Smoking Ban from 1st July

The UK smoking ban comes into force in all enclosed public places and workplaces in England on 1st July. Although well publicised, these changes go beyond what many employers already do.

Key concepts

• Enclosed and substantially enclosed premises must be smoke free if they are used as a place of work by more than one person:
  • “Enclosed Premises” have a roof or ceiling and except for doors or windows are permanently or temporarily fully enclosed;
  • “Substantially Enclosed Premises” have a roof or a ceiling and an opening in the walls that is less than half of the area of the walls (excluding windows and doors that can be shut);
• Employers who fail to stop people smoking at work will commit an offence punishable by a fine of up to £2,500. If an employee smokes at work an employer will only have a defence if it can show that it took reasonable steps to prevent smoking, did not know or could not reasonably be expected to know that employees were smoking; or can show other grounds why it was reasonable not to fulfil its duty. An employee caught smoking will be liable for a fine of up to £200;
• A5 size signs stating “No smoking. It is against the law to smoke in these premises” and displaying the no smoking sign must be placed at the entrance to all smoke free premises. Failure to display a no-smoking sign in the prescribed form could result in a fine of up to £1,000 for the owner or manager of the premises.

Likely issues for employers

Although the majority of workplaces are already smoke-free (either throughout or in designated areas), the smoking ban may impact on employers in the following ways:

• Any employers who still have enclosed indoor smoking rooms will need to close them by 1 July 2007. Employees who allege they have the right to continue smoking are incorrect. It has long been established under UK employment law that employees do not have any express or implied right to be permitted to smoke at work.
• Company cars (which may be viewed as a workplace) used by more than one person must be smoke free. Company pool cars or company vehicles that regularly carry colleagues as passengers will therefore need to be smoke free from 1 July 2007. A prescribed no smoking sign will need to be displayed in all compartments of such vehicles where people can sit.
• Claims and grievances by non-smokers may increase as a result of the new legislation. If smoking is not effectively eradicated there may be an increase in grievances by workers dissatisfied with working in a smoky environment. Equally an employee who complains about an employer’s failure to comply with the legislation may have made a protected disclosure and will be protected from suffering any detriment and /or dismissal connected with such disclosure.