Occupational Health and Safety - Essay Example

Occupational Health and Safety of Occupational Health and Safety “The Legal Aspects of a Smoking Policy” is an article written by Fred C. Davenport published in the Industrial Management Journal. The author endeavors to grasp the legal aspects relating to smoking at the workplace in the United States especially those revolving around occupational safety and health. His key areas of concern are reports on the ban of smoking in workplaces as an issue of worker safety, threats of second hand smoke to restaurant workers, the proposed OSHA workplace-smoking ban, and the link between worker safety and smoking as per the arguments of anti-smoking advocates.

According to the author, smoking bans are part of public policies, which include criminal laws and regulations on occupational health and safety prohibiting tobacco smoking in workplaces or other public spaces. Moreover, smoke-free laws are solely meant to protect workers from the harmful effects of smoke from second-hand sources. These effects include higher risk of cancer, heart diseases, emphysema among others. The author affirms that laws banning indoor smoking have been implemented by many countries, with most countries citing evidence to establish the harmful effects of tobacco to smokers and inhalers of second-hand smoke.

Part of the evidence brought forth to establish the harmful effects of smoking at workplaces include a study conducted in 2002 by WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, which revealed that non-smokers are equally exposed to carcinogens as active smokers are. The study also indicated that side-stream smoke has 69 known carcinogens and radioactive decay products. In addition, research by tobacco companies has proven that well-established carcinogens are highly concentrated in side-stream than mainstream smoke.

The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) gives workers the right to enjoy a safe workplace free of hazards. OSHA has air quality standards. Tobacco smoke, however, hardly exceeds these limits. In extreme situations – such as when tobacco smoke mixes with another airborne component in the workplace – OSHA standards could be exceeded thereby requiring the employer to correct the situation. Several lawsuits have been filed seeking employer compensation for smoke hazards. The current position is that OSHA does not regulate exposure to tobacco smoke; state laws do.

The author may be on the frontline in advocating smoke-free workplaces, but he failed to consider the possible demerits of the same. Firstly, smoke-free workplaces will necessitate a change in worker habits, which could not go well with most workers. Moreover, smoking employees will feel greatly inconvenienced. Regulations of workplace smoking, if not managed properly, may lead to disproportionate absence from work by smokers. Finally, implementing such laws and regulations would require the construction of outside ventilation shelters, which could be costly for some employers.

The key to a fruitful smoking policy is ensuring through discussion that there is support from a larger portion of management and staff. Transition to a workplace free of smoke can be implemented in specific steps. Essentially, all employees must be engaged in the planning process. The process should hold open discussions on the policies that can work and their modes of enforcement. As a rule, strong policies should be backed by all groups affected by them. Workers should be informed of each step.

Therefore, it is uncouth to have policies of general application that touch on sensitive areas like workplace smoking.Overall, the author’s work is commendable in sensitizing workers on the importance of smoke-free laws. These laws have an influence in lowering tobacco demand through the creation of an environment in which smoking becomes increasingly an uphill task and helping to shift social norms from the approval of daily smoking. In addition to ending tax measures and education, policies that ban public smoking are quite important as they promote public health and lower smoking rates.

ReferencesDavenport, F. C. (1989). The Legal Aspects of a Smoking Policy in the Workplace. Industrial Management Journal, 31(3) 25.