Financial Incentives in the Workplace Help Smokers Quit
Posted by proforma on March 10, 2009
Companies that want to help employees quit their smoking habit may be interested to hear GE’s successful experience with financial incentives.
A research project conducted by the University of Pennsylvania used a study group of 878 GE employees across the country, roughly half of which were offered up to $750 to quit. (The other half was offered no financial incentive, but provided smoking-cessation information.)
The financial incentives were $100 for completion of a smoking-cessation program, $250 for cessation of smoking within 6 months after study enrollment, as confirmed by a biochemical test, and $400 for abstinence for an additional 6 months after the initial cessation, as confirmed by a biochemical test.
After a year, 14.7 percent of the incentivized group still were not smoking, compared with 5 percent of the information-only group. The success rate exceeded the success rate typically experienced by smoking-cessation programs.
The results of this study were published on The New England Journal of Medicine website.
Tags:GE, smoking, smoking cessation program, Workplace Safety
Filed Under: Home Safety, Workplace Safety
