Should non-smoking employees be given compensation?

I found this news article interesting in light of a recent conversation I had with a friend (we will call her Sara).

My friend Sara was recently complaining to me about several co-workers who are heavy smokers. She said they go outside every 1-2 hours and take a 5-10 minute cigarette break.

Sara said recently another coworker who smokes weed (for “medicinal” reasons) has also started stepping out frequently with the smokers to partake in the breaks.

My friend jokes that she should pick up some sort of “recreational habit” so that she too can enjoy the extra 30-45 minutes of break time a day.

The article below details a company that decided to compensate non-smoking employees by giving them an extra 6 days paid vacation leave. Smoking employees will not be offered the paid leave.

1. Is this incentive discriminatory?

Obviously offering employees a week of extra paid vacation is costly to the company.

2. Do you think it would be fair for a company to inquire about a person’s smoking habits before hiring?

3. Should a company be allowed to prohibit and/or limit smoking breaks during work hours?

Very curious to hear everyone’s thoughts! Keep it civil ✌🏼