Question

Should Employers Be Permitted to Fire Employees for Activities, Such as Smoking, That They Do Outside Working Hours?

Yes	No
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that $75 billion is spent annually on medical expenses attributed to smoking. Businesses lose $82 billion in lost productivity from smokers. Smokers take about 6.5 more sick days a year than nonsmokers.	Employers should have no say in what employees do outside the workplace. Forcing employees to take tests to reveal whether they are smokers is an invasion of the employees’ privacy. Many employees are addicted to cigarettes and would unfairly lose badly needed employment if unable to quit smoking.

Review the Point/Counterpoint at the end of chapter 43. Do you agree with the Yes side or No side? Why?

Answer 1

I agree to the 'No' side. There may be many reasons that can be attributed to this:

1. It is the employee's right to do anything outside the working hours and the employer has no jurisdiction on the same outside the working hours.

2. It can act as a source of demotivation to an employee too. The employee shouldn't be answerable to employer for any action performed outside the working premise and outside of working hours nor does any law require the employee to do that.

3. Affecting an employee's privacy may lead to discontent employees and also to increased attrition. Often it may lead to opposition from employees.

4. Sometimes, employees may smoke because they have a medical condition or are in the process of leaving their addiction. Forcing them or interfering in this behaviour during off-working hours may turn out to be detrimental for the employees health.