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TOBACCO CONTROL Conference Links Unions to Antismoking CampaignDespite widespread tobacco control campaigns, tobacco use is still going strong. The gap in smoking prevalence by occupational category is widening according to recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with blue-collar workers smoking more than service or white-collar workers. On Sept.14 and 15, labor union representatives, tobacco activists, academic researchers, and health care practitioners from across the country met to discuss ways to expand the capacity of labor unions to combat the toll that tobacco takes on the working class.
Dennis Rivera, president of Service Employees International Union, Local 1199 of New York State, addressed labor union representatives, tobacco activists, researchers, and health care practitioners at a conference to encourage these groups to increase collaboration on reducing tobacco use among blue-collar workers. Photo by Atlantic Photo Hosted by the Dana–Farber Cancer Institute's Center for Community-based Research and HSPH, the two-day conference sought to increase collaboration among unions and groups advocating tobacco control and public health to address class-based disparities in tobacco use and workplace exposure to tobacco smoke. The Smoking DivideIn her opening remarks, Elizabeth Barbeau, HSPH assistant professor in the Department of Health and Social Behavior, said that unions face significant obstacles concerning tobacco policy. "It's a potentially divisive issue that can pit members who smoke against those who do not, all within a movement that is deeply committed to solidarity," she said.Members might also see their own personal health habits as outside the realm of the unions' authority. Some may say unions have no right to implement antismoking policies, said keynote speaker Dennis Rivera, president of New York State's largest health care union. Other speakers went on to say that many smokers want to quit, but unionized workers do not see themselves in much of the traditional tobacco control educational materials. More tailored communication may be especially needed among blue-collar workers. According to Linda Pederson of the Office on Smoking and Health at the CDC, blue-collar smoking is not declining as quickly as white-collar smoking. And when they do try to quit, blue-collar workers are not as successful as white-collar workers. Rivera described his recent efforts, through which labor unions and public health groups in New York found common ground in support of people's health. Last year, for example, he headed a campaign in the state, persuading the governor and state legislature to increase the cigarette tax by 55 cents. The money collected was used to provide coverage to New Yorkers without health insurance. Rivera now looks to share his experience with others. "This has to be a nationwide solution," he said, "because, unfortunately, some New Yorkers now cross the state border to buy cigarettes." Critical CoalitionIt was clear from the speakers that making an impact on tobacco policy in relation to the working class requires such partnerships among union leaders, health advocates, researchers, and the workers themselves. Implementing programs that address occupational exposures and personal health habits was touted as a good start, an approach that was spearheaded by Glorian Sorensen, director of the Center for Community-based Research at DFCI and professor of health and social behavior at HSPH.Speaking highly of his work site's participation in one of Sorensen's prior studies, Donald Courtney of the Worcester firefighters' union reported that all city firehouses now have diesel exhaust systems to protect them from this occupational lung carcinogen, and they also have smoking cessation programs for workers trying to quit. Long-term goals of the conference include motivating labor organizations to take more action on tobacco control, expanding the dialogue between individuals in labor and tobacco control organizations, and identifying resources for supporting labor's advances in tobacco control policy. Conference attendees took a step toward achieving these as they drafted a joint labor union–public health consensus statement for action in the areas of research advocacy, training, and technical assistance. The American Legacy Foundation, a national organization set up with funds from the tobacco settlement with 46 state attorneys general, invited a labor union representative to serve on one of its newly formed advisory boards. The foundation also committed to considering unionized workers as a population deserving special attention. —Tracy Hampton |
