Anyone have a policy or rule for installers smoking?

[Signsfast]

I am looking at hiring an installer who smokes. Nobody in my company smokes, have had smokers in the past. Never installers though. What say you about smoking in your trucks, on your job sites, in front of customers?

[Signworksinc]

I am a smoker myself, i never smoke in the customers face. I will up in the bucket or when they are away from me. My guy smokes also and works the same way. Really by law you cannot smoke on the job or commercial vehicles in Canada, nobody really cares for that law and police do not enforce it. we do our best to keep out of site when smoking.

[alltex]

Smokers pretty much know where and when they can smoke. If you don't want them smoking in your trucks, tell him.

Now if your hiring one of those 3 yr old Chinese kids, who chain smokes on Youtube. All bets are off. But they can get into crawl spaces no one else can.

A lot of my guys smoke. Never been a problem. They smoke in the trucks. But keep them clean daily.

[paul321]

Just tell everyone the rules. No smoking inside my buildings, trucks or on the job site. Period. Kill your self on your time.

I have found that smokers, real smokers spend more time with the cigarette in hand then tools. Smoking is not acceptable in the business and work force today. It does not project a professional apperance for your company when the crew is smoking and then dropping the butts all around.

[HansonSigns]

A few of our guys smoke, but they carry a sealed ashtray (i.e. empty snapple bottle) for the butts. No smoking on jobsites or in the building. A worker worth his salt only smokes on a break (or in the basket a zillion feet in the air) and not while working.

Paul, while I agree with you about not leaving butts around and smoking while working, the kill yourself on your own time comment really stings. Our long time service tech had to retire last October due to terminal lung cancer. He smoked - alot - but also served in Viet Nam. Who's to say how the cancer started?

[Snoochie]

I'll give my two cents.

I don't smoke, never have and never will. I really don't like to be around cigarettes because the smell usually sticks to your clothes and your body. I especially do not like smoke while driving in a service truck. My lungs tend to not like it.

However, having said that, I will die defending your right to smoke, even though it is offensive to me.

For the record, I hate when a technician eats sunflower seeds and gets the shells all over the truck and the jobsite. But again, freedom is a special thing.

If you are an owner or a fellow tech and the smoking gets to you, talk and work it out with the smoker. I find it usually can be worked out in a sensible and cordial manner. The same goes for the sunflower seeds or whatever point of contention arises. Just my opinion......................

Best

[Signsfast]

yea i forgot about the sunflower seeds, one of my installers does that and leave the shells in the cab floor or all over the jobsite he is working at. Its fucking gross and i Have to talk to him about it all the time

[arkmartin]

I only had one guy that smoked but never in the truck. The truck still stunk because of the stench sticking to him. Fortunately, he kicked the habit! My issue is these damn cell phones. I have the best employee in the world. He can figure anything out and can do it all when it comes to a sign shop. But the damn phone is more addictive than the cigs.... He has no idea what a theft device this thing poses. Anyone have a good plan for tip-toeing around a great employee with a disgusting habit like this?

[HansonSigns]

One of our installers smokes, but since the other installer does not, the smoker doesn't smoke around him. Now the cell phone thing - that drives me crazy. We provide cell phones for our installers, and they don't abuse it too much. If you have a no personal calls/texts/emails rule at work, how do you enforce it? In the shop it's easy, but when they are out on the road/at a job site....

[Snoochie]

One of our installers smokes, but since the other installer does not, the smoker doesn't smoke around him. Now the cell phone thing - that drives me crazy. We provide cell phones for our installers, and they don't abuse it too much. If you have a no personal calls/texts/emails rule at work, how do you enforce it? In the shop it's easy, but when they are out on the road/at a job site....

Unfortunately, I think the "Texting" driver is starting to become more dangerous than the "Drunk" driver and only getting worse..........

Best

[alltex]

Sunflower seeds and chewing tobacco....My sunflower seed problem has moved on to better things...Tobacco spitter's....Now that's my pet peeve. Finding spit cups, and seeing spit stains on my shop floor. That'll get you an ass chewing... Also, COFFEE!!! At least 2 times a week, there's a random coffee left in my office. Or strategically placed on a forklift, sign, shear....I don't drink coffee, and despise the smell of it.

[burkeenterprise]

Do you guys actually own your companies and have you for long???

Do you believe that a smoker will NOT smoke in YOUR truck if that is the rule..... The reason the truck stinks is not because smokers are in it it's because as an employee they don't care about YOUR rules. Out of site is out of mind. EVERY smoker I have ever had working for me has broken the no smoking rules to the point that every now and then I have had to fire one. That usually cuts down on the smoking on the job for a short time.

My advise don't hire smokers if you can avoid it (whoops illegal to discriminate so hire them) or accept that things are going to smell bad..... Some guys are well worth the smell though.

[LiteGirl]

Our policy has been simple. No smoking on job sites, when it comes to our office or warehouse you need to walk across the street to the park and do it.

[alltex]

Do you guys actually own your companies and have you for long???

Do you believe that a smoker will NOT smoke in YOUR truck if that is the rule..... The reason the truck stinks is not because smokers are in it it's because as an employee they don't care about YOUR rules. Out of site is out of mind. EVERY smoker I have ever had working for me has broken the no smoking rules to the point that every now and then I have had to fire one. That usually cuts down on the smoking on the job for a short time.

My advise don't hire smokers if you can avoid it (whoops illegal to discriminate so hire them) or accept that things are going to smell bad..... Some guys are well worth the smell though.

Yup, I own my business. I have a lot of employees who smoke. Like I stated earlier. My guys know where and when they can smoke. I don't sweat the small stuff. I have yet to have one customer complain about anyone smoking. 22-23 yrs in the sign business, working for others and owning my own. I've heard about every fictional, and non fictional complaint. I never recall hearing one about smoking. To each his own.