SAMPLE WORKPLACE SMOKEFREE POLICY [NAME OF ORGANISATION] Effective from [date] 1. INTRODUCTION

Transcription

1 SAMPLE WORKPLACE SMOKEFREE POLICY [NAME OF ORGANISATION] Effective from [date] 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 [Company name] is fully committed to ensuring the health, safety and welfare of employees/ visitors/ clients/ students [delete or add as appropriate] and anyone else using the Company premises. The policy seeks to ensure that all employees have the right to work in an environment free of tobacco smoke. The policy is part of the Company s general Health and Safety policy. 1.2 Smoking is the leading cause of preventable disease and premature death in the UK, accounting for 81,400 deaths in England in In addition, over 12,000 deaths each year among people over 20 years old, are estimated to be attributable to exposure to second hand smoke The smokefree legislation (Health Act 2006), effective from 1 July 2007, prohibits smoking in virtually all enclosed or substantially enclosed work and public places, as well as work vehicles. The owners or managers of Company premises are required, by law, to ensure that no-one smokes where it is against the law to do so. 1.4 The Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) places a duty on employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practical, the health, safety and welfare of staff, customers and visitors. This includes considering exposure to second-hand smoke. 1.5 The evidence that second hand smoke exposure is dangerous to health is well established. Second hand smoke causes acute irritation of the respiratory tract and can trigger or aggravate asthma attacks. It can increase the risk of potentially fatal conditions such as lung cancer and heart disease by around 25% 2. Therefore, providing a working environment free of second hand smoke is of paramount importance and a legal requirement. 2. SCOPE 2.1 The Smokefree policy applies to all present in or on any of the Company s grounds and premises. This includes staff/ customers/ visitors/ students [delete or add as appropriate] and anyone else using the Company premises. A list of Company premises can be found in Appendix 1. 1 Healthy Lives Healthy People: A Tobacco Control Plan for England. Department of Health March Secondhand smoke: Review of evidence since Scientific Committee on Tobacco and Health (SCOTH), November 2004: p.4.

2 2.2 The policy also applies to anyone travelling in Company owned or operated vehicles. 2.3 [Company name] requires all independent contractors to comply with the guiding principles of this policy. 3. POLICY PRINCIPLES 3.1 All internal and external areas of [company name] premises and Company vehicles are smokefree areas. No-one is permitted to smoke anywhere in the Company premises and vehicles. 3.2 Staff must not be seen smoking within X meters [adapt as appropriate] of the Company premises and are not allowed to smoke when in uniform (including identity badges, Company logos etc). 3.3 Unscheduled breaks from work to smoke are not permitted. Staff are only permitted to smoke outside the Company premises and only during their scheduled breaks, provided that they are not in uniform. 3.4 Line managers are responsible for areas under their functional control and are expected to lead by example and to recognise their duty of care to staff under the Health & Safety at Work Act No manager, at any level, can give permission for staff to leave the workplace during working hours for the purpose of smoking. 3.5 The selling, storing and dealing in any way of illegal cigarettes and tobacco on Company premises will not be tolerated. [Company name] will fully co-operate with law enforcement agencies, such as HM Revenue and Customs, in their investigations. Any such illegal activity will be considered gross misconduct and will result in appropriate disciplinary action. 4. SUPPORT FOR SMOKERS It is acknowledged that smoking is an addiction and individuals may not wish to, or be unable to quit. The Policy endorses the principle that whether people smoke or not is a matter of personal choice; but where they smoke is not. 4.1 EMPLOYEES It is recognised that the Smokefree policy will impact on smokers working lives. For this reason, [company name] is committed to providing support to smokers who want to quit Managers have a responsibility to inform employees, in conjunction with Human Resources, Health and Safety, and Occupational Health departments of options for advice and support to stop smoking, which are as follows: Smokers who want to quit may be signposted to local stop smoking services. Information on local services is available at freephone

3 Smokers who want to quit but do not wish to use the Islington NHS Stop Smoking Service, should discuss this with their GP and/or get information from the national NHS Smokefree helpline , or online at [name of company] will run a number of stop smoking clinics each year for staff. These will be advertised through staff communication channels. Contact [name of role/ department] [contact details] for details Smokers will be given up to five [or other as applicable] hours off work [per year/other], without loss of pay, to attend NHS/ in-house clinics providing advice and support to stop smoking. This must be requested in writing from their line manager. The staff member will need to provide a confirmation of attendance from the clinic. Without this confirmation the absence will be treated as unauthorised STUDENTS/ CLIENTS/ PATIENTS/ RESIDENTS [add/ delete as appropriate] [Company name] recognises that students/ clients/ patients/ residents [add/delete as appropriate] who wish to stop smoking may face difficulties and is committed to providing appropriate support Students/ clients/ patients/ residents [add/ delete as appropriate] will be offered brief stop smoking advice by [designated department if applicable], and where appropriate be referred to the Islington NHS Stop Smoking Service (freephone ). Smokers who want to quit but do not wish to use the Islington NHS Stop Smoking Service, should discuss this with their GP and/or get information from the national NHS Smokefree helpline , or online at [Company name] will organise regular workshops/ events/ health days [add/ delete as appropriate] to provide information about the negative impact of smoking for smokers and their families and about local stop smoking services. 5. COMMUNICATION 5.1 Recruitment literature will advise potential applicants that the Company operates a Smokefree policy and will include the following: Smoking is not permitted in or on any of the Company s grounds or premises or in any Company owned or operated vehicle. Applicants should be aware that it will not be possible to smoke during working hours. All new staff will be given a copy of this policy during induction. 5.2 All Company printed and online documentation (i.e. training packs, websites/ other as appropriate) will give mention to the policy. 5.3 Visitors, temporary and contracted staff/ other [as appropriate] are expected to abide by the terms of this policy. They will be informed of this policy by reception staff/ duty manager/ other [add/ delete as appropriate]. 5.4 Up-to-date No Smoking signs and notices will be displayed widely throughout Company premises, as required by law.

4 5.5 Information will be regularly communicated to staff via staff newsletter/ staff bulletin/ staff area notice boards/ intranet/ other [add/ delete as appropriate]. A notice to staff outlining the principles and benefits of the policy will be disseminated (Appendix 3). 5.6 All Students/ clients/ patients/ residents [add/ delete as appropriate] will be informed of this policy as part of their induction/ other [add/ delete as appropriate]. 6. ENFORCEMENT OF THE POLICY 6.1 Responsibility for implementing this policy rests with senior managers/ senior management team/ the Board [delete as applicable], who are also accountable in law to ensure that no smoking takes place in Company premises and vehicles. 6.2 Whilst the aim of the policy is to promote a co-operative and constructive way of addressing the health and safety and wellbeing of everyone, all staff need to be aware that a wilful or irresponsible disregard of the policy may lead to the initiation of the disciplinary policy and procedures. 6.3 Failure of staff to comply with the policy will be subject to the same procedures applicable for any breach of Company regulations. Managers have a number of options ranging from advice, formal warning and disciplinary procedures. Appendix 2 details the procedures applicable for breaching the Smokefree policy. 6.4 If members of staff believe the policy is not being adhered to and that the relevant managers fail to address this effectively, they can report this in confidence to the Health & Safety Manager/ other [as applicable]. 6.5 Contractors/ visitors/ customers/ students/ clients/ residents [add/ delete as appropriate] who do not comply with the policy may be asked by management/ security/ other staff to leave the Company premises. 7. IMPLEMENTATION 7.1 The Chief Executive is responsible for ensuring that this policy is fully supported by all staff and that there are sufficient resources available to enable its full implementation. 7.2 Senior managers have responsibility for implementing this policy by ensuring that staff teams who report to them fully comply with this policy. 7.3 All line managers have responsibility for fully supporting staff who wish to stop smoking, by providing adequate time during normal working hours for them to attend an NHS stop smoking clinic. This includes the provision of adequate cover, so that Company business continues uninterrupted and that unreasonable demands are not placed on other staff members workload. Managers should be aware that staff may require more than one attempt at quitting before they are successful.

5 7.4 All managers are responsible for fully supporting staff who bring this policy to the attention of any person in breach of it. This may include reinforcing the no smoking message and intervening in situations that become difficult for the staff member to handle. 7.5 X weeks notice [adapt as appropriate] will be given of the introduction of this policy. 8. MONITORING AND REVIEW 8.1 Responsibility for monitoring and reviewing this policy rests with senior managers/ other [as applicable]. A review of the policy will be conducted annually. Staff-side/ trade union and health and safety representatives will be consulted over the results of the monitoring and review. 8.2 The policy will be reviewed as appropriate to reflect changes in smokefree legislation. 9. CHANGES TO THE POLICY 9.1 Two [or other] weeks notice will be given of any changes made to the policy. Staff-side/ trade union and health and safety representatives will be consulted in good time about any proposed changes. APPENDIX 1 [List of Company premises with addresses] APPENDIX 2 [Adapt company policy for breach of other regulations to smoking. It is generally advisable to have a staged approach to enforcement, e.g. first verbal warning, then written warning, and then disciplinary procedure inititation.]

6 APPENDIX 3 NOTICE TO STAFF: SMOKEFREE POLICY 1. This notice is to inform all staff that as of [date], [company name] will be a smokefree establishment. 2. All members of staff and anyone else using the Company premises will be expected to comply with this policy. 3. A full copy of [company name] Smokefree Policy is available [complete as appropriate] What does the Smokefree Policy mean for staff who smoke? Staff, contractors, and anyone else using Company premises will not be permitted to smoke anywhere within the buildings or external grounds. Smoking will not be permitted in Company-owned or operated vehicles. Any manager, regardless of grade or position, cannot give permission to another member of staff to smoke within the Company premises or grounds, or take an unscheduled break and leave the premises to smoke. There will not be a designated smoking area. Staff will only be able to smoke (provided they are not in uniform), by leaving the Company premises during their scheduled breaks only. Staff must not be seen smoking within X meters [adapt as appropriate] of the Company premises/ entrances. Staff who wish to stop smoking, will be supported by their line manager and Occupational Health department to quit, including being given protected time to attend a NHS/ or in-house [if applicable] stop smoking clinic. The consequences for staff wilfully and irresponsibly breaching this policy will be serious, including disciplinary action, where appropriate. What does the Smokefree Policy mean for staff who don t smoke? Staff will not be away from their places of work, due to unscheduled breaks, leaving their colleagues/ teams unsupported. Staff will not be subject to the health risks of second-hand smoke, when entering or leaving the workplace, when working or taking a break in the Company grounds or when using a Company vehicle. What are the benefits of a Smokefree environment for everyone? Less impact on staff and customers/ service users/ clients/ students [add/ delete as appropriate] due to staff sickness from smoking-related illnesses Improved customer/ service user/ client/ student [add/ delete as appropriate] experience when using Company premises A healthier place to work A healthier workforce