Smoke screen to be lifted at work

Spending a few hours in a crowded pub leaves clothes smelling stale and the lungs feeling clogged.

Then there is the risk of cancer and heart disease.

Most office workers now operate in a smoke-free environment, while their colleagues stand outside or sit in designated rooms.

But what about those who work in Sussex's pubs, clubs and restaurants? How can they escape?

The Government yesterday announced a code of practice on passive smoking after a two-year public consultation.

It has not banned smoking in the workplace.

The code will mean greater segregation, better ventilation and changing the system of work so employees spend less time exposed to fumes.

Health and Safety Commission chairman Bill Callaghan said: "It will guarantee the welfare of non-smoking employees and allow employers to make better arrangements."

A Health and Safety Executive spokesman said: "There was basically a choice between a code or keeping the agreements between the Department of Health and groups representing publicans, hoteliers and restaurateurs.

"A lot of places have already adopted the good methods of practice suggested. It is more about education and persuasion than anything else.

"We don't fool ourselves we are some sort of Gestapo running everything."

These days 72 per cent of the population are non-smokers.

Brighton and Hove Council has banned smoking in the workplace. It has around 8,000 staff and is the town's biggest employer.

However, it has also set aside areas outside the office where it is permitted.

American Express, which employs just under 5,000 people, banned smoking in the office in 1992.

A spokeswoman said: "Our occupational health department offers advice about giving up smoking and supports individuals if they choose to do this.

"We're keen that the working environment is as healthy and as pleasant as possible and have provided segregated areas for smokers for eight years."

A survey last year by the pressure group Action on Smoking and Health found 84 per cent of people wanted further restrictions on smoking at work.

Surprisingly, 69 per cent of smokers shared the opinion. But that's only when they are at work.

Finding a workable compromise between relaxing with a cigarette and the rights of staff in the leisure industry might prove more difficult.

Wetherspoon's, with pubs in most large Sussex towns, set up non-smoking areas for customers seven years ago and banned smoking at the bar a year later.

Spokesman Eddie Gershon said: "We are opening 90 pubs a year at the moment, making us the country's fastest-growing chain, so it doesn't seem to have done us any harm.

"Of course staff still have to walk through the smoking areas when they are serving food or clearing tables.

"We wouldn't go back to the old ways. I don't think we'll ever have entirely non-smoking pubs, but it's possible to cater for everyone, staff, smokers and non-smokers, at the same time."

Not all establishments have the resources or concern for staff as Wetherspoon's, though.

Ash chairman Clive Bates said: "There is a straight economic link. There are three million non-smokers who work in smoky conditions in pubs, restaurants and in the hospitality industry.

"These are often the least well-paid. This code is about cleaner air for the three million non-smoking workers that still work in smoky conditions.

"The people suffering passive smoking will often be on low-pay, non-unionised and with no one to speak up for them, but this will give them rights to better conditions at work and better health."

"Without a code like this, any company is exposed to risks of legal action. This is valuable legal protection not unwanted bureaucracy."

In June, East Sussex, Brighton and Hove Health Authority put £224,000 into a campaign to help people give up.

Principal health promoter Ron Turner said: "Seven out of ten adult smokers say they would like to give up if they could."

However, almost 30 per cent of the population still smoke. Could the anti-smoking drive be a tyranny of the majority?

A spokesman for the Freedom Organisation for the Right to Enjoy Smoking Tobacco said: "We should not let emotion cloud the issue.

"A solution which accommodates both the non-smoker and the smoker is better than discrimination."

So, it's a difficult situation. HSC chairman Bill Callaghan said: "I realise the code will require some businesses to invest to meet the requirements. But I believe its wider benefits are worthwhile."