SURVEYS SHOW EVEN SMOKERS SUPPORT SMOKING BANS, AND THEY WORK

According to a new Gallop poll, 95% of nonsmokers, and fully 69% of smokers, think California's ban on smoking in almost all workplaces is positive.

This contradicts the standard line of smokers' rights groups and the tobacco industry which claims that such restrictions violate of the rights of smokers and cause them to restrict their purchases and use of places like restaurants and fast food outlets.

Rather than get fighting mad, many smokers think such restrictions are reasonable and even helpful as they try to quit or cut down.

California law prohibits all smoking in workplaces, including offices, stores, and restaurants, but exempts outdoor job sites, large warehouses, tobacco shops, and businesses with fewer than six employees. Bars and gaming clubs were also exempted until 1997.

Among the other findings of the survey: Nearly four-fifths (79%) of respondents said they observed a decline in smoking since the law took effect.

The survey also found that 88% of nonsmokers and 83% of smokers believe employees should be protected at work from secondhand smoke. The new law also seems to be having other positive effects.

For example, a separate survey conducted by the tobacco control section showed that the proportion of smokers who reported banning smoking in their own homes out of concern for children or other family members increased from 22% in 1994 to 30% last year.

A study released last month by the National Bureau of Economic Research, a private, nonprofit research organization, estimated that workplace smoking bans cause a 5% drop in the number of smokers and a 10% drop in cigarette consumption by those who continue to smoke.

In still another study, researchers at the University of Missouri found that 51% of hospital workers covered by smoking bans at work kicked the habit within five years of the bans taking effect. According to the study, this compared with a quit rate of less than 38% in the general population.

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