FAQ


Can I refuse to hire a smoker to work in my practice?


You can avoid the issue of whether someone is a smoker by enforcing an appropriate policy in the workplace prohibiting smoking and smoking breaks during the day, suggests the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). Breaks are optional, including smoking breaks, so employees do not have to be given time off to smoke during their shifts. Also, employers have the right to require employees not to smell like cigarette smoke when they are at work or on practice business. TWC provides two sample smoking


policies. One is fairly flexible but firm, while the other adopts a much more stringent set of requirements. TMA’s Policies and Procedures: A Guide for Medical Practices (www.texmed.org/ policiesandprocedures) also contains a basic sample policy.


56 TEXAS MEDICINE March 2017


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