Where are the lawsuits. Where is the Equal Opportunity Employer outrage. More companies are now firing smokers who do it on their own time. If this was happening to drinkers, who are doing a legal act that is detrimental to their health, there would be public outrage. How about obese people? They have health risks. How about not employing anyone who is gay because they are doing something you don't agree with on their own time? It's outrageous.

USA Today

More companies are taking action against employees who smoke off-duty, and, in an extreme trend that some call troubling, some are now firing or banning the hiring of workers who light up even on their own time.

The outright bans raise new questions about how far companies can go in regulating workers' behavior when they are off the clock. The crackdown is coming in part as a way to curb soaring health care costs, but critics say companies are violating workers' privacy rights. The zero-tolerance policies are coming as more companies adopt smoke-free workplaces.

...

"The debate has gone from where they can smoke to whether they can smoke," says Marshall Tanick, a Minneapolis-based employment lawyer.

See also:
Jan 26, 2005 - Weyco Inc Fires All Smoking Employee's
Jan 27, 2005 - San Francisco Bans Smoking In Public

Tipped by: Darleen's Place