The benefits of not smoking

Now I’ve heard everything! I run a business employing 35 people. There are a handful of smokers among them, who if they want a cigarette smoke outside as they have done throughout the 25 years we have been trading. Most are trying to give up and appreciate the support a non-smoking office & warehouse provides. Today the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has issued new guidelines for every workplace in England including the proposal that employers such as my company should give paid time off to attend a non smoking clinic. This is the nanny state gone mad. I’m happy to support those who want to give up (and do) but there is no case for the cost of disruption and absence to attend a clinic being forced on businesses. If smokers wish to stop, that is in their own best interest and the cost of doing so should be borne by them, not their employers. As you might guess, I feel strongly about this one!