Case one - at Risk from Smoking

1. Many people believe that policies such as the ones described in the case represent unacceptable degree of employer's intrusion into the personal lives of employees. Do you agree? Explain.

Nobody would think that twenty years ago laws would be created to forbid smoking in most public places. However, the reality about the highly adverse effects that smoking causes has ignited a red light among society, including employers. Employers have taken various measures to tackle the harmful effects of smoking and employees may feel invaded in their personal lives.

Many of employee's off-duty activities such as smoking can result in cost increase to an employer. These cost that an employer faces can be quite costly. For a small company, the cost of just an accident can be a financial catastrophe. For example, agriculture workers who may be exposed to toxic fertilizers when spraying pesticides can inhale the chemicals if they smoke before washing their hands. The factor here is really not an intrusion of the employee's personal lives but more of a concern for the well-being of the employer. The topic of smoking in the workplace has continued to stir up controversy. As a smoker first when I read this question I have to admit that I did feel it was an intrusion of my personal life. However, I had to go further than just think about myself and put myself in the place of an employer. Having been in both sides of the situation I can completely understand why this issue has been so controversial.

Employee's now in St. Cloud, Florida require applicants for city jobs to undergo testing to make sure they have not been smoking are an invasion of personal lives. This is more of a discriminatory issue than an intrusion of personal lives. Yes, I have to agree that in this case, the employer is intruding into employee's personal lives. The employer is discriminating employees who may have a habit of smoking. Employers need to be sensitive and cautious when requiring applicants to undergo testing. Lawsuits may arise costing the employer more money than it would to create a space where workers can step out of the work environment to smoke. Perhaps going back to basics would be much more fundamental where advocacy and informational assistance was available and people thought that his or her personal lives were not invaded. For many years smoking was considered a normal pastime. It was common to see commercial advertising cigarettes as a hip thing. Smoking has become less socially acceptable in many areas, including the workplace. This is because it has scientifically proven that cigarettes can be damaging to your health. However, cigarettes are not the only damaging factor that can cause harm. Let's face it, our lives are not 100% guaranteed. At any moment we can walk out door and be struck by a forceful object, diminishing any live into thin air. It will be interesting to discover whether