No Smoking on Premises

seeleyhr

Considering starting a program where there is no smoking on company premises and during work hours,which would include breaks and lunches? Employees are not paid for their lunch times. Has anyone instituted such a program? Can we legally tell them they can't smoke on their unpaid lunch?

Shadowfax

With the possible exceptions of a couple of tobacco raising states, you absolutely can prohibit smoking on premises - even on lunch break. I seem to recall it was an Ohio Co that was first, several years ago, to refuse to hire smokers and to require that existing smoker ee/s had to quit w/i some short period of time. My daughter goes to school in Toledo, and we loved to go there to go out to dinner because all of the restaurants were smokeless. But, last Nov Toledeans overturned that ordinance by referendum, now it's back to smoke filled restaurants.

jmcaa

We just went smoke-free beginning January 1, 2005. What we did was inform employees that our company would institute a Smoke-Free Workplace Policy 6 months before we wanted it to be official. During this 6 months, there would be no discipline handed down, but as of January 1, 2005 anyone breaking the rules would be disciplined.

We sold our policy as a "SMOKE-FREE Workplace" because secondhand smoke is dangerous to everyone (have you ever looked at the warnings that Canada makes tobacco companies put on their cigarettes? You should). Our company did not want to eventually be sued by a non-smoking employee who had to work in a non-safe environment with smokers.

If you put out the information early enough, it gives your employees time to become comfortable with the idea and to get ready for the changes.

We stressed that as a company, we are committed to providing a healthy and safe working environment for all of our employees. Toward this end, we felt the need to be pro-active and institute a smoke-free workplace policy.

Leslie

Is there a place where they have been going outside to smoke? If so, don't know how you're going to make them stop unless you just eliminate smoking. If what Shadowfax says is true, just go that route - make everyone quit and hire only smoke free personnel.

Don D

As far as I know, an employer in any state can prohibit tobacco use (including dip and chew) on their premises and inside their facilities, anytime by anybody whether on lunch break, working, visiting or just stumbling into the building by mistake. We do. I think Shadowfax is referring to an effort by employers to tell people if they smoke they will not be hired or they must quit if they are employed. That can't be done.

seeleyhr

What happens if the employee leaves the premises, smokes and then returns on their unpaid lunch? Would like to stop this also. If they smoke in their cars, they can come in smelling of smoke also. They have been smoking outside for years but on the premises. This would also be stopped.

Whatever

NYC prohibits smoking in buildings. If our ees want to go outside (and today is a really rotten day) to smoke during their breaks or unpaid lunch, they can. A company down the block tried to stop all their ees from smoking during breaks and lunch. So you saw people walking several blocks to sneak in a cigarette. Point being, if someone on the break or unpaid wants to smoke off premises they will...and since you can't stop it, don't try.

Don D

You cannot prohibit people from smoking offsite, no matter what they smell like when they return. You can prohibit the use of tobacco on your property, even in their car, on your property. But, most employers do not go that far.