Lighting up not yet a thing of the past at work

A new survey of European workers shows the workplace smoke break is
a source of division between staff, as non-smokers think colleagues
who smoke are less productive.

Last month the government opened a three-month consultation on its
proposals to ban smoking in most workplaces.

Many councils have had complete smoking bans on their premises for
some time, while earlier this year Liverpool Council unveiled plans
to bring in a local ban in all public places.

But this has not stopped smokers going outside for a quick puff.
Thirteen per cent of UK workers admitted doing so between one and
three times a day.

The survey by recruitment firm Kelly Services last month polled
14,000 European staff. It found that the UK has one of the lowest
rates of workplace smoking across the continent, with Norway (26
per cent), France (23 per cent), Germany and Italy (22 per cent)
topping the list.