Puff, the Magic Drag-On

Smokers are killing themselves, but we know that. “Each year, smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke causes 443,000 premature [American] deaths and costs the nation $193 billion in health bills and lost productivity, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC says 19.3% of U.S. adults smoked last year, down from 42.4% in 1965.” USAToday.com, January 3, 2012.

But a university study – Estimating the Cost of a Smoking Employee by Micah Berman, Rob Crane, Eric Seiber, andMehmet Munur published online in TobaccoControl.bmj.com, June 3^rd – puts hard cash numbers to the question of what it costs a company to have an employee who smokes… and no one officially allows smoking inside the workplace these days.“Smokers cost employers a lot of money--$5,816 a year compared to someone who has never smoked, to be exact. The number comes from new research that tallies the [annual] cost of smoke breaks (the biggest expense, at $3,077), additional health care ($2,056), absenteeism ($517), and lower productivity ($462).” FastCompany.com, June 12^th. Smoke breaks? That gaggle of puffers standing outside the door to the building wafting poetic?

Hey, there have to be some areas where smokers at least cost the same or even save a buck or two? “[S]mokers aren’t always a net drag. Because they die younger, they tax pension systems for less time--meaning a $296 per year savings overall. Smokers effectively subsidize non-smokers’ retirement.” FastCompany. Go smokers! Aside from this anomaly, generally the goal of corporate cost reductions and improved healthcare are aligned in this single issue.

 “As bans on smoking sweep the USA, an increasing number of employers — primarily hospitals — are also imposing bans on smokers. They won't hire applicants whose urine tests positive for nicotine use, whether cigarettes, smokeless tobacco or even patches… After several companies, including Alaska Airlines, adopted smoker-hiring bans a couple of decades ago, the tobacco industry and the American Civil Liberties Union lobbied for smoker rights. As a result, 29 states and the District of Columbia passed smoker-protection laws.

“Some laws exempt non-profit groups and the health care industry, and 21 states have no rules against nicotine-free hiring… Federal laws allow nicotine-free hiring because they don't recognize smokers as a protected class, says Chris Kuzynski with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.” USAToday.com

So how do you feel about companies having the right to reject potential employees just because they smoke? Or require them to participate in programs that help them quit?

I’m Peter Dekom, and I can’t get the notion of kissing a smoker is like licking an ashtray out of my head.