A Japanese marketing company offers their non-smoking workers an extra days holidays to compensate for cigarette breaks smokers take.
Piala Inc is a marketing firm based in Tokyo. They offer the perk in September and it was appreciated by staff.
Photo via flickr
The spokesman for the company Hirotaka Matsushima said the idea was suggested by one of his non-smoking staff saying that smoking breaks had been causing problems.
"Our CEO saw the comment and agreed, so we are giving non-smokers some extra time off to compensate", Mr Matsushma added.
Photo via flickr
With so many complaints about smokers spending at least 15 minutes a day walking from their 29th-floor office to the basement, company bosses implement the policy to take the balance.
Company CEO Takao Asuka said he hoped employees can quit smoking through incentives instead of penalties.
30 employees out of 120 have made use of the extra days off so far and four people have given up smoking due to the perk.
Photo via flickr
World Health Organisation statistics show 21.7 percent of Japanese adults smoke, though the figure is higher among older generations.
