MENUMENU
  • FREE RESOURCES
  • PREMIUM CONTENT
        • SEE MORE
          PREMIUM RESOURCES
  • HR DEEP DIVES
        • Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resources for HR Professionals
          Employment Law
          Labor Law Posting Requirements: Everything You Need to Know
          Recruiting
          businesswoman selecting future employees on digital interfaces
          Recruiting Resources for HR & Hiring Managers
          Performance Management
          vector image of young female making star rating
          Performance Review Resources
          Employment Law
          Understanding Equal Employment Opportunity and the EEOC
          Recruiting
          Onboarding Resources for HR & Hiring Managers
  • CORONAVIRUS & HR

  • LOGIN
  • SIGN UP FREE

HR Morning

MENUMENU
  • FREE RESOURCES
  • PREMIUM CONTENT
        • SEE MORE
          PREMIUM RESOURCES
  • HR DEEP DIVES
        • Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resources for HR Professionals
          Employment Law
          Labor Law Posting Requirements: Everything You Need to Know
          Recruiting
          businesswoman selecting future employees on digital interfaces
          Recruiting Resources for HR & Hiring Managers
          Performance Management
          vector image of young female making star rating
          Performance Review Resources
          Employment Law
          Understanding Equal Employment Opportunity and the EEOC
          Recruiting
          Onboarding Resources for HR & Hiring Managers
  • CORONAVIRUS & HR
  • Employment Law
  • Benefits
  • Recruiting
  • Talent Management
  • Performance Management
  • HR Technology
  • More
    • Leadership & Strategy
    • Compensation
    • Staff Administration
    • Policy & Procedures
    • Wellness
    • Staff Departure
    • Employee Services
    • Work Location
    • HR Career & Self-Care
    • Health Care
    • Retirement Plans

Feds weigh in on e-cigarettes at work: Should you allow them?

marijuana, drug policy
Christian Schappel
by Christian Schappel
March 11, 2016
2 minute read
  • SHARE ON

Employers have been asking themselves this question since e-cigarettes came on the market: Should we let people use them at work? Finally, a federal agency has provided an answer. 
And that answer is … no.
It came from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), which is responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness.

Better to be safe …

Was there some new study on the health effects of these devices that made NIOSH make this recommendation to employers? No.
In fact, NIOSH admits that there is very limited data on whether or not e-cigarettes are harmful. But, in its opinion, it’s better to be safe than sorry – at least until more is known about the health effects of e-cigarettes and other related devices.
It said it’s because of the limited data available on the safety of exposure to e-cigarette emissions that it is advising employers to include these products in indoor smoking bans.
NIOSH just released a set of recommendations for employers in a technical document called a Current Intelligence Bulletin. The details of the bulletin were outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention here.

No smoke … period

In the bulletin, NIOSH advised that all workplaces implement polices to make indoor facilities completely smoke-free.
In other words, it’s all for bans on:

  • “tobacco smoke,”
  • “airborne emissions from e-cigarettes,” and
  • emissions from “other electronic nicotine delivery systems.”

This is the first NIOSH guidance to include recommendations on e-cigarettes.
Other NIOSH recommendations for employers included in the bulletin:

  • Make sure smoke-free zones encompass all indoor areas, without exception, as well as all areas immediately outside building entrances and air intakes. It also advised that employers remove ashtrays from each of these areas. Taking things one step further, it said that optimally, employers would ban the use of all tobacco products across entire workplace campuses.
  • Provide info on tobacco-related health risks and on the benefits of quitting to all employees.
  • Provide info on publicly available and employer-provided tobacco cessation services.
  • Offer comprehensive tobacco cessation support to workers and their dependents. If possible provide these cessation programs at no cost, or subsidize cessation programs for lower-wage workers to enhance the likelihood of their participation.

Get the latest from HRMorning in your inbox PLUS immediately access 10 FREE HR guides.

I WANT MY FREE GUIDES

Keep Up To Date with the Latest HR News

With HRMorning arriving in your inbox, you will never miss critical stories on labor laws, benefits, retention and onboarding strategies.

Sign up for a free HRMorning membership and get our newsletter!
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
HR Morning Logo
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linked In
  • ABOUT HRMORNING
  • ADVERTISE WITH US
  • WRITE FOR US
  • CONTACT
  • Employment Law
  • Benefits
  • Recruiting
  • Talent Management
  • HR Technology
  • Performance Management
  • Leadership & Strategy
  • Compensation & Payroll
  • Policy & Culture
  • Staff Administration
  • Wellness & Safety
  • Staff Departure
  • Employee Services
  • Work Location
  • HR Career & Self-Care

HRMorning, part of the SuccessFuel Network, provides the latest HR and employment law news for HR professionals in the trenches of small-to-medium-sized businesses. Rather than simply regurgitating the day’s headlines, HRMorning delivers actionable insights, helping HR execs understand what HR trends mean to their business.

Privacy Policy Terms of Service
Copyright © 2021 SuccessFuel

WELCOME BACK!

Enter your username and password below to log in

Forget Your Username or Password?

Reset Password

Lost your password? Please enter your username or email address. You will receive a link to create a new password via email.

Log In

During your free trial, you can cancel at any time with a single click on your “Account” page.  It’s that easy.

Why do we need your credit card for a free trial?

We ask for your credit card to allow your subscription to continue should you decide to keep your membership beyond the free trial period.  This prevents any interruption of content access.

Your card will not be charged at any point during your 21 day free trial
and you may cancel at any time during your free trial.

preloader