Sheriff Won't Hire Smokers

San Mateo Daily Journal ^ | March 1, 2004 | Dana Yates

[Hot Tabasco]

I like to run 5 miles every morning before 7am.

I did too before shin splints and knee problems set in. Thus I can't blame my discontinuance of 10k's on my pack and a half a day cigarette smoking........

Fortunately I've still got my racquetball, in-line skating and my pack-and-a-half a day smoking..........I'm not going to bed, I'm going to do some chores. LOL!

[Madame Dufarge]

Other Google out the wazoo stuff with pretty much the same conclusion

[dallasgop]

My firm is small , we last hired an employee in 2001. Here is how I handled the smoker screening.

1. I first mention that this is a no smoking office, city reg's require it. Usually the prospective employee will volunteer they do not smoke.
2. If they did not volunteer they are a non smoker then I will escort them out to their car after the interview, we will be chatting about whatever, once at the car I will check it out looking for the usually evidence, full ashtrays, wrappers and/or cartons. For one prospective employee I mentioned that I was thinking of buying a similar car for my son. I asked if I could sit in it, sure was the reply. Once inside I was able to confirm the car is driven by a smoker. The stink gives it away. No second interview for that person.
Since we are a small office of about 15 employees, a employee must be a "good fit" with the rest of the team, we all have a lot of weight to pull to fulfill our obligations to our clients. Our prior experience with smoking employees have demonstrated that they do not fit well with the rest of the team. Their daily ongoing need for their drug detracts from their ability to put in a full days work. Our experience with smokers showed us that they do indeed need more sick days.
We are a smoker free office, it will remain that way. I used to have a sign that said "drugs don't work here". That includes tobacco.

[Madame Dufarge]

I have my own health insurance as I'm sure most smokers do,what the heck are these people talking about?

Well, as far as I can figure, they're thinking that their socialist Utopia is a given, and all their arguments are made from that position.

And they're blindsided when they're contradicted by "dissidents."

How Soviet-Unionish.

[Hot Tabasco]

Just don't ask me to pay for your healthcare

Nor am I, I have private healthcare also! But hey, by your claims, I'm going to die young so what do you have to worry about?

Consider all the Social Security Income I have created but won't be able to take advantage of......... Us smokers are actually your best friends......

[dallasgop]

I said that tobacco users are LESS productive and there is a mountain of evidence to back that up. I have yet to see any study that says they are MORE productive. If you can find such a study please post it. By your own admission you spend about 15 minutes a day getting high, that is 1.25hrs per week or 62.5hrs( 50 work weeks per annum, this allows for 2 weeks vacation) per year of productivity down the drain because of your drug cravings and lack of concern for your own health and well being.

[Madame Dufarge]

Don't hand me your crap that smokers are non-productive because of all the smokers I have ever had the enjoyment of working with they have been more productive than any nico-nazi I have ever come in contact with!!!

Without exception, that's been my experience too.

There's this false scenario being set up by the Nico-Nazis that smokers are skulking around all day, desperately searching out a dark corner to sneak a smoke, while the non-smokers valiantly hold up not only their end, but are burdened by taking on the neglected work of smokers, too.

In the real world, smokers have a smoke on their morning and afternoon breaks and during lunch and are generally (as a proportion of the population) less whiny about everything in general.

[realpatriot71]

You repeatedly imply that she's asking you to pay for her healthcare.

No, I'm speaking in the context of publicly paid jobs. I shouldn't be expected to take care of the consequences of a smoker's bad habit. You want to smoke - fine. If you want to be a cop, don't smoke - or wave your healthcare. I'm not stopping anyone from smoking.

[realpatriot71]

"There are people who strictly deprive themselves of each and every eatable, drinkable and smokeable which has in any way acquired a shady reputation. They pay this price for health. And health is all they get out of it. How strange it is. It is like paying out your whole fortune for a cow that has gone dry."

nice quote - here's another one:

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20   For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."
1 Cor. 6:19,20.

Cigarettes are NOT good for you - the case is closed. A doctor should be concernd with the whole person. Smoking is the single biggest controlable factor affecting health - in other words - if people would just quit smoking their symptoms would recede. The relationship between smoking and emphysema should give any smoker pause - you DON'T get better. Telling people to quit destructive health habits is most definitely in the purview of the physician. You can do whatever you want, but don't expect me to tell you its smart or "ok". Furthermore, if the body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, perhaps we should not selfishly taint our bodies with "things" known to be harmful simply because "it feels good".

[Hot Tabasco]

1. I first mention that this is a no smoking office, city reg's require it. Usually the prospective employee will volunteer they do not smoke.

I will reply that most private businesses don't give a rip if their employees smoke or not just as long as they are productive and they do not upset the status quo. Such status quo means stepping outside for a smoke so as not to inconvenience the non-smokers.

2. If they did not volunteer they are a non smoker then I will escort them out to their car after the interview, we will be chatting about whatever, once at the car I will check it out looking for the usually evidence, full ashtrays, wrappers and/or cartons.

Won't find one shred of evidence in the car I was driving even tho such car belongs to a smoker.

For one prospective employee I mentioned that I was thinking of buying a similar car for my son. I asked if I could sit in it, sure was the reply. Once inside I was able to confirm the car is driven by a smoker. The stink gives it away. No second interview for that person.

Thanks for your keen insight, your anti-smoking OBSESSION just cost you perhaps the best employee you ever had simply because he was driving his girlfriend's car.......

For what it's worth, your observations are self explanatory as to why you are only 15 employees large.......

I used to have a sign that said "drugs don't work here". That includes tobacco.

With only a workforce of 15, I would surmise that you are merely a "supplier" of sorts. Funny how one's intolerances are suddenly overlooked when confronted with the prospect of profits.

I once was the purchasing Mgr. of one of our plants and I used to visit the little kingdoms of you psuedo wannabe's and my greatest pleasure was to ask for an ashtray after viewing a "no-smoking" sign. Funny how you anal-retentive nico-nazi's would bend over backwards to accomodate my smoking while at the same time telling your employees they could not smoke. LOL!

[Madame Dufarge]

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 1 Cor. 6:19,20.

Telling people to quit destructive health habits is most definitely in the purview of the physician

You're a mechanic, highly paid and educated, but still a mechanic.

Someone comes to you with a problem, you're professionally obligated to tell them what caused the problem. And if you can't fix it because of some action on their part, that's their problem. You've discharged your duty.

Your injecting your religious or personal philosophy into what should an arm's length, professional and science-based relationship diminishes your authority.

[Gabz]

There has been a steady decline and then a levelling of the rate of smokers and smoking for the past 30 years. Blaming smoking for increased rates of anything is pure speculation.

My comment regarding kids and asthma is not beside the point - it is right inline with your point about increased health care costs related to smoking. It doesn't matter to the anti-smoker cartel that SHS exposure does not cause asthma they will continue to blame it for asthma. Well exposure to SHS may cause an asthma attack, but it sure as heck doesn't cause the asthma to begin with, and I'm sick and bloody tired of paying for the health care of these kids.

You don't want to pay the alleged costs of smokers and I don't want to pay the definite costs of micromanaging people that have destroyed the immune systems of their children.

[Pahuanui]

If you ask me whether or not I smoke during the interview process, you will answer to the EEOC if I am not hired.

Not if you're applying for a position as an LEO.

If you ask me whether or not I drink, you will answer to the EEOC if I am not hired.

Not if you're applying for a position as an LEO.

If you ask me about my sexual preferences during the interview you will answer to the EEOC if I am not hired.

This is, at least in CA, correct.

[Madame Dufarge]

You don't want to pay the alleged costs of smokers and I don't want to pay the definite costs of micromanaging people that have destroyed the immune systems of their children.

Agree 100%.

[Gabz]

Bravo!!!!!!

[Hot Tabasco]

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 1 Cor. 6:19,20. Cigarettes are NOT good for you - the case is closed.

No it is not closed! If you stand by your posted scripture then lets hear you decry the consumption of alcohol, the consumption of beef and the increasing numbers of atmospheric poluting SUV's......For that matter the increasing numbers of automobiles in general!

I love it when you bible quoting thumpers attempt to impose your scriptures on those who do not conform to your own twisted ideals of what the rest of us should or shouldn't do as quoted by "realpatriot71"

[Gabz]

Great points and great info.

Thanks.

[Hot Tabasco]

Not if you're applying for a position as an LEO.

Care to offer an explanation why?

[dallasgop]

Hot Tabasco your so called insights are not very compelling, we are a small professional services firm by choice. It is far easier and still very profitable to small and nimble. Perhaps my obsession did cost me a good employee, we will never know. What I do know is that the ones I have now are great, so it really does not matter if I've lost one or two in the screening process. That same process insures we have the best, the brightest and the highest caliber employee. Our revenue per employee is way above the national average for similar firms in our industry. All of our partners and employees are paid well above the national average for our industry.
There are 2 major requirements to work here, a 4 year degree for our support employees,a master's degree with certification for our partners and a drug\tobacco free lifestyle. I have a feeling you cannot meet any of the requirements. Good luck with your call center job.

[Gabz]

Don't hand me your crap that smokers are non-productive because of all the smokers I have ever had the enjoyment of working with they have been more productive than any nico-nazi I have ever come in contact with!!!

I love your rant. 99 out of 100 times you will find that a smoker who can smoke at his/her desk is going to be more functional and more focused on the task at hand then the non-smoker who needs to go to the coffee machine or the soda machine or vending machine every 15 or 20 minutes.

Some years ago I worked in a small law firm. 2 of the 3 of us were smokers. One day the lawyer we worked for decided to can smoking in the office and required the 2 of us who smoked to go out back to have a cigarette. That policy lasted only 1 week.

He didn't 86 the no-smoking policy because we were taking too mush time on smoke breaks, he canned it because he relaized that we, the smokers, were away from our desks far less then the one non-smoker in the office. After the non-smoking experiment, the non-smoker in the office was put on notice to curb her personal phone calls and find more reliable afterschool child care or find a new job.