Three times more manual workers smoke than managers - new study

Friday 26 February 2016

It seems the job that you do has a large influence on whether you smoke or note, according to a new smoking study released today by the States. It shows that there are more than three times the number of smokers in "manual or routine" jobs, than in those working in "managerial and professional" roles.

For the first time, the States has combined various sources of data to produce what they say is a definitive profile of who smokes in Jersey.

The Health Department says that around 350 deaths and 1,000 admissions to the Hospital each year are still a direct result of smoking despite an overall reduction in the number of smokers - the number of Islanders over 16 who smoke has fallen from a quarter to a fifth over the last decade.

Other findings include:

- There is correlation between smoking and what job you do. 28 per cent of workers in ‘manual and routine’ jobs smoke compared to 15 per cent in ‘technical and clerical’ professions and only 8% in ‘managerial and professional’ roles.

- 83% of inmates at La Moye smoke. The success rate of the current in-house stop-smoking scheme is less than 5%.

- One in six children aged 10-15 reported that they had tried smoking at least once. At 15%, this is the lowest level recorded since the Jersey Schools Health survey began in 1998, when 47 per cent of pupils reported that they had tried smoking

- Between 2000 and 2014, the price of tobacco increased by 70% more than retail prices generally

- Over 900 people set a quit date through the Help2Quit stop smoking service in Jersey in 2014-15. Almost 400 people successfully quit, representing a success rate of 42 per cent.

Head of Health Improvement Martin Knight said: “This report shows us that smoking is now very much a minority activity in Jersey. The reductions we have seen are very positive, and have been achieved thanks to many years of concerted strategic efforts resulting from the States of Jersey Tobacco Strategy which most recently included removal of sale of tobacco from vending machines; advertising, promotion and display restrictions; stop smoking services in community pharmacies and regulations restricting smoking in motor vehicles carrying under 18s.

“Together with extensive international evidence, the information in this report gives us an up-to-date local picture that will support on-going action towards a community that is free from tobacco-related harm.”