Secondhand Smoke

Research

Smoke-free laws have no impact on employee turnover
Although smoking ban critics vocally assert that bans harm the hospitality industry, a recent study has found that employee turnover rates are unaffected by smoking bans. Researchers looked at payroll records from a national chain that has 23 restaurants in Arizona, where several communities have adopted smoke-free policies, to determine whether the smoke-free policies caused smoking employees to look for employment elsewhere. Rather than an increase in employee turnover, researchers found that employment actually became more stable in the months after going smoke-free. There was no long-term difference in employee turnover rates between smoke-free and smoking franchises. Thus, smoke-free laws did not make workplaces significantly less attractive to employees. Click here for more information.

Ear infections in children linked to passive smoking
An Australian study found that ear infections are more common among children exposed to secondhand smoke. This finding is important because ear infections are common among infants, and can lead to permanent hearing problems, which can affect learning and social outcomes later in life. Researchers followed babies from birth to age 2, and assessed social, demographic, environmental, and biological data in order to analyze risk factors for otitis media (middle ear infections). Exposure rates to secondhand smoke and ear infection rates were both higher among Aboriginal children than for non-Aboriginal children. The study found that by eliminating secondhand smoke, ear infections could be reduced by 16% among non-Aboriginal children and by 27% among Aboriginal children. Click here for a summary of the study.

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