Wellness Programs : Tobacco use Bans Get Mixed Review.
At the end of the day, is it worthwhile to ban tobacco use on the premises at your corporation?
It depends on the steps you take to support workforce attempting to kick the habit, finds a recent study . The Journal of Tobacco Policy and Research found that smokers do, indeed take more sick days than their non-tobacco use peers.
And even if the smoker is in relatively good overall health (i.e., isn’t obese, does not have chronic health conditions), he or she is still likely to have higher medical costs than a comparable non-smoker over the last three years.
How does a use of tobacco ban fit into the cost equation? If the smoker quits, healthcare costs even out.
But if the person only refrains from smoking on the job – but continues puffing away at home – the company sees little to no healthcare cost decrease. The study found similar patterns for absenteeism.
Bottom line – A workplace smoking ban in combo with a smoking cessation program gets results. A smoking ban alone ordinarily doesn’t.