Indoor Air Quality Regulations and Productivity
This project will provide statistical evidence on the magnitude of three labor productivity costs associated with poor indoor air quality: (1) increases in particular types of morbidity and mortality; (2) reductions in individual productivity, as measured by employee wages; and (3) increases in labor force turnover. It will do so by examining the effects of state and local regulations of one particular indoor air pollutant: environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). The study will focus on ETS for several reasons: it is the IAQ problem best understood by the general public; it has consequences for both health and productivity (USEPA, 1994); and it has been the subject of a wide range of state and local regulations. However, the cost estimates obtained would be representative of those for other pollutants with similar health impacts and unpleasantness.