The following has been supplied by the TUC:
Unions should negotiate the same controls on electronic cigarettes as on smoking at work, the TUC has said.
The union body repeated its call after the World Health Organisation (WHO) called for a ban on the use of ‘e-cigarettes’ indoors – a move rejected immediately by the UK government - as well as a range of other restrictions on their sale and marketing.
The TUC says the sale of these products is unregulated and there is very little evidence as to their safety. It adds the ingredients and quality of electronic cigarettes can vary considerably.
BBC’s Inside Out reported this week that one out of four liquid refills tested in a laboratory contained diacetyl, the chemical responsible for the potentially deadly condition ‘popcorn lung’, or bronchiolitis obliterans.
TUC head of safety Hugh Robertson, writing in the union body’s Stronger Unions blog, noted: “The TUC strongly recommends that unions should negotiate that electronic cigarettes are subject to the same general restrictions in the workplace as tobacco. They should not be used in any indoor place. This is not just because the risk to others is unknown, but also because it can be confusing if people are seen to be ‘smoking’ what can look like a cigarette. This undermines the smoking ban.”
He said unions should welcome properly negotiated smoking cessation efforts by employers. “A pragmatic approach like this should hopefully satisfy those who do not want their colleagues ‘vaping’ next to them, and also hopefully support those who want to use e-cigarettes to help them kick tobacco,” he said.
