For many, that first job is at a restaurant … maybe bussing tables or as a server. If the restaurant isn’t smoke-free, though, the people who work there are exposed to secondhand smoke.

Secondhand smoke is a mix of the smoke exhaled by smokers and the smoke that comes from the burning end of a cigarette, cigar, or pipe.

Non-smokers exposed to secondhand smoke at home or work increase their risk of developing lung cancer by 20 -30%.

As of 2002, over 6.6 million Americans worked in food preparation and service jobs. One in five workers in these jobs is a teen, 56 percent are women, almost 20 percent are Hispanic, and just under 12 percent are African American.

These workers are far less likely than other workers to be protected by smoke-free workplace policies.

To serve as many people as possible, many restaurants and bars have separate seating for smoking and non-smoking customers. However, separate seating does not protect employees and customers from the health risks of secondhand smoke.

In addition to the health benefits of being smoke-free, there are other benefits as well:

• Direct health care costs to the company may go down.
• Maintenance costs go down when smoke, matches, and cigarette butts are taken out of the workplace.
• It may be possible to receive lower health, life, and disability insurance rates as employee smoking is reduced.
• Equipment, carpets, and furniture last longer.

There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke. Non-smoking sections in restaurants and public places are like chlorinating only half of a swimming pool.

Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Surgeon General’s Report.

Updated: 5/23/07