Give smokers paid time off work to quit - report

Last Modified: 25 Apr 2007
Source: ITN

Businesses are being urged to give workers extra time off to attend stop smoking clinics ahead of England's ban on July 1.

The guidance body on public health recommends workers - many of whom already enjoy cigarette breaks throughout the day - should not lose pay if they need help in giving up.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) believes that businesses will benefit by a subsequent boost in productivity.

"For example, a business with 20 employees, of which typically five would smoke, could spend just £66 on providing brief advice (including employees' time) and see an overall saving of around £350 based on improved productivity," a spokeswoman for Nice said.

Currently, smoking costs the NHS an estimated £1.5 billion each year, and costs industry an estimated £5 billion in lost productivity, absenteeism and fire damage.

Andrew Dillon, chief executive of Nice, said: "Going smokefree is a win-win situation for both employers and employees, and our advice sets out the best approach to making it happen."

He added: "Our advice is based on the best evidence of which workplace approaches are effective for smokers and make business sense for employers."

But Simon Clark, director of Forest, the Freedom Organisation for the Right to Enjoy Smoking Tobacco, said it was "absolutely ridiculous" that workers should attend stop smoking clinics during working hours.

"It's wrong to expect employers to accept employees taking time off, and I imagine their non-smoking colleagues will be very unhappy about it," he said.

"It's generally acknowledged these quit smoking courses are not very successful - it's a matter for willpower. And they are likely to be open to abuse - people will take advantage as they have an excuse to take time off work."

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