Smoking — rights and needs

It is increasingly common these days for smoking to be banned either completely or in designated areas. On public transport, in restaurants and the cinema the unpleasant and uncomfortable effects of smoking are often no longer tolerated. These restrictions are, however, much less in evidence where people spend the bulk of their time — at their workplace. In most organisations it is recognised that a total ban would be heavy‐handed and potentially disruptive. Recent developments show, however, that non‐smokers are becoming increasingly assertive in their demands for smoking control. Facilities managers, with their colleagues in the personnel department, will have to respond so that the right of non‐smokers to a pollution‐free working environment can be reconciled with the needs of smokers to indulge their addiction.