Tobacco-Free Workplace

Maintain a comprehensive tobacco-free workplace policy

The tobacco-free policy must apply to the entire workplace – both indoors and outdoors and must apply to all US-based employees, temporary workers, contractors and visitors. Gold Standard employers may not have any designated areas for the use of any form of tobacco.

Sample tobacco-free workplace policy

Sample tobacco-free enforcement language

Forms of tobacco and smokeless tobacco

Cigarettes, Cigars, Pipes
Smokeless tobacco, also called chewing tobacco, oral tobacco, spit or spitting tobacco, dip, chew, snuff, snus, twist, plug, and dissolvable tobacco products
Electronic cigarettes, also called “e-cigarettes,” or “Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems” (ENDS)

Tobacco-Free Workplace Best Practices

Tobacco-Free Hiring

MD Anderson Cancer Center

Tobacco-Free Hiring

Lung cancer is the No.1 cause of cancer deaths worldwide, claiming 437 lives in the U.S. alone every day. When MD Anderson launched its Lung Cancer Moon Shot in 2012, it initiated several new programs including the EndTobacco Program. EndTobacco is a set of strategic and tactical recommendations to reduce the tobacco burden at the institutional, state and national/international levels. MD Anderson’s first EndTobacco step was an internal change to implement a tobacco-free hiring policy. By implementing tobacco-free hiring, MD Anderson...

Articles of Interest

Colorado has taken a bold step

Viehbacher, Christopher; Martin Murphy, DMedSc, PhD, FASCO

The Gazette

Anti-smoking plan may kill cigarettes — and save Big Tobacco

Associated Press

STAT

Research & Evidence

Position Statement on Tobacco on College and University Campuses

American College Health Association

Changes in Self-Reported Smokefree Workplace Policy Coverage Among Employed Adults— United States, 2003 and 2010–2011

Babb, Stephen MPH, Benmei Liu PhD, Brandon Kenemer MPH, Carissa Baker Holmes MPH, Anne M. Hartman MS, MA, James T. Gibson BS, Brian A. King PhD, MPH

Oxford University Press on behalf of Society for Research on Nicotine & Tobacco Research

Brochures/Reference

Adopting Tobacco-free Policies on Campuses

This guide is designed to assist with the creation of effective and enforceable tobacco-free policies for higher-education institutions.

Best Practices for Comprehensive Tobacco Control Programs

Tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of disease, disability, and death in the United States. Nearly one-half million Americans still die prematurely from tobacco use each year, and more than 16 million Americans suffer from a disease caused by smoking. Despite these risks, approximately 42.1 million U.S. adults currently smoke cigarettes. And the harmful effects of smoking do not end with the smoker. Secondhand smoke exposure causes serious disease and death, and even brief exposure can be harmful to health. Each year, primarily because of exposure to secondhand smoke, an estimated 7,330 nonsmoking Americans die of lung cancer and more than 33,900 die of heart disease. Coupled with this enormous health toll is the significant economic burden. Economic costs attributable to smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke now approach $300 billion annually.

State of Oklahoma Executive Order 2013-43

Executive Order prohibiting the use of electronic cigarette or vaping device on any and all properties owned, leased or contracted for use by the State of Oklahoma, including but not limited to all buildings, land and vehicles owned, leased or contracted for use by agencies or instrumentalities of the State of Oklahoma.

Tobacco-Free Campus Implementation Guide

Tobacco-Free Campus Policy Implementation Guide

A resource designed to help college students adopt and implement a 100% tobacco-free campus policy

State of Oklahoma Executive Order 2012-01

Executive Order prohibits the use of any tobacco product on any and all properties owned, leased or contracted for use by the State of Oklahoma, including but not limited to all buildings, land and vehicles owned, leased or contracted for use by agencies or instrumentalities of the State of Oklahoma. The goal of this Executive Order isto provide for a healthier work environment, encourage healthier lifestyle choices for state employees and protect visitors to state property.

External Resources

Tobacco-Free Workplace

Save Lives, Save Money: Make Your Business Smoke-Free

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

This brochure provides information on exposure to secondhand smoke in the workplace and the benefits to employers once a smoke-free workplace has been implemented.

Going Smoke-Free at Colleges and Universities

Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights

Please review our list of Smokefree and Tobacco-Free U.S. and Tribal Colleges and Universities for more information. Please review our Colleges and Universities List Criteria, which outlines how to get on (and stay on) our list. See our model policy for a template.

Tobacco and Cancer

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Tobacco use is a leading cause of cancer and of death from cancer. People who use tobacco products or who are regularly around environmental tobacco smoke (also called secondhand smoke) have an increased risk of cancer because tobacco products and secondhand smoke have many chemicals that damage DNA.

State of Tobacco Control 2019: Proven Policies to Prevent and Reduce Tobacco Use

American Lung Association

The 17th annual American Lung Association "State of Tobacco Control" report evaluates states and the federal government on the proven-effective tobacco control laws and policies necessary to save lives. The report serves as a blueprint for what state and federal leaders must do to eliminate the death and disease caused by tobacco use. This year's report focuses on the failure of states and the federal government to act to fight tobacco use, and the consequences of this, including an epidemic of youth e-cigarette use.

Did YOUR state make the grade?

Tobacco-Free Outdoor Spaces: Buffer Zones & Other Hazy Issues

Additional Resources

Creating tobacco-free spaces through policy is effective in reducing tobacco use and improving public health. There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke and evidence shows that secondhand smoke is harmful even in outdoor spaces. While state and federal law regulate tobacco use in limited areas, New York local governments and private entities possess authority to impose more stringent tobacco use restrictions in both indoor and outdoor areas. This fact sheet aims to answer some common questions about developing, implementing and enforcing local and private tobacco-free policies. For more information about tobacco-free policies and other public health interventions, visit our website at tobaccopolicycenter.org.

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Tobacco-Free Workplace

Maintain a comprehensive tobacco-free workplace policy

Tobacco-Free Workplace