The smoke-free workplace.

• Author: Prata, Kathleen

Could employers be liable for second-hand smoke?

Smoke-free workplaces have been in vogue since the fitness-crazed '80s. Soon they might become an employer's only protection from a civil suit.

In January the Environmental Protection Agency reclassified secondhand smoke as a Group A carcinogen, likening it to benzene, asbestos and radon. The report sent a lighting bolt of concern down the backs of Indiana businesses worried about their liability for secondhand smoke at work.

"I probably get three or four calls a week from businesses around Indiana," says Roger McClain, director of the Division of Health Education for the Indiana State Department of Health. "They all want to know how they can go about instituting a smoke-free policy. It's really caught on. There's quite a bit of interest out there, and rightfully so."

Workers around the country have already sued successfully for health problems due to involuntary exposure to smoke. The new Americans with Disabilities Act sets the ground for even broader protection. Employers are anxious--not only for their own legal safety, but the health of their employees as well.

As evidence continues to mount over smoking's dangers, many businesses are restricting or even banning tobacco in the workplace. These measures can ease employee health-care, reduce facility maintenance costs and prevent potential litigation.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has not issued a standard regarding secondhand smoke to date, but Frank Kane, Public Information Specialist, says that his agency anticipates a directive soon from the secretary of labor. The directive could address the issue of secondhand smoke alone or cover the total quality of indoor air. Present OSHA regulations set no limits for Group A carcinogens in the workplace.

But many businesses aren't waiting for the government. By 1991, 85 percent of American businesses had adopted smoking policies, up nearly 50 percent since 1986.

Ford Meter Box, the Wabash-based maker of waterworks equipment, is one company in the forefront. The company, which employs mostly blue-collar workers, pays for nicotine patches for its employees, and will launch a new campaign this fall to encourage smokers to quit. President Terry Agness says the program has gone well so far, and he estimates that 10 to 15 percent of his employees who smoke have kicked their habit.

The Queens Group Indiana Inc. and Oliver Trucking Co. instituted a tobacco-free workplace policy on March 29. Vice president and general manager Stanton Bryan announced the policy in January, giving employees plenty of notice. The policy covers all buildings, company-owned vehicles and surrounding property. Violators may be disciplined, and repeat offenders can be fired.

USS Gary Works, about to jump on the bandwagon, is using its employees and their unions to research...