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#1 Posted : 22 October 2003 23:33:00(UTC)
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Posted By Richard2003 I am wondering if there are any guidelines on smoking. Is the employer allowed to stop smoking inside and we have been told that we have asked to smoke ouside in the cold even when it is our breaktimes. We used 2 smoke in the coservatury. I work in a residential home I would like to know are they allowed to do this. It has been said to us do u have 2 smoke in work at any time.
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#2 Posted : 23 October 2003 08:33:00(UTC)
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Posted By Sean Fraser The Workplace Health Safety and Welfare Regs state that the employer has a duty to provide suitable and sufficient rest rooms where "rest rooms and rest areas ... include suitable arrangements to protect non-smokers from discomfort by tobacco smoke". Clever wording - it cannot discriminate against people who are indulging in what continues to be a legal activity, so it worded it differently to have the same effect. It all depends on your organisation and how it views smoking, especially if smokers are in the senior management positions. Most organsiations today operate no smoking policies, and this is predominant in the health care industry. If the employer doesn't have one but wishes to introduce it, it is strongly recommended that it goes through an employee consultation process and implements the resultant policies with a high awareness campaign - it should not just ban, it needs to consider other health issues of moving smokers on (outside) and ensuring their health is not endangered (i.e. providing suitably protected areas) and also providing support for those who may now wish to give up. There is nothing to stop an employer from implementing the no smoking policy - but if they don't follow the recommendations above they will be storing up trouble for later. HSE info can be found on: http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/ohindex.htm Smoking info (including establishment of no-smoking policies at work) can be found on the following: http://www.ash.org.uk/ http://www.health-promotions.com/ http://www.hebs.scot.nhs...topics/smoking/index.htm Hope this helps.
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#3 Posted : 23 October 2003 10:18:00(UTC)
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Posted By AlanB I think Sean covered it all there. There is nothing stopping the employer banning smoking at the workplace if it is deemed necessary. There is no direct requirement for the employer to provide a suitable area for smokers, although good practie would suggest they do so, unless there is another reason for not providing a smoking area (such as the workplace being an oil refinery!). Additionally, the HSE is currently in the process of passing legislation to prohibit smoking at any workplace. I believe this is in the pipeline for 2004??? Alan
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