It pays to quit smoking for Burger King employee

LEWISBURG - It pays to quit smoking. Ask Sharon Echols, a long time employee of Burger King in Lewisburg.

Like most smokers, she expected to save money and improve her health when she quit smoking in February. Unlike most smokers, Sharon also had an added financial incentive. Her employer offered her a monetary reward for her efforts. After going tobacco free for six months, she received a check for $125. When she crosses her one-year threshold, she´ll receive another $125. That´s Burger King´s Healthy Workforce Initiative-Part 250.

Echols says, "My manager knew I wanted to quit, and actually watched me try several times. When she told me about Healthy Workforce Initiative-Part 250, I decided that now was the time. The Quit and Win! workshop (with Clinical Outcomes Group, Inc) helped me with patches (nicotine replacement patches), provided a coach and together we worked out a plan that was best for me. It feels different this time. I´m off cigarettes forever."

Burger King Director of Operation at AML Development Corporation, Diane Dorner says, "Sharon is the first one in our company to meet the six month goal. We´re so proud of her efforts and hope others will follow her example.

"Currently AML Corporation has a tobacco-free policy in all of its Burger King restaurants," explains Dorner. "We have Healthy Workforce Initiative-Part 250 to help our employees and their families make informed, healthy choices about tobacco use. In addition to helping our workers become tobacco free, it also makes good business sense. A healthy workforce is a more productive workforce. This really creates a win-win situation for AML Development Corporation and its employees. We think it´s so important, we want to share it with the communities we served by offering free Quit and Win! (tobacco cessation) workshops at our restaurants.

AML Development Corporation, a Burger King franchisee with corporate offices in Williamsport, developed Healthy Workforce Initiative-Part 250 specifically for their employees. The "Healthy Workforce Initiative" part of the program promotes a tobacco free lifestyle while providing support and encouragement to quit for those who use tobacco. The "Part 250" because any employee who quits tobacco for one year will receive $250.

Dorner explains, "When we learned that over 90% of current tobacco users started in their teens, AML wanted to do something to get relevant information into the hands of our younger employees encouraging a tobacco-free lifestyle. Healthy Workforce Initiative-Part 250 is included as part of the orientation for every new hire. We also want to provide resources that help all tobacco users quit tobacco. That´s why we partnered with Clinical Outcomes Group, Inc. to offer free cessation services to anyone in our community."

To support the effort to quit smoking, Burger King is hosting free Quit & Win! workshops for their employees, their friends and family and anyone else in the community interested in quitting tobacco. Quit & Win! is a free, how-to-quit workshop where a friendly "coach" will help you work out a plan to quit tobacco use. The workshop will help you decide how and when to quit, how to handle stress, and develop a plan based on your personal smoking habits. Burger King restaurants operated by AML Development Corporation will offer the workshops on site. Anyone interested in quitting tobacco use is encouraged to attend a Quit & Win! workshop. For additional information, please call Clinical Outcomes Group, Inc at 1-800-264-1290 or email at info@COGInc.org