Smoke free - it’s good for business
Since 1st July 2007, all work and enclosed public places in England have had to be completely smoke free. The move followed the action of a growing number of countries worldwide which have banned smoking in work and public places to protect their citizens from the harmful effects of second hand smoke. Scotland went smoke free from the end of March 2006 and Northern Ireland followed in April 2007. The Smoke Free Guildford campaign was launched to raise awareness among local businesses and to help them prepare for the forthcoming changes in the law.
Why should I be smoke free?
The Health Act 2006 intended that every enclosed work and public place (with few exceptions) should be completely smoke free as a step in reducing tobacco related disease. But, regardless of the law, being smoke free is a good idea for your business.
Your customers and your workforce want it
The majority don’t smoke. Smoking in public places and at work creates imposed tobacco pollution from a small minority (three out of four people don’t smoke) onto a substantial non-smoking majority. It could put off customers and lose you employees.
Research in Ireland post the ban
Enclosed workplaces became smoke free by law in Ireland in 2004. Since then, 94% of all workplaces inspected by the National Tobacco Control Inspection programme were smoke free. In an Office of Tobacco Control (OTC ) survey in 2005 98% of people believe workplaces are healthier, 93% think that the smoke free law is a good idea (including 80% of smokers) and 96% think it is a success (including 89% of smokers). The law has become part of normal work and social life and the OTC has reported an 'overwhelming support for the smoke free law among smokers and non-smokers'.
Hospitality industry
One of the major areas of controversy has been bringing in a ban in the hospitality industry eg restaurants and bars. The OTC reports that in Ireland - of those surveyed who visited the pub in the previous fortnight - 98% reported that the atmosphere was not smoky compared to 46% before the ban. 99% of smokers surveyed had either smoked outside the pub or not at all. So just a year after the ban was brought in there was almost 100% compliance.
Independent research by NOP World Health in Surrey in 2005 showed that although one in four smoke, three out of four want to quit. Reassuringly, a ban would not appear to harm business. Indeed, 58% said that a smoke free law would make no difference to them and 34% said they would use restaurants and cafes more if a law was introduced.
It’s good for your organisation’s health
Second-hand smoke kills. You don’t have to smoke to die from it. The World Heath Organisation’s International Agency for Research on Cancer concluded that second-hand smoke increased the risk of lung cancer by 20 – 30%. This has been confirmed by numerous other scientific bodies. It increases the risk of coronary heart disease by about the same amount, as well as being linked to stroke and other serious illnesses. The British Medical Association estimated that in the UK at least 1000 a year die from second-hand tobacco smoke – about four times as many as are killed in accidents at work.
Ventilation does not work
Employers have a statutory duty to maintain a working environment which is safe and free from risks to health. There is no evidence that areas set aside for non-smokers, within a place which allows smoking or ventilation systems, provide protection from second-hand smoke. Almost 85% of second-hand smoke is invisible so what seems to be an apparently non-smoky atmosphere can be just as harmful. A smoke free environment will help to keep your workforce healthy and is also linked with more staff giving up smoking.
Research on absenteeism
A report on the local economic impact of tobacco consumption and control in Greater Manchester 2005 reports that smoking results in 1.5m days off a year for the Greater Manchester workforce. A total of £105m of working time is lost to businesses in that area due to the ill health caused by smoking. Cigarette breaks taken by Greater Manchester workforce costs businesses £364m in equivalent wages each year.
In August 2005, the South East Public Health Observatory reported that the cost of smoking related sick days amounts to over £370 million in the South East region for 2003. A staggering £1.2 billion is estimated to be lost to businesses in the region from smoking breaks throughout the day.
It’s good for business
Giving your customers what they want. If you are giving your customers and your workforce what they want, it’s very likely to be good for business. It could create new customers and employees who were being put off because of your smoky environment.
Since the smoke free law came into force a number of bars and restaurants in the borough have reported an increase in trade and customers welcoming the new law.
Manchester research which looks at issues such as health, business, employment, and fire estimates that smoking costs the Greater Manchester economy nearly £630 million each year - around 75% of which is borne by local businesses.
Fire risks - smoking causes fires. Examples include the King’s Cross Underground station fire in 1987. Around 200 people are killed and 2,000 injured in smoking related fires each year in the UK. The total cost of fires caused by smoking materials (excluding the cost of lost lives) is estimated at £150 million each year. 12% of all accidental fires in the workplace are caused by smoking to a total cost each year of over £50 million. This is backed up by research in Manchester which states that in 2002, 678 fires were ignited by smoker's materials and the total cost to the local economy of such fires was £17.5m. Smoke free policies help protect from this risk.
Economic effects of smoke free policies on the hospitality industry
A review of the quality of studies in this area concluded that all of the best-designed studies report either no impact, or a positive impact, of smoke free restaurant and bar laws on sales or employment.
The Office of Tobacco Control data shows that in Ireland, bar sales declined by 4.4% in 2004, but they had fallen by 4.2% in the previous year. Economic analysts suggest that this continuing downward trend is due to a number of factors including high prices, changing lifestyles and shifting demographic patterns.
There’s free help at hand
Get expert advice on how to develop the right policy for your company or amend your existing one, free, from the West Surrey Stop Smoking Service by calling 01483 510460. If you are interested, they can also run staff surveys and give advice and support to staff wishing to quit.
The campaign to make Guildford smoke free was backed by Guildford’s Local Strategic Partnership.
Sources:
- Smoke Free Workplaces in Ireland: A one-year review – Office of Tobacco Control.
- The local economic impacts of tobacco consumption and control in Greater Manchester – report to the Department of Health North West Public Health Group Regional Tobacco Policy Team April 2005.
- Tobacco Smoke Pollution: The Hard Facts – 10 reasons to make public places smoke free.
- Review of the quality of studies on the economic effects of smoke free policies on the hospitality industry M Scollo, A Lal, A Hyland, S Glantz.
- Independent research by NOP World Health, Surrey Residents’ Attitudes towards smokefree public places, June 2005.
- Choosing Health in the South East: Smoking – SEPHO, South East Public Health Observatory August 2005.
- Going Smokefree - SEPHO 2005 and 2007 (this page opens in a new window)
Environmental Health and Licensing Services
Guildford Borough Council
Millmead House
Millmead
Guildford
GU2 4BB
Tel: 01483 444371
Fax: 01483 444546
Email: environmentalhealth@guildford.gov.uk