Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-c47g7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-24T10:16:03.110Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Smoking outside: the effect of the Irish workplace smoking ban on smoking prevalence among the employed

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 February 2014

Michael Savage
Michael Savage*
Affiliation:
Economic and Social Research Institute, Dublin, Ireland
*
*Correspondence to: Michael Savage, Economic and Social Research Institute, Whitaker Square, Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2, Ireland. Email: michael.savage@esri.ie
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

In March 2004, Ireland became the first country to introduce a nationwide workplace smoking ban. The primary aim of the ban was to reduce people’s exposure to second-hand smoke. A 95% compliance rate among employers suggests this aim was achieved. By prohibiting smoking in the majority of indoor working places, an effect of the ban was to increase the non-monetary cost of smoking. The aim of this paper is to examine whether the extra non-monetary cost of smoking was concentrated on the employed. A difference-in-differences approach is used to measure changes in smoking behaviour among the employed relative to the non-working population following the introduction of the workplace smoking ban. The research finds that the workplace smoking ban did not induce a greater reduction in smoking prevalence among the employed population compared with the non-working population. In fact, the evidence suggests a significantly larger decrease in smoking prevalence among the non-workers relative to the employed. Changes in the real price of cigarettes and changes in attitudes to risk are discussed as possible causes for the pattern observed.

Type
Articles
Information
Health Economics, Policy and Law , Volume 9 , Issue 4 , October 2014 , pp. 407 - 424
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ai, C. and Norton, E. C. (2003), ‘Interaction terms in logit and probit models’, Economics Letters, 80(1): 123–129.Google Scholar
Allwright, S., Paul, G., Greiner, B., Mullally, B., Pursell, L., Kelly, A., Bonner, B., D’Eath, M., McConnell, B., McLaughlin, J., O’Donovan, D., O’Kane., E. and Perry, I. (2006), ‘Legislation for smoke-free workplaces and health of bar workers in Ireland: before and after study’, British Medical Journal, 332(151): 3.Google Scholar
Barrell, R., Fitzgerald, J. and Riley, R. (2010), ‘EU enlargement and migration: assessing the macroeconomic impacts’, Journal of Common Market Studies, 48(2): 373–395.Google Scholar
Brugha, R., Tully, N., Dicker, P., Shelley, E., Ward, M. and McGee, H. (2009), Survey of Lifestyle, Attitudes and Nutrition in Ireland. Smoking Patterns in Ireland: Implications for Policy and Services, Department of Health and Children, Dublin: The Stationery Office.Google Scholar
De Chaisemartin, C. and Geoffard, P. Y. (2010), ‘Workplace smoking ban effects in an heterogeneous smoking population’, PSE Working Papers Series 2010–21.Google Scholar
De Chaisemartin, C., Geoffard, P. Y. and Le Faou, A. L. (2011), ‘Workplace smoking ban effects on unhappy smokers’, Health Economics, 20: 1043–1055.Google Scholar
De Leeuw, E. D. (1992), Data Quality in Mail, Telephone, and Face-to-face surveys, Amsterdam: TT-Publicaties.Google Scholar
Fichtenberg, C. and Glantz, S. (2002), ‘Effect of smoke-free workplaces on smoking behaviour: systematic review’, British Medical Journal, 325.Google Scholar
Fong, G., Hyland, A. and Borland, R. (2006), ‘Reductions in tobacco smoke pollution and increases in support for smoke-free public places following the implementation of comprehensive smoke-free workplace legislation in the Republic of Ireland: findings from the ITC Ireland/UK Survey’, Tobacco Control, 15(3): 51–58.Google Scholar
Layte, R. and Whelan, C. T. (2009), ‘Explaining social class inequalities in smoking: the role of education, self-efficacy, and deprivation’, European Sociological Review, 25(4): 399–410.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Madden, D., Nolan, A. and Nolan, B. (2005), ‘GP reimbursement and visiting behaviour in Ireland’, Health Economics, 14(10): 1047–1060.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Malmendier, U. and Nagel, S. (2011), ‘Depression babies: do macroeconomic experiences affect risk-taking?’, The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 126(1): 373–416.Google Scholar
Morgan, K., McGee, H., Watson, D., Perry, I., Barry, M., Shelley, E., Harrington, J., Molcho, M., Layte, R., Tully, N., van Lente, E., Ward, M., Lutomski, J., Conroy, R. and Brugha, R. (2008), ‘SLÁN 2007: Survey of Lifestyle’, Attitudes & Nutrition in Ireland: Main Report, Dublin: Department of Health and Children.Google Scholar
National Tobacco Control Office (2007), Annual Report 2007, Ireland: Kildare.Google Scholar
National Tobacco Control Office. National Tobacco Control Office Statistics, http://www.ntco.ie/research.asp [30 January 14].Google Scholar
Norton, E. C., Wang, H. and Ai, C. (2004), ‘Computing interaction effects and standard errors in logit and probit models’, The Stata Journal, 4(2): 154–167.Google Scholar
Puhani, P. A. (2008), ‘The treatment effect, the cross difference, and the interaction term in nonlinear ‘difference-in-differences’ models’, IZA DP No. 3478.Google Scholar
Reidy, P. and Walsh, K. (2011), Economics of Tobacco: Modelling the Market for Cigarettes in Ireland. Research and Analytics Branch, Revenue Commissioners.Google Scholar
Shetty, K. D., DeLeire, T., White, C. and Bhattacharya, J. (2011), ‘Changes in U.S. hospitalization and mortality rates following smoking bans’, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 30(1): 6–28.Google Scholar