Encouraging people to quit smoking is one of the actions that are win-win for both employees and the organization.
Employees who quit smoking, far beyond the financial gain (up to one thousand shekels per month to the monthly income), improve their health, feel better, are more physically active, energetic, and particularly, free of illnesses that have plagued them for years.

The workplace also benefits from an employee who quits smoking. The workplace is more productive, suffers from fewer sick days, benefits from healthier and more focused employees, and is particularly connected to values of health, service, and cleanliness, promoting a clean atmosphere in the organization for other employees as well as customers.

Many smokers are interested in quitting. Over half have tried to quit in the past year, but the majority failed. They know that smoking is bad for them and would prefer quitting but find it difficult to do so on their own. Some have despaired and have stopped trying.

Messages that should be promoted to organizational employees who smoke:

“You should stop smoking for your own good, for your relatives and for the environment. Life is better without smoking.”

“You can stop smoking. Many have quit and there are good quit smoking programs that are available free of charge. It’s never too late to quit!”

“Now is the best time to quit smoking.”

Want to help your employees in the organization to quit smoking? We have compiled for you several ways to do so.

1. Success stories: Many smokers want to quit but give up. The success of someone close to them can encourage them that it is possible and that they can also succeed. An employee in the office wants to quit smoking. Cheer them on, celebrate with them, and compliment them. Encourage them to tell their success story on social media at work, mention the success at toasts, publish a personal letter of commendation from the organization’s managers, and publish the success stories on the bulletin board and in the smoking areas.
2. Meeting and breaks culture: create a space for meetings and to take breaks where smoking is prohibited. Many smokers mention that cigarette breaks are a time for meeting and establishing relationships with other employees. An alternative site for meeting during breaks around healthy refreshments or coffee can satisfy this need.
3. “Together we quit, together we win." Forge cooperation with the National Quitline Call Centerto create a customized program for your organization, invite lectures for employees or establish a group of employees who will together quit smoking. Create a WhatsApp support group for them and allow them to meet during working hours once a week, including an organized conference room, coffee and light refreshments.
4. Mark World No Tobacco Day—every year on 31.5, the world marks World No Tobacco Day. It is possible to create a tradition in the workplace around this day, sending letters from the managers, opening a workshop for rehab, inviting lectures—even by employees who managed to quit.
5. Referral to the quit smoking services: studies show that the best treatment for quitting smoking is a combination of behavioral supervision and medication. Today, through the HMOs, support is available for various methods to quit smoking: a face-to-face or online workshop, personal support and counseling over the phone, or support from family physicians. For more information, contact the family physician, the clinic staff, or the HMO’s information hotline.

You can also contact the Ministry of Health at telephone *6800 The Call Center offers a unique program to support smokers as they are quitting, with the personal counseling of qualified quit counselors, available in: Hebrew, Arabic, English, Russian and Amharic, free of charge.

Many smokers are unaware of these options, and this is where you come in. Hand ads encouraging people to quit smoking and refer them to the HMO or the Quitline Call Center. Internal or call center ads may be used. Hang the ads on all bulletin boards, particularly in smoking areas and wherever smokers gather (in the parking lot, balcony, etc.).

To register for the quit smoking program and for more information:

Dial *6800 for the National of the Ministry of Health.
Hours: Sunday-Thursday between 8:00-20:00 in Hebrew, Arabic, Russian, English, and Amharic. There is also a customized program available for the ultra-Orthodox population.

To establish a cooperation to encourage the cessation of smoking at the workplace, contact Eliran Turjeman, Director of the Ministry of Health’s National Quitline Call Center, at *6800, mobile phone: 052-6219622, or email: eliran.turjeman@gmail.com.