More than half of UK businesses have no policy for the use of e-cigarettes in the workplace, new research has revealed. The study from employee health risk specialist PMI Health Group found that 58 percent of companies have yet to introduce a policy, with 53 percent saying they are unconcerned over staff use of e-cigarettes, commonly known as ‘vaping’.
“There is currently a lack of agreement among health professionals over the health risks of e-cigarettes and this makes it difficult for employers to take a firm stance on their use,” said Mike Blake, Director at PMI Health Group. “The failure to establish a clear policy can leave employees in a state of limbo which can lead to friction and disputes among workers.” More than three-quarters (79 percent) of those companies that have introduced e-cigarette policies prohibit their use in all enclosed working environments, in line with the cigarette smoking ban restrictions (Heath Act 2006 and associated regulations). In the wake of advice from the British Medical Association, the BBC recently introduced a ban on the use of e-cigarettes in all of its buildings. This followed similar moves by insurer Standard Life and machinery firm JCB.
Fifty-seven percent of those businesses that haven’t brought their policy in line with the smoking ban permit staff to vape at designated locations within the workplace, such as canteens or rest rooms. The remaining 43 percent allow staff to vape at any time, in any workplace location. According to anti-tobacco charity Ash, the number of e-cigarette smokers in the UK has increased from 700,000 to two million in the past two years.
