MIAMI — On a typically hot afternoon in his South Florida office, Jorge Padron casually puffs on a cigar that bears his family’s name. The company has been growing steadily for decades, ever since his father, Jose Padron, founded it in Little Havana in 1964.

Padron and other cigar companies say their legacy of good jobs for unskilled workers and fine smokes for aficionados is imperiled not just by the recession. The rise in smoking bans across the country and a unprecedented hike in taxes on tobacco are proving to be crippling.

“The industry is suffering. A lot,” Jorge Padron said.

The biggest casualty so far has been the Hav-a-Tampa plant in Tampa, which will shut down in the coming months and began laying off its nearly 500 employees last week. Norman Sharp, president of the Cigar Association of America, said other companies are laying off workers and cutting back.

“I can’t even use the word cautiously optimistic,” Sharp said. “These are dark, dark days.”

Sales decline

Cigars have long held a sacred place in American history. They’re handed out when babies are born and at wedding receptions. They helped shape the identity of American legends such as Groucho Marx and George Burns, American allies such as Winston Churchill and even American foes such as Fidel Castro. Hall of Fame basketball coach Red Auerbach would pull one out as a victory was nearing, turning them into the ultimate sign of achievement.

Now, smoking is banned in workplaces, restaurants or bars in more than 17,000 cities across the country, according to the American Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation. Meanwhile, about 100 bills have been filed this year in at least 34 state capitals that could increase tobacco taxes even more, according to Dan Carr, chief operating officer of General Cigar.

That’s not necessarily bad news to some. Thomas Glynn, director of cancer science and trends for the American Cancer Society, said cigars don’t cause as much lung cancer as cigarettes since they’re usually not inhaled. But cigar smokers are just as likely as cigarette smokers to develop cancers in the mouth, lip and upper digestive tract.

While there are no reliable data on cigars sold in the USA, Carr said their industrywide analysis shows that people are either buying fewer cigars or cutting them out entirely. An estimate by the company, which sells about 30% of the cigars consumed in the USA, found that sales are down between 10% to 15% in the past year.

One reason for that is taxes, some say, which have skyrocketed.

On April 1, the federal excise tax on cigars increased from 5 cents to about 40 cents on large cigars. At least 12 states have passed tobacco tax increases also, and 25 more states are considering them, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Rich Perelman, editor of Cigarcyclopedia.com, said small cigars have been hit hardest. They are made to sell cheap but got hit with a nearly $1-per-pack tax increase. Premium cigars that sell for $20, $30 aren’t affected nearly as much by the tax hike, he said.

At Flor de Gonzalez Cigars in Miami, their tax bill per shipment has gone from less than $5,000 per 100,000 cigars to more than $40,000.

Yadi Gonzalez, president of the family-owned operation that still rolls many of their specialty cigars by hand, said that has forced them to reduce some salaries. She worries about what will happen if governments continue using cigars as an easy source of income.

“They don’t realize that at the end of the day, if we start losing jobs, and imports begin to drop, they’re not going to accomplish their bottom line, which is to collect these taxes,” Gonzalez said.

The weight of those taxes is solely to blame for the closure of the Hav-a-Tampa plant, said Richard McKenzie, a senior vice president of human resources for Altadis USA, which owns Hav-a-Tampa.

On Friday, the plant began laying off nearly 500 people. McKenzie said most of the factory workers made between $8 and $12 an hour with health insurance, a pension plan and a 401(k), better than most jobs for unskilled labor.

Carr, whose General Cigar company employs more than 6,000 people around the world, said his company hasn’t had to fire anybody. Even so, he would not rule out the possibility of layoffs if their situation continues on its downward slide.

‘This is an art’

Carr said layoffs would be devastating not just to the industry, but to the unskilled workers who have benefited from the well-paying jobs for decades. Unlike workers who man machines in cigarette plants, crafting a cigar is a delicate process that has been passed down through generations.

“This is an art, what we do,” Carr said.

The industry will probably not see a slowing down of the movement to snip away at the places where people can puff, however. From Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., government agencies are banning smoking in restaurants, bars and even parks.

Anti-smoking advocates see little difference between cigarettes and cigars. Perelman does. People don’t rush outside to quickly inhale a cigar, he says.

“They’re consumed in a much different way,” he said. “I have never met a person who is addicted to cigars. Never. Cigars are a quiet, reliable place in their life where they can relax and think about the world as it goes by.”


Source: Usatoday

General Tobacco announced Thursday it will produce to new pipe product line extension to its two flagship brands, Bronco and GT One.

“We are very excited to provide pipe smokers with a variety of alternatives,” said J. Ronald Denman, vice president and general counsel for Mayodan-based General Tobacco. “The brand is competitively priced in the pipe tobacco market segment, especially during these economic times when our customers are seeking value.”

GT also recently introduced Wrangler, a new brand of filtered cigars.

All the new products will be manufactured at the company’s facilities in Mayodan.

LAS VEGAS, July 30 /PRNewswire/ — Cigar rollers for events were introduced by CF Dominicana cigars years ago and now the company boasts over 24 cities where cigar rollers will roll cigars at special events. The unique twist to the company’s Cigar Catering(R) service is that the cigar rollers reside in the cities serviced, thus eliminating travel costs. As a result of making this upscale feature easily available to everyone, the innovative cigar company has an audience in the most unlikely of demographics, women.

CF Dominicana’s aim is to have guests smoke their premium cigars with the objective that 2% of the guest list will come back as a customer of the cigars. “The events fuel name recognition,” says Dennis Briganti president of CF Dominicana Cigars. “Guests smoke the cigars at a fun event and then seek out the cigars at a later date.”

To enhance these cigar roller demonstrations, the company introduced Cigar Servers (cigar waitresses) on a national level just this past year. The Cigar Servers add another element that creates the upscale feel without the upscale price. The cigars are presented with custom cigar bands designed specifically for the affair. All of these features become far more than just cigars but rather, an entire show that enhances special events.

Of course cigar lovers are enthusiastic whenever cigars are present but, “the surprise here is that women are more enthusiastic about the cigar roller demonstrations than we expected,” notes Briganti. “..It’s the women — brides, event planners — that have made these cigar roller events popular.”

CF Dominicana’s event planners consult with clients to plan for the cigars in the best way possible, even when most of the clients don’t have a clue how to plan for a cigar roller at their event. The event planners for CF spend a good deal of time discussing what is being planned at the party so responsible recommendations can be made for clients that ensure success.

Cigar rollers with no travel costs for events in Los Angeles, NY, San Diego, San Francisco, NY, Long Island, New Jersey, Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Phoenix, Philadelphia, Charlotte, Houston, Dallas, Connecticut, Washington, Las Vegas, Washington, Jacksonville, Orlando, Miami provided by CF Dominicana Cigars.

The company is currently featured up on television including the Man Caves show and Platinum Weddings.
Source: Prnewswire

New York City, – Despite millions of tax dollars coming to the cash strapped state of New York from the sale of tobacco products annually, New York City is taking actions that will ban the sale of some of those products throughout the city’s five boroughs. In addition, the city is moving toward posting gruesomely graphic anti-smoking signs at the cash registers of the city’s 12,000 cigarette retailers.

“I’m going to assume that these are well-meaning people, but they are moving down a very slippery slope and do not realize the errors of their ways,” said Chris McCalla, legislative director of the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association. The IPCPR is joining the National Association of Tobacco Outlets and the Cigar Association of America to campaign against these actions.
The New York City Council is reviewing Proposed Introduction No. 433A that seeks to ban the sale of flavored cigarettes, flavored cigars, flavored chewing tobacco and other flavored tobacco products. At the same time, the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene wants to put graphic anti-smoking signs at cash registers where cigarettes are displayed, the first such action in the United States.
“They claim that banning the sale of flavored tobaccos is supposed to protect youth from purchasing these products. Age laws are already in place forbidding the sale of tobacco purchases by youths. Anyway, most flavored tobacco products have been included in recent federal legislation giving the Federal Drug Administration regulatory power over cigarettes. There is no reason for New York City to waste time debating whether to assume that authority,” said McCalla
The IPCPR, an association of some 2,000 premium cigar store owners and manufacturers and distributors of premium tobacco products and accoutrements, also argues against the proposed anti-tobacco signage at cash registers because, among other reasons, it is discriminatory against a minority.
“About 20 percent of New York adults smoke, so that makes them a minority and that makes such signage discriminatory. Maybe they should consider putting signs in the candy sections of stores warning of the dangers of obesity and in the beer and wine sections proclaiming the dangers of alcoholism and drinking and driving. It is a slippery slope, indeed, and smokers and non-smokers alike should be against having the government tell them what to do,” he said.

###
Contact:
Tony Tortorici
678/493-0313
tony@tortoricipr.com

PARKERSBURG – Local health officials are pleased with the new federal tobacco law aimed at curbing tobacco use, especially among youth.

“The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act” was signed into law on June 22 by the president.

“We certainly approve of the federal efforts. So many illnesses and diseases are shown to be caused by smoking including cancer, not to mention the affect on the quality of life for those addicted to tobacco. We are glad to see the federal government taking some stronger measures to help reduce tobacco use, especially with regard to youth. Studies have shown if you can keep someone from starting to smoke before they are 18, chances are they will not smoke,” said Dick Wittberg, director of the Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department. Wittberg said granting authority to regulate tobacco products to the federal Food and Drug Administration was a good move.

“I think that will have a very long lasting and large effect on tobacco sales, it changes the landscape,” he said.

The new federal legislation grants the FDA authority to regulate the manufacturing, marketing and sale of tobacco products, stops the marketing of tobacco products to children, requires tobacco companies to list what is in their products and mandates larger and more effective warning labels on tobacco product packaging. The legislation requires cigarettes makers to disclose product ingredients to the FDA and prohibits use of labels such as low tar or light on packages. In imposes a ban on candy and fruit-flavored cigarettes. Tobacco companies will also no longer be able to advertise near schools or sponsor entertainment or sporting events. The new federal legislation also forces companies to lower the levels of nicotine in cigarettes, remaining vending machines will disappear except in places restricted to adults and retailers who sell to minors will be subject to federal enforcement and penalties.

“We have noticed that we are starting to get more calls on the Quit Line because of the federal tax and FDA regulations. It is true it will help with youth prevention, doing away with the flavored cigarettes and cigars which are targeted to youth,” said Carrie Brainard, MOVHD Regional Tobacco Prevention Coalition coordinator. “There are some additives that will not be allowed in cigarettes that will make it a little less addictive, you still shouldn’t smoke, but hopefully it will help more people be able to quit and improve their health,” Brainard said.

“Any step we can take to keep our youth from starting tobacco is a step in the right direction. Anyone who has ever smoked and tried to quit can tell you how hard it is to stop, and how they wished they hadn’t started,” Brainard said.

The Quit Line number, 1-877-966-8784, is accessible from anywhere in West Virginia. It is a toll-free call.

“They will provide educational materials on how to quit, provide four free phone counseling sessions and most people will qualify for free patches, gum or lozengers. If the caller has a medical condition, they will need a doctor’s referral, but you can get a fax referral form,” Brainard said.

“Tobacco is virtually the only consumable product not regulated in the U.S. and the tobacco industry exploits this undeserved free pass by spending nearly $40 million every day aggressively marketing its products, especially to children, with enticing candy- and fruit-flavored cigarettes. The legislation would stop the marketing of tobacco products to children, require tobacco companies to list the poisons in their products and mandate larger and more effective warning labels on tobacco product packaging,” said Dr. John R. Seffrin, CEO, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network. “Every day, 3,500 children pick up their first cigarette and 1,000 become addicted smokers. Regulating the tobacco industry could help break the cycle of addiction to tobacco in our country,” Seffrin said.


Newsandsentinel

British American Tobacco Plc, the maker of Lucky Strike cigarettes, joined Philip Morris International Inc. and Reynolds American Inc. in reporting profit that beat analysts’ estimates on price increases.

First-half net income climbed 16 percent to 1.45 billion pounds ($2.38 billion), or 72.75 pence a share, the London-based company said today. That exceeded the 1.37 billion-pound average estimate of five analysts compiled by Bloomberg.

Philip Morris, the world’s biggest publicly traded tobacco company, and Reynolds American Inc., the second-largest U.S. cigarette maker, last week reported profit that topped estimates and raised their 2009 earnings forecasts. BAT and Philip Morris have spent more than $8 billion combined since June 2008 to acquire cigarette makers, gaining more power to increase prices. BAT raised prices in Mexico, Russia, and Italy this year.

“The underlying performance was a lot stronger than I’d expected, mainly on the more positive price mix effect,” Thane Duff, an analyst at Investec Securities, said by phone from Sandton, South Africa. He has a “buy” recommendation on BAT.

BAT climbed 7 pence, or 0.4 percent, to 1,847 pence at 9:24 a.m. in London trading. The stock has risen 2.7 percent in 2009.

The strength of currencies such as the Canadian dollar and South African rand helped boost profit by about 10 percent in the first half, spokesman Michael Prideaux said. The Canadian dollar was on average 10 percent higher against sterling compared with the year-earlier period, while the rand rose 11 percent. Those countries are among BAT’s top five markets.

Higher Dividend

Benefits from currency swings will reduce in the second- half to about 6 percent of operating profit, Prideaux said.

“The second half is going to be a bit tougher as we lap acquisitions made last year and the currency tailwind isn’t as strong,” he said. “Pricing momentum will continue to be good,” for the remainder of the year.

BAT said it plans to raise the interim dividend by 26 percent to 27.9 pence a share.

Sales increased 24 percent to 6.78 billion pounds, BAT said. Volumes increased 5 percent to 349 billion cigarettes, and fell 2 percent when acquisitions are excluded.

The company said its market share in Russia fell to 20 percent from 22 percent, while it also had a smaller share of the market in Ukraine, Japan and Mexico. The ‘global drive brands’ of Kent, Dunhill, Lucky Strike and Pall Mall helped compensate for those declines by achieving 5 percent volume growth.

Acquisitions

BAT spent about $5 billion in total for Tekel in June 2008 and Skandinavisk Tobakskompagni in July 2009, gaining control of 36 percent of Turkey’s cigarette market and 60 percent of Scandinavian sales. More than three-fifths of male Turks aged 15 and older are smokers, the World Health Organization says.

BAT said on June 17 it will buy control of PT Bentoel Internasional Investama for $494 million, entering the market for clove-flavored cigarettes in Indonesia.

“We’re pleased with what we’ve seen so far and particularly with the quality of management,” Prideaux said. “Hopefully it gives us a platform for growth.”

“A single-country type acquisition,” is likely, he added.

Chief Executive Officer Paul Adams has exceeded BAT’s goal of raising per-share profit excluding one-time items by a “high single-digit” amount every year since starting the job in 2004.

Net income climbed from 1.25 billion pounds, or 62.08 pence, a year earlier.

Smokeless tobacco products, as used in Europe and North America, do not appear to increase cancer risk. A large meta-analysis, published in the open access journal BMC Medicine, has shown that snuff as used in Scandinavia has no discernible effect on the risk of various cancers. Products used in the past in the USA may have increased the risk, but any effect that exists now seems likely to be quite small.

Peter Lee and Jan Hamling, from P.N. Lee Statistics and Computing Ltd, carried out the analysis of 89 studies from the United States and Scandinavia. They found that, after adjustment for concurrent smoking, any effect of current US products or Scandinavian snuff seems very limited. According to Lee, “It is clear that any effect of smokeless tobacco on risk of cancer, if it exists at all, is quantitatively very much smaller than the known effects of smoking”.

In 2005 in US men aged 35 or over, there were a total of 142,205 deaths from seven cancers considered to be caused by smoking. If these people had never smoked, Lee and Hamling estimated that the numbers would have reduced by 104,737, with the reduction in lung cancer deaths, 79,195, being the major contributor. If smokeless tobacco was introduced to a similar population of never smokers, this meta-analysis shows that any increase in risk would be negligible compared to the lives saved by reducing cigarette use.

Lee said, “Our paper shows very clearly that, in marked contrast to smoking, smokeless tobacco use carries little or no risk of cancer. Concerns about possible effects of smokeless tobacco on oral cancer are answered by our analyses showing a lack of relationship based on the combined evidence from those 14 studies published since 1990 which allow adequate control for effects of smoking.”


© Sciencedaily

If you’re looking for a safe alternative to smoking, you’d be wise to skip the electronic cigarette – unless inhaling a toxic, bubble gum-flavored component of antifreeze sounds yummy.

The Food and Drug Administration recently ran preliminary tests on two brands of battery-powered, cigarette-shaped devices billed as safe alternatives to tobacco. The devices heat up a liquid containing nicotine and produce a vapor that can be drawn directly into the lungs. Among other things, scientists found forms of nitrosamine, a carcinogen common in real cigarettes.

The tests also turned up diethylene glycol, an ingredient in antifreeze, in some samples. It’s the same chemical involved in deaths and illnesses around the world in 2007; unscrupulous toothpaste manufacturers in China used it as a cheap substitute for the thickening agent glycerine.

The Electronic Cigarette Association, a trade group representing manufacturers, says the FDA’s tests of devices marketed by Arizona-based NJoy and Florida-based Smoking Everywhere were too limited to reach “any valid and reliable conclusions.”

But, tellingly, the industry is reluctant to submit its products for safety approval, arguing that the agency doesn’t have jurisdiction.

Many of the devices are made in China, where they’re popular. But the FDA reports that there’s little quality control in the manufacturing – which isn’t surprising, given the multitude of problems with toys, pet food and other products imported from China.

Numerous U.S. health groups have issued warnings against e-cigarettes. The American Academy of Pediatrics has condemned the production of e-cigarettes flavored to taste like bubble gum, chocolate and various fruits – a move they say is intended to lure children and teens.

FDA officials, who contend e-cigarettes fall under their jurisdiction as drug-delivery devices, say they’re contemplating further action against manufacturers. Some members of Congress are calling for a ban.

Whether it’s possible to produce a safe e-cigarette remains an open question. But the FDA’s recent tests indicate there are dangerous versions on the market. They, at the very least, should be yanked from store shelves.


© Hamptonroads

BOSTON, – The FDA recently went public with misleading information about the safety of electronic cigarettes and the marketing of the devices, not only using its clout but recruiting other prominent organizations to demonize a product that has great public health benefit potential.

A group of prominent doctors and tobacco researchers, including Dr. Michael Siegel at the Boston University School of Public Health, Dr. Joel Nitzkin of the AAPHP Tobacco Control Task Force, and Dr. Brad Rodu, Endowed Chair, Tobacco Harm Reduction Research University of Louisville, challenge the FDA to provide the full quantitative data of the study upon which the FDA has based its warning against electronic cigarettes. They are concerned that the FDA’s disingenuous targeting of electronic cigarettes through a biased presentation of the scientific data has had significant negative impact upon the public perception of electronic cigarettes, when the best available evidence suggests that these have shown that the devices offer great potential to reduce serious health issues among traditional tobacco smokers.

In a July 22 news release, the FDA cited the detectable presence of carcinogens and “toxic chemicals” in a “small sample” of electronic cigarette cartridges as reason for alarm, singling out nitrosamines as particularly toxic. What the FDA fails to inform the public is that detectable amounts of carcinogens are also present in nicotine replacement products such as NicoDerm CQ and Nicorette gum, both approved by the FDA, and nitrosamines that can be also found in food items such bacon and beer. This double standard and alarmist attitude has had the significant and unfortunate effect of inducing hysteria among the public, discouraging tobacco smokers from using a product which is thought to be a significantly safer alternative to traditional tobacco.

Regrettably, the FDA has used biased reporting of this small and inconclusive study, the complete results of which have not been made public, to secure the vocal support of groups such as the American Academy of Pediatrics Tobacco Consortium, the Institute for Global Health, and the American Lung Association in their attack on electronic cigarettes. These researchers argue that it is absurd to consider taking electronic cigarettes off the market when it is the conventional ones which have been shown to be killing people. Further, the electronic cigarette community calls for accurate and fair reporting relative to the findings and statements of prominent medical professionals in favor of this new and important technology and challenges the media to tell the other side of the story.

“The FDA’s laboratory findings actually indicate that electronic cigarettes are much, much safer than conventional cigarettes,” says Dr. Michael Siegel. “The traces of carcinogens present are also present in nicotine replacement products. The FDA and the anti-smoking groups have fallen into a huge analytical trap as they have failed to ask the appropriate question. The question they are asking is: ‘Are electronic cigarettes safe?’ That is not the right question. The right question is: ‘Are electronic cigarettes much safer than traditional ones?’”

Dr. Rodu states, “The FDA tested e-cigarettes for TSNAs using a questionable sampling regimen, and the methods that were so sensitive that the results may have no possible significance to users. The agency failed to report specific levels of these contaminants, and it has failed to conduct similar testing of nicotine medicines that have been sold in the U.S. for over 20 years. These are not the actions of an agency that is science-based and consumer-focused. These pseudo-scientific actions are clearly intended to form the justification for banning a category of products that are probably 99.9% safer than cigarettes.”

Dr. Joel Nitzkin speaking as individual states, “The newly adopted FDA/Tobacco legislation will give full FDA approval to currently marketed conventional cigarettes. The new law encourages cigarette companies to produce new “reduced exposure” cigarettes to be marketed as reduced exposure products, with no scientific evidence that such reductions in exposure will reduce risk of future tobacco related illness and death. In the context of these provisions of the newly adopted FDA/Tobacco bill — FDA should be encouraging, not maligning the manufacture and sale of electronic cigarettes, and working with manufacturers to assure the highest possible quality control.”

For more information and interviews, contact:

Michael Siegel, MD, MPH
Professor
Department of Community Health Sciences
Boston University School of Public Health
617-638-5167
Email: mbsiegel@bu.edu

Joel L. Nitzkin, MD, MPH, DPA
Chair AAPHP Tobacco Control Task Force
Phone: 504 899 7893 or 800 598 2561
Fax: 504 899 7557
jln-md@mindspring.com
www.aaphp.org

Brad Rodu
Professor of Medicine
Endowed Chair, Tobacco Harm Reduction Research
University of Louisville
Phone: 502-561-7273
Email: brad.rodu@louisville.edu

http://rodutobaccotruth.blogspot.com

Thomas R. Kiklas
Director of Media
inLife LLC
Phone: 949-250-9600 x108
Email: tkiklas@myinlife.com

/Standard Newswire/

Almost all the countries banned smoking in public places. One of these countries is Japan. It has banned smoking from most public places, including many city streets, but one company has given shelter to the decreasing ranks of tobacco smokers, by opening smokers-only cafes.

Today thick cigarette smoke flies through the ‘Cafe Tobacco’ shops in the heart of Tokyo which is filled with office workers and shoppers looking to take a quick puff, a habit increasingly scowled upon in a country long seen as a smokers’ paradise.
Tadashi Horiguchi, a board director of the coffee shop operator Towa Food Service Co, said: “Nowadays smoking is considered an evil. That’s why we want to provide an oasis for smokers”.
Outside, a red sign with a picture of a smoking cigarette attracted more clients, approximately 600 a day.
In such cafes, smokers don’t have to feel guilty because they smoke and they feel freer because they are surrounded by other smokers, all of them aged over 20 as stipulated by a sign outside.
Not everyone, especially non-smokers, is as enthusiastic about the new tobacco-friendly cafes as are smokers. They reported that it is not healthy to extend smoking places.
For example, Yosuke Hagimori, a health ministry official, said that: “Tobacco contains toxic substances and increases health risks”.
However Japan’s smoking rate is on the decline but still higher than in other developed countries, with some 40 percent of men and 13 percent of women lighting up.
Instead many local governments and institutions have taken anti-smoking measures themselves. Central Tokyo districts have prohibited or strongly discouraged smoking on the streets except for designated areas.
Smoking has also been banned in most Tokyo taxis since last year and in railway stations as of earlier this year. Many bars, cafes and restaurants, however, still have smoking sections, to the annoyance of health campaigners.
Japanese law still stipulates the goal of a “healthy development” of the tobacco industry to evolve income and for stable tax revenue.
Cigarettes now carry warning labels, but they remain much cheaper in Japan than in most other developed countries, with a pack of 20 cigarettes selling for about three dollars.
In general smokers-only cafes help protect the health of those around the smokers but would it help smokers?

Some coal miners’ rights to chew tobacco while working deep underground are on the line Wednesday.
That’s when an arbitrator is scheduled to hear a United Mine Workers of America challenge of a new policy that forbids employees of the Deer Creek mine and the Castle Dale preparation plant from having a pinch between their cheek and gum on the job.

The policy became effective July 1 at the Emery County operations by Energy West Mining Co., the unionized coal mining subsidiary of Rocky Mountain Power, at the behest of its parent companies, PacifiCorp and MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co.

“It is a policy consistent across MidAmerican Energy,” said Rocky Mountain Power spokesman Dave Eskelsen. “The company is concerned about the health and safety of its employees. A tobacco-free workplace is healthier and safer for everyone.”

Dave Maggio, the union’s international representative from Price-based District 22, which includes Utah, spit on that argument, while acknowledging that some miners are addicted to the product.

“We have guys dying of black lung [disease]. We have guys inhaling diesel fumes on a daily basis. We have guys who suffer back, knee and ankle injuries up the kazoo,” he said. “But we’ve seen no ill effects from chewing tobacco. None. And I’ve been in this industry 30 years.

“Nobody can point to a guy and say, ‘He missed a shift because of chewing tobacco.’ [Company] time and money could be better spent trying to
Advertisement
alleviate things causing a lot more problems.”

Neither of Utah’s other large coal-mine employers, Arch Coal Inc. nor Murray Energy Corp., have similar prohibitions on smokeless tobacco, which is required to carry labels on its containers that include the warning the product might cause cancer.

The dispute began last December when the company’s director of labor relations informed Deer Creek’s local union president of the tobacco-free policy at all workplaces, effective July 1.

Union officials quickly filed a grievance, contending the policy would violate the collective bargaining agreement covering 276 Deer Creek miners and 17 prep plant workers.

The policy was not a reasonable revision of the agreement, the union said, contending that more than 100 miners — many of whom work eight to 12-hour shifts up to 14 miles underground — are addicted to smokeless tobacco.

Although the policy did make provisions for the remote locations where miners work, designating areas underground where they could chew during breaks and before and after shifts, Maggio dismissed the allowances as impractical.

“Chewing is not like smoking a cigarette,” he said. “You put it in your mouth and keep it all day. It’s not like, ‘Did you take a two-minute chew break?’ That’s not how it works. And there’s just three [designated areas] in the mine, which has 100 miles of tunnel. The odds of making it to one of these is stupid.”

According to court documents, Energy West and the union agreed April 20 to retain arbitrator Fred Butler to hear the matter. The union contends the company pledged not to implement the policy until after Wednesday’s arbitration session in Price, but that on June 18, Energy West officials informed Maggio that corporate higher-ups insisted the policy go into effect July 1.

The union went to federal court, but its efforts to delay policy implementation through a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction were denied.

However, in rejecting the preliminary injunction request, U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball noted that “while Energy West argues that it will succeed at arbitration, the court concludes that the union has sufficiently demonstrated grounds for success on its arguments.”

Kimball ruled against the UMWA motion, in part, because the union could not show that any employees would lose their jobs or face severe discipline before the arbitrator determined whether the policy violated the collective-bargaining agreement.

But he also observed “it is not clear to the court which party will prevail in arbitration … It would be improper for the court to encroach upon the role of the arbitrator,” adding later that if a disciplinary case arises before the arbitrator rules, “the court is willing to revisit the motion.”

© Sltrib

“Business has never been better,” reports Anto Mahroukian, president of JM Tobacco Company, producer of premium cigars and recently, JM’s Hookah tobaccos. According to Mahroukian, “With the economic downturn, everyday cigar smokers are buying three or four value-priced cigars like our JM’s Dominican line, instead of one super-premium cigar.

After they try a few of ours, they tell us and our retailers, ‘Why haven’t I been smoking these all along?’ Our cigars are made of top-quality tobaccos, but their Cuban sandwich bunching … combining long- and short-filler leaves, reduces their price and still delivers a surprisingly opulent smoke.”

The latest product from JM Tobacco is their new JM’s Dominican Honeys line, offered in a 5.5″ x 42 Corona, with a Sumatran wrapper. (Regular JM’s Dominican cigars come in eight sizes and in Sumatran, Connecticut and Maduro wrappers.) Three selections are available, all with popular honey-dipped heads … the Honey, Honey Vanilla, and Honey Rum. Like the regular JM’s Dominican line, the cigars’ heads are pre-cut as a convenience to the smoker. JM’s Dominican Honeys are presented 24 to the box, opposed to the standard 50/box packaging for the JM’s Dominican line. (The latter’s Gordo and Gordo Grande have 24 cigars to the box, due to their 62-ring gauge.) Pricing for JM’s Dominican Honeys follows the company’s philosophy of offering top-quality hand-rolled cigars at value pricing … MSRP is $60 per box of 24, or $2.50 per cigar. Mahroukian says retailers are reporting these new cigars, introduced earlier this year, are already becoming popular with their customers.

Instead of cutting back during the present hard times, JM Tobacco has expanded their factory in Licey, Santiago, Dominican Republic, by 10%, to 15,000 square feet. Mahroukian explains, “The new area will be mainly used for tobacco storage. We can now also ferment leaves there, which gives us extra latitude in our manufacturing process.”

JM Tobacco is showing the new JM’s Dominican Honeys, as well as their other cigar lines and hookah tobacco, at August’s annual tobacco trade show. All products are currently available from the company.

© Examiner