Workplace smoking policies in New Jersey businesses

A New Jersey law enacted in 1985 requires smoking policies for work sites with 50 or more employees. In 1988, we surveyed a sample of New Jersey businesses to determine their smoking policies. Eighty-three percent of respondents with 50 or more employees reported implementing restrictive smoking policies. Of respondents with 2 to 49 employees, 35% had implemented policies. Our findings identify some of the factors other than a legal mandate that lead employers to restrict smoking in the workplace.