke. Available at: http://www.lungusa.org/stop-smoking/about-smoking/health-effects/secondhand-smoke.html. Accessed August 3, 2011.
3 Zellers L, Thomas M, Ashe M. Legal risks to employers who allow smoking in the workplace. Am J Public Health. 2007;97(8):1376-1382.
4 Behan D, Eriksen M, Lin Y. Economic effects of environmental tobacco smoke. Society of Actuaries. 2005. Available at: http://www.soa.org/files/pdf/ETSReportFinalDraft(Final%203).pdf. Accessed April 18, 2008.
5 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Secondhand smoke. Available at: http://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/Factsheets/SecondhandSmoke.htm. Accessed September 5, 2007.
6 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Annual smoking-attributable mortality, years of potential life lost, and productivity losses—United States, 1997-2001. MMWR. 2005;54(25):625-628.
7 American Lung Association. State Legislated Actions on Tobacco Issues 2010. Available at: http://www.lungusa2.org/slati/reports/SLATI_2010_Final_Web.pdf. Accessed August 3, 2011.
8 Lee C, Kahende J. Factors associated with successful smoking cessation in the United States, 2000. Am J Public Health. 2007;97(8):1503-1509.
9 Scollo M, Lal A, Hyland A, et al. Review of the quality of studies on the economic effects of smoke-free policies on the hospitality industry. Tob Control. 2003;12:13-20.
10 Arabi Z. An epidemic that deserves more attention: epidemiology, prevention, and treatment of smokeless tobacco. Southern Medical Journal. 2007;100(9):890-894.
11 Federal Trade Commission. Smokeless tobacco report for the years 2002-2005. Washington, DC: Federal Trade Commission, 2007. Available at: http://www.ftc.gov/reports/tobacco/02-05smokeless0623105.pdf. Accessed April 18 2008.
12 American Civil Liberties Union. Lifestyle discrimination in the workplace: your right to privacy under attack. Available at: http://www.aclu.org/racial-justice_womens-rights/lifestyle-discrimination-workplace-your-right-privacy-under-attack. Accessed August 3, 2011.
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