145,000 people die in Japan every year of smoking-related
diseases and conditions. Twenty percent of the adults in that country are
smokers, compared with fewer than fifteen percent in the US. Smoking is declining here primarily because of
anti-smoking TV ads, a reduction in retailers willing to sell tobacco products,
and laws restricting places where people can legally smoke. In the Land of the
Rising Sun, there’s very little to discourage people from smoking or to
encourage smokers to quit. One Japanese marketing firm is taking steps to
change that. Recognizing that those little breaks throughout the day all add
up, Piala Inc. is offering an extra six days of paid vacation time every year
to its non-smoking employees. So far four of their 45 workers have quit smoking
to take advantage of the new policy. One of them, a 25-year-old who used to
smoke half a pack a day, plans to use his extra vacation to play tennis.
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