Japanese company grants extra holidays to non-smoking employees

  • 11 Nov - 17 Nov, 2017
  • Mag The Weekly
  • Mag Files


A Japanese company is granting its non-smoking staff an additional six days of holiday a year to make up for the time smokers take off for cigarette breaks. Marketing firm Piala Inc introduced the new paid leave allowance in September after non-smokers complained they were working more than their colleagues who smoked.

A spokesman for the company, Hirotaka Matsushima said, "One of our non-smoking staff put a message in the company suggestion box earlier in the year saying that smoking breaks were causing problems." The company's CEO Takao Asuka followed the suggestion and decided to give non-smoking employees extra time off to compensate, Matsushima further stated.

The matter has been taken seriously by the Tokyo-based company which is reportedly based on the 29th floor of an office block - making any cigarette break last at least 15 minutes. Asuka hopes the scheme will create an incentive for the company's staff to quit smoking.

Efforts to reduce the number of smokers and impose tougher anti-smoking regulations have been seen across Japan in recent months.

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