Los Angeles, November 18, 2017. James drops off yet another resume. He couldn’t be more discouraged. It has seemed nearly impossible for him to find a job, especially since he was fired from his last position for testing positive. Who would have ever thought that a bad habit he picked up when he was 18 years old would stop James from finding meaningful employment? Or a job, any job?!?!?

Nearly every open position requires James to have a physical examination and cotinine test. This rules him out automatically for most jobs.  None of these companies want to hire smokers because it drives their company-sponsored insurance through the roof.  James doesn’t feel unhealthy. He doesn’t understand while hiring a young smoker is such a risk to an insurer.  He’s even tried to forego the company insurance.  The human resources departments just won’t listen to him. He would be such an asset to their companies, if only he could pass a cotinine test... (Want to know more about cotinine? http://www.fbr.org/publications/pamphlets/cotinine.html)

Will smokers be employable in 10 years?  Over the past few years, several companies have stopped hiring smokers. Some are charging higher insurance premiums to employees who smoke. A few have fired long-term employees who can’t stop smoking.  It turns out that smoking is not only bad for your body, it’s bad for your career.

Companies such as The Cleveland Clinic, SAS, and Weyco have made it much harder for employees to smoke.¹  All three companies have banned smoking both inside and outside their buildings. The Cleveland Clinic began screening potential employees for nicotine on September 1, 2007 (http://cms.clevelandclinic.org/body.cfm?id=227&action=detail&ref=708). Any candidate that tests positive will not be considered for employment. SAS headquarters occupies a 900-acre campus in Cary, North Carolina. Employees must leave the campus to smoke.  Weyco, an insurance firm in Lansing, Michigan, fired four long-term employees in 2005 because they couldn’t stop smoking.²

Smoking bans aren’t coming from employers alone; many state and local bans exist. Currently, 24 states plus the District of Columbia have laws in effect that require 100% smoke-free workplaces, restaurants, and/or bars. Six additional states have passed state laws that are not yet in effect.³   The Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation  has tracked, collected, and analyzed tobacco control ordinances, laws, and health department regulations for the last 25 years.  On their website, http://www.no-smoke.org, they list maps and tables that depict smoking laws in workplaces, restaurants, and bars.  These laws do not ban employees from smoking when they are at home, but they do prohibit smoking in, and sometimes near, buildings.  Calabasas, California passed the strictest anti-smoking legislation in the country. In 2006, they banned smoking in all indoor and outdoor public places except for a few designated outdoor smoking areas in town.

Insurance premiums are on the rise.  Employers are looking for ways to cut costs.  Some are choosing to do so by not hiring smokers.  The future for those who can not stop smoking is uncertain.  Job Corps center staff can help students gain the optimum benefit from their Job Corps training by focusing on wellness to employability.  The TUPP coordinator and all wellness staff can build a strong TUPP program that focuses not only on helping those who already smoke, but also on stopping the initiation of new smokers.

Let’s help our students avoid James’ predicament.

¹   Armour S. More companies shut out workers who smoke. USA Today. August 22, 2007.

²  CBS Broadcasting. Whose life is it anyway? Available at: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/10/28/60minutes/main990617.shtml

³  Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation.  Overview List- How many smokefree laws? July, 2007. http://www.no-smoke.org.