BRUSSELS – Companies are to be given the right to require their employees to work longer if they stop for smoking breaks.

From 1 April, Belgian businesses will have to decide if smoking breaks are included within working hours or not.

Some companies already require smokers to work for 15 minutes longer at the end of the day to make up for lost time.

All workplaces will become no-smoking zones from 1 January 2006.

[Copyright Expatica 2005]

Subject: Belgian news