| Father says Springfield’s tobacco sales law cost his daughter a job |
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SPRINGFIELD – John Melton, a 25-year employee of Kraft Foods, says he’s called everyone from Missouri senators to city council members.
“It’s just totally ridiculous,” he said.
He’s referring to the city’s law regulating sales of tobacco products. Melton says his 17-year-old daughter was up for a summer internship at Kraft to help her pay for college. However, because of cigarette vending machines in the plant, Amy Jo Melton can’t work there.
According to the city’s ordinance, anyone under 18 can’t have access to tobacco vending machines.
“I think city council’s got to fix it,” he said. “Everyone was flabbergasted when I brought this to their attention.”
City officials say it’s Kraft’s policy, not the law that kept Amy Jo from getting the internship. The city council passed the tobacco ordinance in January. City officials say they haven’t had problems with other companies complying with the cigarette vending machine restrictions. They point out that federal laws could soon make the same restrictions apply nationwide.
Under the same law, cigarette vendors must put all cigarettes behind the counter so minors cannot shoplift them. That part of the law is still being phased in. City officials suggested three options for the company:
· Use a lockout device on the machines so minors can’t get the cigarettes;
· Take the machines out completely; or,
· Put them in a room that is restricted to adults only.
A Kraft representative told us they have a lot of employees who like to smoke and it’s simply not feasible to move the cigarette vending machines. Nobody would say if the decision is influenced by the fact that Kraft is owned by Phillip Morris, one of the world’s most powerful tobacco companies.
A city council member says Kraft’s decision doesn’t make sense. Councilwoman Teri Hacker questions why a company would choose cigarette vending machines over employing teenagers like Amy Jo.
Melton says he just wants his daughter to have a job.
“I think it needs attention,” he said.
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