U-Haul’s new nicotine-free hiring policy appears discriminatory towards vapers
A new U-Haul policy will allow the company to discriminate against any applicants that are either smokers and/or vapers. Announced on December 30, 2019, U-Haul is expected to fully enact its new nicotine-free hiring policy on February 1, 2020.
While this new policy is only legal in 21 states, in these states, applicants can be expected to be questioned on their smoking and vaping habits during the interview process. In these states, U-Haul will not be penalized for asking these questions and may even request prospective employees to submit to a nicotine screening test before being considered for a position.
According to U-Haul Chief of Staff Jessica Lopez, this new hiring policy is being enacted to better demonstrate the company’s interest in promoting a “culture of wellness.” Existing employees to consume nicotine will be grandfathered in under the new policy.
Lopez also stated, “if we take care of our Team Members, they will take care of our customers.” In addition to the no nicotine hiring freeze, U-Haul will also offer smoking cessation assistance for current employees who would like to quit smoking or vaping.
JUUL faces lawsuit from San Diego’s Public schools
In a 40-page complaint, filed in the San Diego Superior Court, the San Diego Unified School District has launched a campaign against JUUL for allegedly deliberately marketing its vaping products to young people. In their suit, the San Diego Unified School District claims that JUUL’s actions have effectively rolled back years of anti-smoking initiatives.
The school district also claims that JUUL’s products disrupt the learning environment, and have caused an increase in student absences due to vaping-related illnesses. Furthermore, the San Diego Unified School District claims that JUUL has hurt schools “by diverting funding away from learning toward educational campaigns, prevention, and treatment.”
Within the lawsuit, the San Diego Unified School cited that anti-smoking efforts have reduced the use of tobacco products among young people from 28% in 2000 to just 7.6% in 2017. However, the school district suggests that e-cigarettes have dramatically reversed this trend, with their use among high school students nearly doubling from 11.7% in 2017 to 20.8% in 2018.
https://www.npr.org/2020/01/09/794831505/san-diego-schools-sue-juul-labs-over-youth-vaping-epidemic
Flavoured pods are now banned in the United States
In an effort to curb the rise of youth vaping, the Trump administration, along with the FDA, has made the decision to ban almost all flavoured e-cigarette pods. Effective in 30 days, any company that does not abide by the new policy will face enforcement action.
According to the FDA, this new policy was enacted amid rising epidemic levels of youth e-cigarette use and is intended to restrict the sale of flavours that have been deemed “appealing” to minors. In response to this policy, public health experts have voiced their concerns that such flavour bans could deter adult smokers from using vaping to quit, and could even lead to increased smoking rates as vapers go back to traditional tobacco.
Put into place on January 2, 2020, this flavour ban targets all e-cigarette pods, except tobacco and menthol. It should be noted that this ban only applies to pre-filled e-cigarette pods, which means bottles of e-liquid for refilling tanks are still legal in the U.S. The choice to focus only on pods stems from the popularity of JUUL and other closed pod systems by youth.
https://www.churnmag.com/news/united-states-set-ban-flavored-vapor-pods/
Cannabis 2.0 products are now available in Ontario
As on January 6, 2020, Ontario cannabis store shoppers will be able to purchase edibles, beverages, lotions, and concentrates from legal retail operations. This has been something Ontario cannabis users have been calling for since the legalization of marijuana was instituted in 2018.
Unfortunately, many of the province’s legal retailers have yet to receive their shipments and the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) is predicting the supply of certain products could be tight and may sell out quickly before their stock is replenished.
Instagram announces a ban system for influencers promoting vaping
In an effort to curb the rise of youth vaping, Instagram has now instituted a new policy that prohibits influences from promoting vaping, tobacco, and weapons on Instagram.
In an Instagram blog post, the social media giant explained that “Our advertising policies have long prohibited the advertisement of these products, and we will begin enforcement on this in the coming weeks.”
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