Create a Tobacco-Free Zone at a Workplace
Most workplaces have prohibited tobacco use indoors since it was discovered that smoking is hazardous to your health. This led to smokers having to go outside to get their nicotine fix. Some workplaces have a designated smoking area, while others may allow smokers to smoke in front of the entrance door. This causes a concern for secondhand smoke, which can be dangerous to the health of bystanders.
Instructions
1. Do your homework. Look at the current tobacco use policy for your workplace and see if it is being observed as written and enforced. Find out what percentage of staff at your workplace use tobacco products. If you are having a hard time getting access to that information, try to get an estimate by observing how many persons go out for smoke breaks during the day. Compare the tobacco use rates of your workplace with your state's tobacco use rates. If your workplace has a union, check to see what the stance of the union is on this issue. Find out if a workplace similar to yours has successfully implemented a tobacco-free zone.
2. Present a proposal to the leadership at your workplace. Depending upon where you fall in the organizational chart, you may have to route this up through several persons. Be sure to have your facts together about how tobacco use affects your work environment. If you are a healthcare facility, it may help to include how tobacco use among staff contradicts the mission of your workplace. Include the data that you gathered in Step 1 in your proposal. Be sure you have a plan with several alternatives available on how this can be implemented at your workplace.
3. With the approval of leadership, get a working group together to help you carry out this process. Recruit a diverse team of persons ranging from those at lower levels to management. Try to get tobacco users to join your working group so that their voice will be heard. Assign duties for each person.
4. Do not leave your smokers out in the cold. Get a qualified professional to come in and teach tobacco cessation classes at your workplace. Pay for the classes and the cost of tobacco cessation medications. Offer incentives for those that quit tobacco. It can be in the form of a day off, special recognition, or reduced health care premiums. In addition, give tobacco users ample time to adjust to the policy change. Be sure that they are aware of any repercussions that may occur with violating the tobacco free zone policy.
5. Inform the public. You will need signs stating that your workplace is a tobacco-free zone. You may want to do a press release, depending on how large your workplace is and the number of persons you serve in the community.
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