Fla. Companies Forbidding Smoking In Private Lives

[The Straight Story]

Fla. Companies Forbidding Smoking In Private Lives

POSTED: 11:41 pm EST November 7, 2007

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A growing number of companies in Florida are forbidding their workers from smoking not only at work, but also in their private lives.

Westgate Resorts, the largest private employer in Central Florida, has banned smoking and won't budge from a policy of not hiring smokers and firing employees who do smoke.

"When I found out it was legal to discriminate against smokers, I put the policy in place," Westgate president and CEO David Seigel said.

...

Central Floridian Ava Bryant said she was called by a recruiter for Westgate and told not to come in for an interview because Westgate won't hire smokers.

http://www.local6.com/health/14537611/detail.html

[soothsayer]

1. "When I found out is was legal to discriminate...." WTF??

[The Straight Story]

2. Note this as well about drinking and being obese

"Anything we can do that is legal and not discriminatory, we will do," Seigel said. "If you are an alcoholic and we have the right to fire you, we will do so. And if you are obese and there is a way for us not to hire you or to fire you, we will do that, too."

[Midlodemocrat]

4. They can't legally fire someone for being an alcoholic.

It's considered a disease state, so that would be a violation of the ADA.

I wonder if this company's health insurance is self pay and they are trying to eliminate extraneous claims?

[Bandit]

8. One more reason why employers should not have responsibility for health care.

Can anyone give me one reason why it should be the employer's responsibility to provide health care insurance for employees? If they pay the bills then they should be able to decide what is acceptable and what is not..Maybe this will help pop the pimple that is Health Insurance.

[Midlodemocrat]

10. Well, in my experience.

My company's self paid plan has paid for tons of things for us. I'm very fortunate and I know it. They pay for IVF, and other fertility treatments as well. They're extremely progressive in that way. If the claim is denied and you appeal, 90% of the time, they will pay at least some of it.

[bbgrunt]

18. excellent point

[Beetwasher]

5. Wow, Talk About A Slippery Slope!

Incredible.

[Captain Hilts]

3. It's legal when the company is paying for health insurance and wants to keep costs down. nt

[Warpy]

11. Then get them out from under that burden

and get those for-profit bloodsuckers the hell out of health care.

I hate smoking with a purple passion, but this is ridiculous. It's a legal activity. Unless these assholes want to institute total prohibition of all psychoactive substances and reap that particular whirlwind, they are on very shaky legal ground.

Employers should be able to encourage smoking cessation programs at company expense. Prohibition of any legal activity outside work should not be tolerated under any circumstances!

End the drug war! End the nanny state! Single payer insurance NOW!

[devilgrrl]

12. Are there statics available proving that smokers use more insurance that non-smokers?

It has been already proven that smoking is bad for you but I have yet to see any evidence that smokers are a greater burden on health insurance costs.



Wouldn't they be using less insurance money since smokers tend to die faster?

[Captain Hilts]

16. Yep. That's why when you get insurance they do a blood and urine test...

that's how they can tell if you are lying about your smoking habits.

[devilgrrl]

17. You didn't answer the question. Is there proof that smokers drive up insurance costs?

Do they use more sick time than non-smokers?

[SoCalDem]

24. My guess is that they use LESS..

Smokers are risk-takers..not nervous-nellies who run to the doctor with every sniffle..

and the effects of smoking often occur after they have left the workforce..and not that many companies these days even provide "retirement" health benefits anyway..

[Hobarticus]

25. From personal experience: yes, on both.

Not saying I agree with a company telling employees they can't smoke, but yes, there is a reason why companies ask for a urine test, and if you smoke, when you're hired.

[The2ndWheel]

6. There is a price to be paid for giving our lives over to both

the corporation and the state. Things like this would be on the bill. As we(well, corporations and governments) learn more about health issues, and we submit more control to those two(if there is any difference) dominant institutions, then don't be surprised when we are molded into the image of perfection that both the corporation and the state desire.

[LeftishBrit]

7. Wow - that's awful

I'm not a smoker; agree that smoking is bad for your health; and think that a company has every right to prohibit smoking on the job. But they're not responsible for your entire life, and should not intrude into your personal business.

And people say that the government is intrinsically more intrusive than private business!

[MrScorpio]

9. This is a direct assault on human free will by the corporate structure

The motivation here garners no benefit for the individual, outside of a willingness for the corporation to reduce its health insurance liability.

I don't smoke because I have free will. To be told that I can't by corporate entity is a direct challenge to my free will.

[wuushew]

13. Couldn't this easily be circumvented by getting a prescription for a nicotine patch?

How would any company justify the expense of urine or blood testing given a reason for a legitimate positive?

[flashl]

14. If the employer was really concern ...

they would have found a way to address on behalf of their employees the 11 percent increase in cigarette nicotine content reported in Jan 2007.

[TahitiNut]

15. I'd bet that Westgate Resorts would claim they can't tell whether an employee is an illegal alien.

It's really surrealistic - Through The Looking Glass - when an employer has the power to require piss tests or blood tests and can determine whether some employee smokes at home ... but claims they can't determine whether an employee is an "undocumented worker"!!

These bastards should have their business licenses revoked. It's fucking obscene. :grr:

[The Straight Story]

19. We need a piss test to see if you are here legally or not

:)

[NorthernSpy]

20. incorporation is a privilege, not a right...

... and we need to start reining these people in.

Corporations are NOT, strictly speaking, private entities. They enjoy a grant of liability limitation from society, and consequently we have the right and the authority to put a stop to such abuses of the dignity of individuals who work for these corporations.


Either that, or they can disincorporate, take full personal responsibility for their business dealings, and then have whatever smoking policy they wish.

[RockaFowler]

21. My sister-in-law works for Westgate

She has worked there for at least 10 years. I'm gonna have to ask her if she was told this or if they are making her quit smoking.

[SoCalDem]

23. Why does your sister-in-law & Westgate hate childrennnnnn?

How WILL those poor little childrennnnn get their healthcare if all the evil smokers in the US quit? or if they cannot find jobs, how will they be able to afford to buy the cigarettes that MUST be sold in order to pay the taxes on them, so the childrennnnn can get their healthcare..??:eyes:

This example is only ONE reason why separate segments of ANY population must not be demonized..because once that happens, it's very easy to start making that one segment, pariahs and subject to all sorts of unequal treatment.

Smoking tobacco (the usual kind) is LEGAL..and in fact the growers of that tobacco get "HUGH" subsidies from TAXPAYER money..they companies that make the tobacco products pay taxes..

Newsflash:

alcohol is/can be deadly too
so are donuts, pizza, twinkies, pies, cakes, skydiving, driving fast, bungee jumping, casual sex, licking Chinese-made toys, etc.

This type of nonsense is why we MUST take the health-care "responsibilities" away from employers. It given them life & death power over employees, and encourages them to control all facets of their serfs employees' lives.

Bosses should hire people to do a JOB..they show up..do the job and go home..bosses should NOT be allowed to dictate what happens outside the workplace..PERIOD..l

[benEzra]

22. I'm a nonsmoker, but the antismoking fundamentalists really annoy me. (n/t)