New study shows: Smokers get two more weeks of vacation a year

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Two more weeks of holiday per year are possible with regular smoke breaks. A new survey by Yougov on behalf of online retailer Haypp finds exactly that. Smokers spend almost 92 hours in “fresh” air each year. This is the equivalent of two weeks of additional free time.

Nearly 1,000 smokers were interviewed in the survey. 18 percent said they took smoke breaks three to four times a day, 16 percent said they went out five times a day, and nearly 10 percent even took ten or more breaks a day.

Two hours a week, two weeks a year

On average, a cigarette break lasts about five minutes; This may not sound like much at first. Extrapolated over a work week, this means smokers work about two hours less than their non-smoking teammates. Additionally, just over half of those surveyed do not shorten their official lunch break, despite additional breaks throughout the day.

But that’s not the only reason smoke breaks are frowned upon by employers or colleagues: Smokers don’t declare their five-minute smoke breaks as an official break.

The rule of thumb is this: if you work more than six hours a day, you are entitled to a thirty-minute break; If you work more than nine hours, this time increases to one hour according to Swiss labor law. You cannot work for more than six hours at a time.

Obligation to record smoke breaks

So if you take smoke breaks and regular lunch breaks, you will spend much more time away from the computer than the allowed thirty minutes to an hour. Employers react accordingly: sometimes they meticulously document smoke breaks. Still others require employees who smoke to stay an extra ten minutes after the end of their shift for each cigarette they consume.

But as the Yougov survey shows, most people are generous with it: About 69 percent of respondents say they take additional smoke breaks during work hours but do not officially record them. So far no one seems bothered by this.

Source :Blick