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" It&amp;#039;s long been known how bad smoking and tobacco is for our physical health. From heart disease to cancer, the list is endless. It&amp;#039;s also quite a pricey habit that can see your bank balance swiftly plummet. What we haven&amp;#039;t been aware of - until now - is how this addictive habit can have negative ramifications on employment.  The study, led by Judith Prochaska at Stanford University, looked at unemployed job seekers over a 12-month period and classified them as smokers or non-smokers based on surveys and breath tests. Of those deemed &amp;#039;daily smokers&amp;#039;, only 27% found jobs in the time-period - compared to 56% of non-smokers.  Not only were they less likely to be in employment, but those who found work earned an average of $5 less an hour.  Even when taking into account variations in gender, housing, criminal history, access to transportation and previous treatment for drug or alcohol abuse, non-smokers were still 24% more likely to be employed after one year. Prochaska said:  &amp;quot;Our study here provides insight into the financial harms of smoking both in terms of lower re-employment success and lower wages.&amp;quot; Gaps in the research... There are still a number of question marks hanging over the cause and effect relationship of the findings; is it that being a smoker makes you less employable, more likely to lose a job or more likely to start smoking from the stress? On average, smokers were found to be younger, less educated and in poorer health, all of which are factors that could inhibit someone&amp;#039;s ability to find work.   The pay difference highlighted in the research suggests that those surveyed likely had jobs where they were paid on an hourly rate rather than a yearly salary, making it difficult to generalise on overall employability. The study also makes no reference to the use of e-cigarettes or &amp;#039;casual smokers&amp;#039; (i.e. not daily smokers).  One thing that is for certain is that smoking is one of the worst things we can do when it comes to our health. If you want to quit, but aren&amp;#039;t sure where to start, there are plenty of resources available to help you.   "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/healthy-living/wellbeing/news/a26356/smokers-less-likely-to-find-employement/>