Approached for a job in a tobacco company

[ApuskiMcClusky]

I'm posting this here as I have no desire to do an AIBU!

I have just been approached about a job that would be perfect for me, apart from the fact that it is for a tobacco company. Arguments for - I'm only doing a temporary job at the moment, and this would be permanent; it would be a promotion but close enough to what I've done before to be realistic; and it's really close to home, compared to the hour each way commute I have at the moment.

But - it's a tobacco company. I can't imagine the ultimate purpose of my job being to sell more cigarettes to people in developing countries. At the moment, my instinct is to say I'm not interested, even though the same kind of role is unlikely to crop up this close to home.

Would be interested in others' views!

In theory, the convenience would certainly seem better.... BUT I personally could not reconcile myself to working for a tobacco company. I couldnt live with it and it would be a deal-breaker for me.

If you did take it, when anyone asked you where you worked you'd be constantly trying to justify your choice to people, and probably getting flack for it. And it's really one of those inductries where there simply are no redeeming sides to it.

industries

I wouldn't do it.

I couldn't either.

Unless I had to in order to feed and clothe my family. But for a shorter commute, more money... Nope couldn't do it.

Thanks for your thoughts - interesting that everyone agrees. The only worry is if my temporary job comes to an end and I can't find another - but I still don't think I can do it. I'm trying to imagine explaining what mummy does to my 4yo, and I can't think how I could.

It would look pretty rubbish on your cv in years to come as well :p

On a slightly tangential note, a friend once went to interview someone senior at a tobacco firm for a trade magazine. He said it was a bizarre parallel world where it was positively encouraged to smoke in offices and corridors (this was pre-smoking ban) and they had bowls of cigs to help yourself from in the staff canteen.

Anyway... No, I would never work for a tobacco firm, just as I wouldn't an arms firm. Their business is in causing the deaths of as many people as possible.

I wouldn't do it, except in extreme circumstances - DC going hungry if I don't take this job, for example.

Only you can decide if your circumstances are so dire that you feel comfortable with the choice to sell addictive poison to people.

You'll get a lot less traffic in here OP. It might be worth reposting in AIBU if you want to get a wider range of opinions.

Personally I wouldn't do it.

I don't think that I could do it either. You could always do it for a trial period, say 6 months, and use that period to look for something else.

A difficult one. How about asking if there is any chance of your contract being extended, or a permanent role where you are?

Thanks all. I guess if I was out of work right now I'd have to consider it more carefully (I was out of work for 8 months before I got this contract), but I don't think I can abandon ethics on only the possibility of me being out of work after my current contract runs out.

My current temp role is unlikely to become permanent, I just don't fit into the structure, but the temp contract might be extended.

I'm usually a lurker, but thought that I had to post on this one as someone who worked for a tobacco company a few years ago.

I'm very much anti-smoking, never smoked, never will, find it absolutely vile. For all the reasons already mentioned by other posters, I hesitated when I saw the job advertisement even though the job description and other factors were perfect for me.

BUT, if you think it through, there are.lots of industries that are similarly 'bad' as tobacco companies (e.g. food companies that try to sell very unhealthy food by heavy marketing, often targeting children, implying nutritional value were there is none or even the opposite, thereby disregarding evidence of negative health effects of certain foods). So, if you think it through, you'd have to avoid a wide range of industries.

The other thing is, the pay at tobacco companies tends to be very good. I don't know about your specific offer, OP, but I'd have imagined that you would have got a good offer which is why you consider taking it despite your reservations?

And then again, I think it depends on what kind of role we are talking about. If you were going to work in marketing, acively promoting those products, I too wouldn't want to do it. But if you're talking about work in a department that isn't that heavily involved in the product content and marketing (e.g. distribution, accounting, legal) then I don't see an ethical dilemma in your work content. It would be pretty much the same as working for any other kind of company.

I wouldn't worry about the effect on your cv that was mentioned by another poster, since it is, after all, just a job. If it makes sense career wise, I don't think that any recruiter later on will view it negatively. Curious about your motivation/thinking they might be, but it shouldn't affect your future job perspectives negatively.

Heh, our company would most certainly view it in a very dim light.

I wouldn't do it.

I did think about the marketing versus the other aspects angle. And whilst marketing is directly promoting the product, nevertheless the goal of everyone in the company will be to maximise profitability, often by increasing sales. So the distribution/operational staff will be optimising the way that the product gets to the target market, accounting/finance staff may be analysing the optimum way to sell to people and so on. Yes, the marketing and sales departments are the most visible in terms of selling a potentially lethal product, but the aim of the whole company will be to support this process.

Étude makes a very strong case IMO! DP works in the tobacco industry! You have to do what you think is right, temp vs permanent I know what I would do in this economic climate!

I would say if you dont agree with it don't do it if you can afford not to.

It's a very personal choice. I wouldn't do it. I think it is in a whole different league from working for a confectionary company. For me, it is more akin to working in the arms trade.

Mardybra, yes I agree with you about the ultimate goal of everyone being the profitability of the company. And I understand if that is offputting to a lot of people. As I said, I'm very much anti-smoking myself.

However, I'm also against environmental pollution, noise pollution, unfair distribution of wealth, consumerism, etc. If I were to be consequent, there wouldn't be many places left I could work at...

Yes I can see what you are saying about the ethics of a range of companies BUT tobacco is a product which is highly addictive and will ultimately kill large proportion of its consumers. Yes, there are a whole range of other unethical products and services, but if we're looking at a scale of ethics, I would say that tobacco sits fairly high on the negative side - slightly less than arms sales, around the same level of narcotic drugs sales and definitely less harmful than peddling chocolate or causing a bit of noise pollution imho.

It is very much a continuum though. I don't think confectionary, for example, is comparable, as it is less addictive and most consumers can enjoy it without it being detrimental to their health. I don't know if I could work for an alcoholic drinks manufacturer even though I am a drinker. But I am certain that I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I felt that I was promoting tobacco.

OP. I also think you are shying away from the full arguments but not posting in AIBU or a high traffic area. If you are genuinely convinced it is a good idea why not open it up to the MN jury?

Etude, thanks for your input - it's helpful to see the other side. I've concluded that it isn't for me - for me to be motivated at work, I have to buy into what the company are doing at some level, and I can't see how that could happen here, even in a supporting functions role. The comparison with other industries is interesting, especially as I used to work for a company that created pollution as an inevitable side effect, but there the overall purpose of the company felt positive (to me at least).

Mardy, I think it's an interesting discussion and I agree it would get more response in AIBU, but the only way people could work out if I was or not would be to know more about my circumstances, which I don't really want to get into.

Long term I wonder how it would look on a CV too and what future employers would think about you.

I wouldn't do it.

Glad to hear you've come to a decision that suta you OP. good uck with finding a permanent position.