A Japanese Company Is Giving Nonsmokers Longer Vacations (fastcompany.com) 226
An anonymous reader shares a report: Marketing firm Piala introduced the new policy in September after nonsmokers complained that they were working more than their colleagues who smoked. The company's offices are reportedly on the 29th floor, meaning that popping out for a smoke break meant a solid 15 minutes away from work. Multiply that by several smoke breaks a day, and the hours start to add up, which began to tick off nonsmoking coworkers. A spokesman for the company told The Telegraph that one of those nonsmokers slipped a note in the company's suggestion box and the CEO agreed. Now nonsmokers are entitled to more vacation time, which the company hopes will encourage smokers to quit their filthy habit.
Just create a death room (Score:2)
Seems cheaper to create an enclosed room on the 29th floor where smokers can get their fix in 5 minutes instead of 15 minutes.
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Seems cheaper to create an enclosed room on the 29th floor where smokers can get their fix in 5 minutes instead of 15 minutes.
with blackjack and slots.
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Seems cheaper to create an enclosed room on the 29th floor where smokers can get their fix in 5 minutes instead of 15 minutes.
with blackjack and slots.
You forgot the hookers and cocaine.
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And Russian roulette with a bunch of red ties.... or bandanas.
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Wait what? There's still backwards countries where you're allowed to smoke indoors in a company building?
*mind blown*
Re:Just create a death room (Score:4, Interesting)
Wait what? There's still backwards countries where you're allowed to smoke indoors in a company building?
*mind blown*
Yes, it's called Las Vegas...
We were in Vegas this fall for touristy stuff (grand canyon, hoover dam, etc.) and to enjoy the warm weather. Living in the Boston area where smoking isn't allowed in bars, I'd forgotten just how horrible the smell of smoke was. It just hits you like a wave when you walk into any of the Casinos. I would have thought that they would have, at least, upgraded their air ex-changers and filters to handle it a lot better.
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What awful low end casino did you walk into?
All the majors have huge air exchange systems that suck any smoke straight up. I can't remember the last time I could smell more than a hint of cigarette inside one of the major casinos? Watch someone smoke at a table sometime, you can sit and watch the smoke go straight upward.
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Re:Just create a death room (Score:4, Informative)
Was it just the casinos or everywhere? Many states like my own Florida have laws where there is only no smoking in restaurants, or bar/restaurants where the the percentage of food sales goes over a certain ratio. So yes in Florida you will find smoky casinos, bars, and even some bars that serve food. You also will find bars that do not allow smoking by management discretion.
As you might expect (if not being too cynical), Nevada (like most states) has similar Clean-air [tobaccofreenv.org] laws...
FWIW, some states (like Colorado) have gone further to protect the workers in Bars Restaurants and Casinos and prohibited smoking there as well (although there is a loophole in the law for establishments that sell more than $50K/year in tobacco allowing them to be considered cigar bars where smoking is allowed). Unfortunately, this doesn't apply to Casinos owned by Indian interests as they are considered part of tribes and are sovereign entities which for better or worse are allowed to make their own laws.
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No smoking in the bar either... I haven't stood in line for an hour to get into see a band play since they made smoking illegal in bars, bands that used to draw in crowds can't fill a bar anymore and if there isn't a band playing or some other event going on those bars are completely dead.
That may not be fair to say that no smoking in bars had damaged the bands they are one of the few things that are keeping the bars going but even those bands are struggling and the big name bands have trouble packing venue
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Sounds like a localised problem. In places in the world that abolished indoor smoking some 10-15 years ago bands and bars are none the less flourishing, many with queues to get into even when no band are playing, and relatively unknown bands have no trouble selling out venues.
It's a sad case when in your area the only thing people went to bars for was to smoke. That used to be a reason for many of us NOT to go.
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There has also been a cultural shift, big concerts aren't as big as they used to be and kids don't hang out at the mall, skate park, arcade, etc... anymore. The younger crowd doesn't socialize in public as much I did, they do it on the internet with their cell phones, so you can't blame it entirely on a smoking ban.
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Again, must be a localised problem. Where I live: Stadium was re-purposed as a concert venue (despite guarantees that it would never be used as such during construction) because the local concert venue isn't large enough anymore, the skate park is as full as ever, and if it's not it's only because the riff-raff have relocated to the hugely popular freestyle trampolining centres, the arcade... yeah that died a while back here too.
As for the younger crowd not socialising in public... have you heard of Pokemon
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That sounds just like the FUD propaganda that was spread here in Sweden by the tobacco companies lobby groups ahead of the smoking ban in bars, restaurants etc.
What happened here instead was that the restaurant/pub/bar/hotel industry got a massive increase in trade and profitability, with more customers and less turnaround in staff.
Turns out, a LOT of people had become utterly disgusted with the fact that even if they weren't smokers themselves, they'd come home after a night out, spitting smoke-tainted sal
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This idea is somewhat interesting.
Keurig exists because companies saw the benefit of a 30 second brew cycle over a 5minute one. What about (only) allowing vape use on the property? Instant on, 3 or 4 puffs and you're done.
By the way, the way I got compensated for being a non-smoker among smokers was to take a break at the same time as the smokers. Out we would all go and I'd have a 15 minute chin wag several times a day.
News for nerds? (Score:2)
Probably the one time.. (Score:2)
"Quit their filthy habit"? (Score:5, Insightful)
If you want to illegalize it, fine. But I'm tired of the constant ads for "TRUTH" (now going all the way to claim that smoking is racist) all the while I'm counter propagandized (by some of the same companies) about how pot smoking is good for you and should be legalized.
And I say this as a non-smoker!
Are we going to give similar breaks to single employees without children and how great that is?
Are we going to count those who take 5 coffee breaks a day?!
How about those gym nuts that disappear for an hour a day (not including lunch) to go for a run and promise they'll make the time up later?!
Spare me your sanctimonious bs.
Re: "Quit their filthy habit"? (Score:4, Informative)
Lazy people exist everywhere. And often managers notice. But only smokers are across the board taking many more breaks than everyone else.
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Lazy people exist everywhere. And often managers notice. But only smokers are across the board taking many more breaks than everyone else.
Yes, how dare a private company reward employees for not having bad habits and working more productively. Shame on them.
Re: "Quit their filthy habit"? (Score:4, Informative)
The only issue here is fairness. If one group gets to take hours a year extra time off to smoke, non smokers should be able to have the same hours available to them.
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Are we going to give similar breaks to single employees without children and how great that is?
Why are you taking children to work and letting them distract you?
Are we going to count those who take 5 coffee breaks a day?!
Why? It takes 30 seconds to get a cup of coffee. If you have an inefficiency maybe put more coffee machines in the office. The extra caffeine will help productivity too.
How about those gym nuts that disappear for an hour a day (not including lunch) to go for a run and promise they'll make the time up later?!
Are you now talking about people who have addictive habits that negatively impact their work, or are you talking about lazy people not doing their required number of hours? We have a gym in the office. Some lunchtime exercise is great for giving you a productive afternoon rath
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It takes 30 seconds to get a cup of coffee
You're doing it wrong.
As with smoking, coffee is an ideal time to engage with others, build relationships, identify and solve shared problems and clear your mind enough that you'll take a fresh look at whatever the fuck you were working on.
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I didn't say I don't do it. I just said it takes 30 seconds to get a cup of coffee, whereas leaving the building to smoke a cigarette has a far longer lower time limit. If you're the only one who wants coffee it doesn't take much of your time. If you're the only one smoking then it does.
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People who smoke Pot don't chain smoke, most doen't even smoke a full joint a day even in active users. They'll take a couple puffs and put it out almost immediately. And as we've seen in areas where it's been made legal, a significant amount of pot consumption is done with edibles precisely so people don't have to smoke it.
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Are we going to give similar breaks to single employees without children and how great that is?
Are we going to count those who take 5 coffee breaks a day?!
How about those gym nuts that disappear for an hour a day (not including lunch) to go for a run and promise they'll make the time up later?!
I am intrigued by your ideas and would like to subscribe to your newsletter.
Wait.... what? (Score:2)
Last time I checked, smoke breaks are unpaid... so are they suggesting only offering non-smokers more unpaid vacation time?
If so, that hardly seems like something newsworthy.
Re:Wait.... what? (Score:4, Interesting)
Really? Where? I've been paid for every single smoke break I've taken during the last 30 years.
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Me too.
Of course, anywhere I've worked that let smokers take a break, also lets non-smokers.
The fact that many non-smokers choose to not take breaks should have no bearing on the people who do.
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Me too.
Of course, anywhere I've worked that let smokers take a break, also lets non-smokers.
The fact that many non-smokers choose to not take breaks should have no bearing on the people who do.
This shouldn't be seen as having a bearing on the people who take breaks (smoker or no-smoker), they are a reward for being a non-smoker since they only apply to people who don't smoke, and apparently do not penalize non-smokers who also take breaks whenever smokers take breaks.
FWIW, back in the day, even though I have always been a non-smoker, when I had many co-workers who smoked, often I would also go outside and stand up-wind from them to listen/chat. There was lots of company gossip/politics from othe
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hourly employees might be expected to clock out for a smoke break but not salaried
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That's great and all ... (Score:5, Insightful)
Well, good for the Japanese, bully for them.
But honestly, when I step out for a smoke I step out with one or two of my co-workers, we actively discuss what we're working on and solve some problems, and then go back at it.
Going out for a smoke doesn't necessarily mean you aren't working. Sometimes, you are actually working the whole time. I can't tell you how many times I've helped a co-worker sort out how to do something (or he helped me) while having a smoke.
Just because I'm not typing doesn't mean I'm not working.
It simply may not be true that you're doing less work -- in fact, I regularly see co-workers spend more time on Facebook or texting or what have you than I spend smoking every day. The difference being is I'm more likely to still be working while I'm smoking.
Where I'm actively thinking doesn't change that I am actually doing it.
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But honestly, when I step out for a smoke I step out with one or two of my co-workers, we actively discuss what we're working on and solve some problems, and then go back at it.
Good for you. I mostly hear talk of football and bitching about how cold it is.
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But honestly, when I step out for a smoke I step out with one or two of my co-workers, we actively discuss what we're working on and solve some problems, and then go back at it.
I do the same at the pub. Where is the justice?
Re:That's great and all ... (Score:4, Funny)
Smoking and social media... you guys are disgusting. Some of us are civilized and watch porn during work.
how much vacation? (Score:4, Interesting)
Somehow I doubt the math works out anyway.
For simplicity lets assume there are 200 working days in a year. If you take a single break every day for 15 minutes, you have spent 50h on those breaks, which would make it over a week of work time. Multiple breaks will increase this even further. Somehow I doubt the company will offer that much vacation time to non smokers.
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Comes out as a bargain for the company.
Re:how much vacation? (Score:4, Insightful)
Only if you assume the non-smokers don't goof off separately but equally.
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Quick. Bury the Slashdot window. The boss is coming.
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Slashdot isn't goofing off. It's keeping up with important industry news and trends, same as BOFH. ;-)
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Why? Nothing prevents them from taking a 15 minute break to do something other than smoke.
Re:how much vacation? (Score:4, Insightful)
Snitches get stitches (Score:2, Interesting)
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Stitches?
Any smokers want to make threats, I'll see them in an MMA cage. I won't have to hit them. Two rounds of ducking and dancing around them and their emphysema will have them on the mat.
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Stitches?
Any smokers want to make threats, I'll see them in an MMA cage.
Rampage Jackson just called. He's waiting in the Octagon for you...
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Some day you will just be passed up for a promotion, raise, or get less vacation time,
My boss has my back and hates smokers as well. Most probably anyone who tries any office retribution will be shown the door.
but wont know why.
I work in a business where everyone is watched. For national security reasons. Inter-office politics can result in the losing parties trying to "get back" at the company, which may result in security problems. You will not only be shown the door, you will get a long sit-down session with the FBI. And a life long record.
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If they know how violent you disposition was
The DoD doesn't care so much about violence as long as you have done your time for the offense. They are, after all, in that line of business. What they do watch for are individuals with tendencies to creep around and 'get' co-workers or companies who they believe have wronged them. These are prime candidates for manipulation by foreign intelligence services.
And posting AC isn't much protection when it comes to background checks.
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I'm sure that all of those non-smokers are always diligently working while in the office.
As shown, we're just smarter. We bludge just as much AND get more time off and don't get as much cancer. Winning!
It's kind of amusing... (Score:3)
In my anecdotal experience it's the biggest slackers who notice and complain about stuff like that.
Also it's been widely known for quite a while now that taking frequent breaks increases productivity because we work better in "sprints" that are rewarded in the short term with a break. If I recall correctly it was coincidentally 15 minutes per hour of work.
Smoking is a gross habit and the 15 minute breaks are better spent doing something else but from an employer standpoint the 15 minute break people are getting more done than the people bitching about them.
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You sound like upper management with kids on the lawn listening to devil music.
A Japanese Company Is Giving Nonsmokers Longer Vac (Score:2)
I am a smoker - and I went through almost 12 months without anyone at that workplace even commenting.
I was the first into the office in the morning, and the last out - for years.
'Smokers' *already* know that they have to be 'seen' do do more to make up for the 2/3/4 5-min breaks a day.
Even skipping lunch 'hours' to make them 'lunch-at-the-desk-while-working'
The earlier post about the use of company time and resources on 'personal' use such as FB, I believe is a significantly worse issue, having seen what yo
Re:If I worked at a Japanese company (Score:5, Funny)
in Japanese company you hit the bar after your 10 (Score:3)
in Japanese company you hit the bar after your 10 hour day at the office.
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The Japanese don't "hit the bar". The British "hit the bar". The Japanese "challenge their co-workers to a competitive drinking session".
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If you believe American cinema that would be hit the karaoke bar.
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Actually it's a lot of Asian cultures. I've heard about it in Korea, but I've experienced it in Japan and mainland China.
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The Japanese don't "hit the bar". The British "hit the bar". The Japanese "challenge their co-workers to a competitive drinking session".
Americans "hit the bar", the British "go to the pub"...
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In Soviet Russia, bar hit you!
[c'mon, you asked for it.]
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in Japanese company you hit the bar after your 10 hour day at the office.
Depends on the company. Traditional Japanese companies with conservative management often do this, but it's becoming increasingly less common.
The solution: don't go work for these companies. As if there isn't enough to choose from.
Source: I live in Japan. I start work at 9:30 and leave at 18:30.
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GP probably has a mandatory one hour lunch break and you don't.
Re:Now how about healthcare? (Score:5, Informative)
LOL, charging smokers more for health/life insurance has been SOP in the industry for decades, and this guy's getting all aggro over his misconception of it.
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Smokers die young. Their lifetime healthcare costs are _lower_. Sense health care after age 65 is highly subsidised, we want _more_ smokers.
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Re:Now how about healthcare? (Score:5, Informative)
Smokers die young. Their lifetime healthcare costs are _lower_. Sense health care after age 65 is highly subsidised, we want _more_ smokers.
Not actually the case.
Yes it is. [bmj.com]
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However, when a monetary value for life years lost was taken into account, the beneficial net effect of non-smoking to society was about €70000 per individual.
Well it still seems something of value is perceived to get lost.
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Something that 'belongs' to the smokers (years of life), not an externality.
Smokers save Medicare a ton of money by dying young. Sure death is a large medical expense for everyone, but life is also expensive.
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Everybody has high medical costs in their last years. Try again.
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So incredibly wrong but not at all surprising, after all we're in the era of alternative facts.
Smokers cost the system somewhere around 25% more than non-smokers over their lifetime. They are far more likely to have expensive cancer and other medical care costs. Treating lung cancer can cost more than $1 million down to $50,000 or so depending on type and number of treatments needed. And you have several orders of magnitude more probability to get lung cancer than those who don't smoke.
But not even includin
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Right. The side of the argument that posted a peer reviewed study is 'alternative facts'. The one that pulls 25% from his asshole on the other hand?
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Are non-smokers going to have to pay for smokers' healthcare too
Not where I work. We don't hire smokers. We ask about tobacco use at the very beginning of the interview process, and reject all users.
This is perfectly legal. Smokers have no rights.
We hold down our healthcare costs, and it helps employee morale since nobody resents the smokers going on breaks and taking extra sick days.
I don't think there is much downside, since there are few smokers in California, and they tend to not be super bright.
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Having people work from home means they never leave work and since they are on salary they never get overtime pay and who cares if they smoke in their home they are charged more for insurance than non-smokers so it's a non-issue.
Re:Now how about healthcare? (Score:4, Insightful)
Not where I work. We don't hire smokers. We ask about tobacco use at the very beginning of the interview process, and reject all users.
Well, that's just stupid - you would really pass up a chance to hire the next Tesla or Hawkings, because they smoke? I bet your competition loves such counterproductive thinking.
This is perfectly legal. Smokers have no rights.
Not true - smokers have the exact same civil liberties as non-smokers. The key term here is "private company."
since there are few smokers in California, and they tend to not be super bright.
I cannot disagree that Californians do not seem to be all that bright.
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Not where I work. We don't hire smokers. We ask about tobacco use at the very beginning of the interview process, and reject all users.
Well, that's just stupid - you would really pass up a chance to hire the next Tesla or Hawkings, because they smoke? I bet your competition loves such counterproductive thinking.
If the next Tesla or Hawkings(sic) is going around handing in their CV and doing job interviews then they aren't who you think they are.
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Not where I work. We don't hire smokers. We ask about tobacco use at the very beginning of the interview process, and reject all users.
Well, that's just stupid - you would really pass up a chance to hire the next Tesla or Hawkings, because they smoke? I bet your competition loves such counterproductive thinking.
Back here in reality, chances are that its not, in fact smokers tend to have lower IQ's, probably not because of smoking but because most people who started smoking in the last 30 odd years have to be pretty daft to ignore the problems related to it.
This is perfectly legal. Smokers have no rights.
Not true - smokers have the exact same civil liberties as non-smokers. The key term here is "private company."
Smokers have no additional rights, and no inherent right to smoke. You knew this is what the GP meant, attempting to twist their words only makes you look silly.
To be 100% honest, I dont even think a smoker would win a case in Australia or the UK (who have ve
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Christopher Hitchens.
Dead from esophageal cancer at age 62. Also, he thought the Iraq War was a good idea. So maybe not so smart.
Re:Now how about healthcare? (Score:4, Informative)
Are non-smokers going to have to pay for smokers' healthcare too
Not where I work. We don't hire smokers. We ask about tobacco use at the very beginning of the interview process, and reject all users.
This is perfectly legal. Smokers have no rights.
You indicate later in your post that you are in California. What you are doing is not legal.
In most states smokers are protected against hiring discrimination. In particular, the majority of states cannot discriminate against you based on legal activity conducted outside of work hours. However, smokers may be required to pay more for health insurance. Or in some states, they may be denied employment if their smoking is incompatible with the job requirements (e.g., the American Lung Association may be able to decline to employ a smoker.)
https://www.workplacefairness.... [workplacefairness.org]
https://www.workplacefairness.... [workplacefairness.org]
I'm no fan of smoking or smokers, but smokers do indeed have rights.
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Don't listen to any legal advice provided on Slashdot, including my own.
It is perfectly legal to deny hiring in the case of smoking even in California. Smoking isn't an activity that only occurs outside work hours. You ever met a smoker that smokes ONLY outside work hours and identifies as a smoker? Neither have I.
The problem with smoking is two fold. They take far more breaks than their coworkers and they are far more likely to have health issues. I disagree with excluding a potential hires because they sm
Re:Now how about healthcare? (Score:4, Interesting)
I'd just like to throw this out there because unfortunately a lot of backwards thinking companies think they have the high ground, and they don't. If a company wants to pass up an employee because they have a stick up their ass, there are thousands of competitors who will hire instead. The only loser will be the idiot that passed up a smoker and has a vacant position for 6-12 months because they have no understanding of the market.
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Where I work, we hire people on the basis of merit-based qualifications.
Same here. And there is merit in not subjecting yourself to a poison that will most likely shorten your life. Or do you use a different kind of merit?
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Re:Now how about healthcare? (Score:4, Insightful)
Yes: me. I've been a pipe smoker (never cigarettes) for over forty years, and I've never had the slightest desire to slip out for a smoke. As I drive my own car to work, I can smoke then, or at home and have no need to smoke at work.
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"We don't hire smokers" - Now there's a slippery slope. That same logic could easily lead to let's not hire drinkers because alcohol causes so many health issues. And it does. In fact, alcohol causes far more negative effects on society than tobacco.
For the record, I'm not a smoker. I can't stand the smell of it. But I'm equally offended by bad breath and body odor. Should we stop hiring those people too? Why stop there? Let's get rid of those overweight people too. And what about all those people with kids
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'Bad fit.'
Never say _anything_ else, especially when dealing with 'protected classes'. What is the upside?
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Addiction to legal substances is a disability under the ADA.
Wrong [littler.com]: "smokers are not expressly protected under any federal statutes regarding employment rights."
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People love socialized medicine. Everyone who can afford it seems willing to sign up for voluntary socialized medicine, aka insurance.
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Or you just use taxation on tobacco products to cover the cost difference, as less tobacco is consumed costs should go down as the tax money dwindles.
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Or you just use taxation on tobacco products to cover the cost difference, as less tobacco is consumed costs should go down as the tax money dwindles.
They did that already, in 1983 in the 3rd federal increase of tobacco taxes. There have been, what, 3 to 6 more tax increases since then. Just so you know, anti-smokers tend to NOT be very accurate in their use of facts in this debate. Smokers have lower heath care costs (mostly due to not living to their 80s) and the local governments are addicted to the extra tax income those taxes bring in. Basically, this type of sin tax is the only way politicians can get support for regressive taxation. And you a
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Are non-smokers going to have to pay for smokers' healthcare too or will the smokers pay a premium to cover the extra burden they place on the healthcare system?
In socialized healthcare, you'd tax them an additional fee on each tobacco purchase to cover their higher healthcare costs. This is already a solved problem.
In places where we pay for our own healthcare, smokers already pay significantly higher premiums for engaging in their dangerous behavior. This is already a solved problem.
For instance, a friend of mine sat down with an insurance provider to get a quote a few months back. Everything was looking fine until they asked him whether he smoked. He smokes a ce
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If you're allowed to just declare a smoke break, then fuck you, I'm declaring a fap break.
I'll be in the stationary cupboard.
If that's what you're up to, I imagine it won't be stationary, but rather moving noticably. Try not to ruin the stationery while you're in there.
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They took their vacation in 15 min increments.
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I took up blowing bubbles from a child's soap bubble pipe whenever the smokers took a break.