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Dear John,
Back in the day, it was a common thing to see folks smoking a cigarette in hotels, bars, restaurants, offices, schools, even in hospitals around babies and young children.
What looks so appalling and out of place now, was as commonplace as a car without seatbelts.
But as Secretary of Labor, I could see that the health of millions of American workers was being put in jeopardy by the ubiquitous presence of tobacco smoke and other contaminants in the workplace.
Check out this week’s video, with some vintage footage of me proposing a smoking ban in the workplace thirty years ago to the day. Then share it with folks who could use a little morale boost.
The tobacco industry of course lobbied against the rule. Members of Congress who were in the pocket of Big Tobacco fought back. The seemingly common sense rule I proposed never took effect. But that’s not the end of the story.
An idea that was initially met with skepticism and disbelief gradually took hold to where it’s standard thinking in the places where people work and socialize today.
The lesson I’ve learned: Change can be painfully slow, but it is possible.
Don’t let anyone ever convince you otherwise.
Robert Reich
Inequality Media
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