Companies Forbidding Smoking In Private Lives

[*jr]

This is going too far; I'm for anti-smoking but this is too damn far. If the product being consumed is legal then it's no damn business of any employer if their employer uses that product off the clock. Wouldn't you agree?

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Source: local6.com

A growing number of companies in Florida are forbidding their workers from smoking not only at work, but also in their private lives.

Westgate Resorts, the largest private employer in Central Florida, has banned smoking and won't budge from a policy of not hiring smokers and firing employees who do smoke.

"When I found out it was legal to discriminate against smokers, I put the policy in place," Westgate president and CEO David Seigel said.

Seigel told Local 6 that the policy was prompted by the death of his close friend -- a heavy smoker who died of cancer.

more: http://www.local6.com/news/14537611/detail.html

[*jr]

hmmm. no one has any particular opinion on this ????

[HELWAA]

That is good idea .....here in sweden they already started that...nurses
who smoke can never work in a hospital....when they look for a job
the first Q THE BOSS ASK IS ..do you smoke...if she/he say yes..
waa macsallama.

[Naaima]

Salam alaikum

in many cases they are only saving your life and money!

[*jr]

What about alcohol? Do you think anyone who drinks alcohol on his own private time should be fired too? We know alcohol kills more people than cigarettes each year?

[zulaika]

"Seigel told Local 6 that the policy was prompted by the death of his close friend -- a heavy smoker who died of cancer"
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now that's what i call tough love.

[zulaika]

[quote="*jr"]What about alcohol? Do you think anyone who drinks alcohol on his own private time should be fired too? We know alcohol kills more people than cigarettes each year?[/quote]

jr.

that too. if i was a ceo of my company...my policy would be:

alkulisto -------> OUT!...hit the door jack.

[Gedo_Boy]

it's conflicting messages society is pushing..........like w/ alchohol and cigarettes there's a powerful lobby behind them and it's big bucks.....

but insurance companies are hurting b/c insured people who smoke are more likely to have costly health-related illnesses.

There was some controversy a while back about mapping the human genome b/c such a person's predisposition to disease a person might carry can determine the risk and insurance companies could decide to offer you coverage based on how likely you are to take advantage of the benefits.

the same goes for medical records being made available to insurance companies prior to being offered/denied coverage.