Supporting employees to stop smoking could leave businesses with a more productive workforce, according to the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development (CIPD).

Responding to guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) proposing that employers should offer “stop smoking” courses in the workplace, Ben Willmott, employee relations adviser at the CIPD, said: “Clearly each employer will need to consider what is right for their business.  But, having considered the available options, many employers may well conclude that offering smoking cessation support in the workplace will work for their business.  When you add together time taken for smoking breaks, and time taken off due to smoking related illness, the few hours of employee time and small amount of money involved in offering this kind of support may well look like an attractive investment.”

Findings from CIPD’s 2006 Absence Management survey revealed that 34% of organisations offered stop-smoking support last year.