I just wanted to commend Wayne Bertsch, cartoonist of the strip “Gadfly,” for depicting the harsh reality for all bar workers in Indianapolis (Dispatch, March 8-15).

Yes, most of the city is smoke-free, which is great for many people, though we are still leaving bartenders across the city to breathe the many harmful chemicals in secondhand smoke. Bar workers are exposed to secondhand smoke at a rate of 300 to 600 percent higher than other workers in smoke-filled workplaces, thus increasing their chances of being diagnosed with lung cancer, chronic asthma, heart disease and many other negative side effects.

Hopefully, the city of Indianapolis will become a completely smoke-free city in the future, allowing bar workers the luxury that the rest of us can now enjoy.