OT: Vaping at work

[aTotal360]

I don't smoke. Never have. Never will.


But me and my business partner just hired a couple new people and they both vape. They have their own offices and we really don't have any sort of vaping policy in place. For the most part they go outside, but it's becoming apparent to me they hit it a couple times a day in the office. I'll get a faint whiff of something that smells like cotton candy at the fairgrounds.


I know zero about it other than it looks like you are hitting a futuristic bong.


Is vaping harmful to others?
Does any work a place with a vaping policy?
What seems to be the standard regarding this?
Should you be allowed to do it in your own office behind close doors?

 

[dorndawg]

I don't know much of anything about vaping either, but I guess if it came up in my office I'd treat it like smoking.

 

[The Peeper]

Friend works @ Univ Med Center in Jackson, they treat it like a tobacco product, not allowed. I may be a hard ***, but I dont know why you would need to let them go take a vape break either

 

[BossDawg78]

I wouldn't see a problem with it. Evidently it's mostly water vapor and dissipates pretty quick. Or that's been my impression seeing people vape indoors. It doesn't linger around like smoke, or rather it doesn't appear to.

 

[Sutterkane]

There's honestly not enough data out there about vaping to make a judgment call on it either way yet. The problem is it's become a major substitution for smokers.

The question here is, if it's harmful to only those who vape or is there a second hand aspect to it. The answer is probably that there's a second hand aspect to it but it's MUCH less of one than regular smoking.

 

[patdog]

I may be a hard ***, but I dont know why you would need to let them go take a vape break either

I used to work at a company that had a deck and a pond in the back. A guy in my department had a cubicle that overlooked the deck and all day long he saw the people going out for their smoke breaks. He used to say he was going to take up smoking, but only when he was at work, just to get the breaks.

 

[aTotal360]

We let people dip, but not smoke. At least with dip you can say you aren't harming others. I'm just wondering what other businesses are doing about vaping. It really doesn't bother me, but it looks shady as hell.

 

[ShrubDog]

If vaping looks shady as hell what the heck does smoking look like?

 

[msugrad2003]

It's your company/business. If you are concerned with it or believe customers might be, put a stop to it

 

[ronpolk]

I think if I were you I'd just look away until someone complained. And someone will complain.

 

[aTotal360]

both shady.

 

[SignalToNoise]

Do you even vape, bro?**

 

[thekimmer]

I hear you on that. Its really absurd that companies will allow a person who is addicted to a drug to take multiple breaks every day without batting an eye but would never allow a person who just wants to relax for 5 or 10 minutes every hour or so.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Vaping is also treated like a tobacco product where I work.

 

[MaroonOldCrow]

I vape in my cubicle as a part of my quit smoking effort. No one minds, and the only question I've ever had about it is when one coworker thought my vape was a small flask. The attitude is "It doesn't smell bad and he's in his cube working, not outside in the smoking area wasting time."

 

[HotMop]

Treat it like tobacco. At one of my facilities that has a smoke free policy you cannot even smoke or vape on the campus grounds. During break people get in their cars and do laps. Have had to let go a few people that opted to vape and smoke inside the facility grounds.

 

[HotMop]

Let me add...

If you do ban it expect a bunch of heavily scented candles to take the place of the vaping. A common practice to mask the smell of vaping products.

 

[Junction John]

*SNIFFFF* ah... I love the smell of patchouli in the mornings.*

at least that's what I used to do. Before vapes.

 

[ShrubDog]

I hear you on that. Its really absurd that companies will allow a person who is addicted to a drug to take multiple breaks every day without batting an eye but would never allow a person who just wants to relax for 5 or 10 minutes every hour or so.

I highly doubt a normal company would only let people who smoke or vape take a break and not anyone else.

 

[aTotal360]

That's sorta where I stand. They aren't going outside to smoke and dragging that awful smell back into the office.

 

[Bdog9090]

There are four ingredients found in your typical vape juice. Propylene Glycol (a main ingredient in asthma inhalers) and/or Vegetable Glycerin (produced by plants and is an ingredient in things such as toothpaste), water, nicotine, and flavoring. The Vegetable Glycerin is to produce the vapor, and the Propylene Glycol is to hold the flavor. There are still a bunch of studies that need to be done to determine long term effects of vaping, but the ingredients aren't a mystery. As such, you can draw some conclusions about it. There are probably not any second hand effects. You typically breath in water vapor, and the flavoring is not harmful. Nicotine can be harmful as it is a vasoconstrictor, but there is typically a very, very small amount of actual nicotine in vape, so unless you are actually living in someone's vape cloud, you're not going to run into any problems with that. Nicotine is really harmful to ingest orally, but not so much so if you inhale it.

[FONT=arial, sans-serif][/FONT]I would imagine that the main problem that people have with vaping is two fold. One, most people don't know much about it, so assume it is the same thing or very similar to smoking. The second part is that most avid vapors are really annoying. Blowing big *** clouds of something, even if it is relatively harmless is annoying no matter who you are. Nobody really wants to smell cotton candy flavoring while trying to have a dinner. I have usually found that the ones that are using vape as a means to quit smoking are typically not the annoying type. But that is just personal experience.

As to a policy, it's your business, so it's up to you. Personally, if they are in an office by themselves, not being obnoxious about it, I would let them. Until there were complaints.

 

[johnson86-1]

I highly doubt a normal company would only let people who smoke or vape take a break and not anyone else.

I don't know of any company that has that official policy, but I know of a few companies that officially have breaks that only the smokers take. I will say if you look at who is taking the breaks, it either hurts their career, or smoking has become rare enough among educated/upwardly mobile people that the ones that still smoke avoid doing it openly because it has become a negative status marker.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

The normal number of smoke breaks was always noticeable as compared to the breaks that I took. Maybe I should have just gone and stood outside every time my smoking co-workers did. It was also very communal in that everyone who smokes goes together ever time.

 

[aTotal360]

Great info. Thanks.

 

[EngDawg]

. ...The second part is that most avid vapors are really annoying. Blowing big *** clouds of something, even if it is relatively harmless is annoying no matter who you are. Nobody really wants to smell cotton candy flavoring while trying to have a dinner...

This. I got behind someone who was "vaping" while I was walking one day. The clouds are huge and smell slightly better than a skunk.

 

[Junction John]

Another question about Vapes that has me puzzled...

When you apply for a permit to sell, do you also have to promise to make up a stupid name for your store? The Vapor's Nest... Darth Vapor... Tarzan, Lord of the Vapes... We have one in Jackson called Planet of the Vapes.

Inquiring, vapor-free minds want to know.

 

[ckDOG]

I thought a car was on fire the other day.

This. I got behind someone who was "vaping" while I was walking one day. The clouds are huge and smell slightly better than a skunk.

Turned out it was a guy blowing vapor out the window. I don't know if the device was normal but It looked like this.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wlmKfuDZVs0

In my non-scientific opinion, looks like cancer to me.

 

[dawgoneyall]

I don't smoke. Never have. Never will.


But me and my business partner just hired a couple new people and they both vape. They have their own offices and we really don't have any sort of vaping policy in place. For the most part they go outside, but it's becoming apparent to me they hit it a couple times a day in the office. I'll get a faint whiff of something that smells like cotton candy at the fairgrounds.


I know zero about it other than it looks like you are hitting a futuristic bong.


Is vaping harmful to others?
Does any work a place with a vaping policy?
What seems to be the standard regarding this?
Should you be allowed to do it in your own office behind close doors?

I have never smoked but what is wrong (other than looking stupid) with Vaping. What? If it stops someone from smoking I just can't figure out the condemnation by the PC crowd.

Chewing gum looks just as bad. Would you ban that?

Some people get upset over stupid stuff too often.

 

[Dawgsnsaints]

As a side...they make cartridges out of substances other than legal leaf. Can't hardly detect the 'D'chee". I felt very "un-hip" when I discovered several people I knew actually went through airport security with e-cigs and the "illicit" substance. Take a puff and the aroma is very faint and gone in an instance.

 

[RocketDawg]

People don't like it mostly because it looks like smoking and therefore isn't PC. However ... smoking is still legal, and probably always will be. Most peoples' reaction to smoking is hyper reaction. Vaping is probably safe, especially regarding second hand effects.

It's sort of amazing to me the number of people on this board, and others, who think smoking marijuana is just fine, getting skunk drunk at ball games and just about anywhere else is just fine, yet smoking and/or vaping is of the devil.

 

[dickiedawg]

I have employees that vape and others that smoke. Some do both.

Give me a vaper over a smoker every single day. Maybe I just have especially considerate vaper, I don't know, but the smell is nearly imperceptible and not at all unpleasant.
Cigarettes, on the other hand, stink. I can't stand the smell. The butts find a way to end up in my parking lot, too (not necessarily from employees).

As for the break aspect of the discussion, I would suspect routine short breaks would increase productivity and morale. Now if it's taking 10 minutes and you're doing it every hour, that's pretty obviously excessive.

 

[Dawgpile]

Is vaping harmful to others? Not according to studies by British researchers (American studies are done via big tobacco)
Does any work a place with a vaping policy? Mine has an "outside" policy but not restricted to smoking areas
What seems to be the standard regarding this? Varies... Some establishments allow it without restriction
Should you be allowed to do it in your own office behind close doors? This would seem reasonable unless others complained

I've been vaping for about 3 years now, and I've seen attitudes change about vaping (because of "cloud chasers") due to people who are inconsiderate about their use. If your people are considerate, and you don't have any other complaints I'd let them slide.

 

[Pars]

I'd make them go vape out by the dumpsters with the rest of the trash