Cough it up | Worker's fine over cigarette break raises question - are we still judging smokers?

A Japanese civil servant was fined $11,000 (est. £8,806) for taking cigarette breaks during work hours.

In the city the fine was issued, Osaka, government officials are banned from smoking cigarettes during work. As a result, some have argued that the ruling was unfair, saying that non-smoking employees ‘waste time’ eating snacks or chatting, but these wouldn’t be considered a punishable offense.

Of course, we don’t live in Japan, and in the UK you won’t be fined for taking cigarette breaks at work. But this case highlights some interesting ideas about cigarette breaks at work, whether there is prejudice around them, and if people who smoke take more breaks than other employees.

Have perceptions changed?

A report from 2019 said that half of UK workers feel that smoking and vaping breaks cause resentment among non-smokers. In the same study, 58% of employees said they themselves or their colleagues take smoking breaks during work hours, while only 36% of non-smokers said they took regular breaks from work.