ST. CLOUD, Fla. New city employees will only be hired if they sign an affidavit swearing they haven't used tobacco in the last 12 months and they submit to regular medical tests to prove they have stayed tobacco-free, officials said.

St. Cloud implemented its tobacco ban this week to reduce health care costs and increase productivity. Current employees are exempt from the rule. "It saves the taxpayers money in the long run, and hopefully it will save some lives," Mayor Glenn Sangiovanni said. "I think as an employer we have this right." Health insurance costs for the city's 250 employees are rising at 30 percent a year, administrators said. The policy is stricter than a similar one adopted by North Miami in 1990, because it requires an affidavit and regular testing. North Miami's tobacco ban was fought in court for years, until the Florida Supreme Court decided lower insurance costs outweigh the privacy of workers. Coral Gables and Lighthouse Point also have policies against hiring tobacco users. Gulf Breeze has an informal anti-tobacco policy, but has hired people who promise to quit, said City Manager Buz Eddy. The American Civil Liberties Union and the American Cancer Society oppose St. Cloud's new policy. "I think what employers have the right to insist on is the employee to show up to work on time and perform successfully," said Howard Simon, executive director of the ACLU of Florida. "There has got to be some remnant of privacy so people have a right to their own life when they're off the job." The American Cancer Society prefers programs that help employees stop smoking to punitive measures, said spokeswoman Rachel Tyree. St. Cloud has a population of 19,000 and is about 20 miles south of Orlando.

<< Prev	CIGoutlet.NET News Home	Next >>