Conference turris::scandia

103.0. "Swedish work breaks and smoking" by TLE::SAVAGE (Neil, @Spit Brook) Thu May 29 1986 13:34

           The following exhange was lifted by the moderator from:
         <<< REX::SYS$SYSDEVICE:[NOTES$LIBRARY]NO_SMOKING.NOTE;1 >>>
                       -< Let's stop smoking in Digital >-
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Note 118.1                 How Long Between Smokes?                       1 of 3
REX::MINOW "Martin Minow, DECtalk Engineering"       16 lines  28-MAY-1986 11:25
                             -< Sweden's solution >-
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A few years ago, Sweden passed a "no smoking in the workplace" law.
(I'll try to pick up more information while there on vacation next
month.)  Although the majority of the adult population smoke, the
law proposal received over 90% approval.

The employer was required to provide smoker's lounges for rest
breaks.  In general, people received 5 or 10 minute breaks per
hour (I can't remember which).  The breaks for smokers followed
directly after the non-smoker break, so the room had most of
an hour to clear out before the next break.

The law is several years old.  I haven't seen much grumbling in
the Swedish newspapers I read.

Martin.

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Note 118.2                 How Long Between Smokes?                       2 of 3
NCCSB::SPS                                            4 lines  28-MAY-1986 18:31
                               -< I'm Confused >-
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    You mean workers in Sweden get a 5 or 10 minute break each hour?
    How long is their work day?  Do they still get a lunch hour?
    I *must* have missed something here...
    
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Note 118.3*                How Long Between Smokes?                       3 of 3
REX::MINOW "Martin Minow, DECtalk Engineering"       12 lines  28-MAY-1986 22:28
                           -< break time in Sweden >-
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I believe the break time is for clerical and factory workers.
Professionals and managers would be able to set their own
break time.

The work week is 39� hours.  The minimum vacation is 5 weeks.
(maybe more?)  There are other benefits.  (Disadvantages, too.)

This discussion probably should be continued in the Scandia
notesfile.

Martin.

	Correct me  if  I'm  wrong,  but I've heard of no such law. It's
	entirely  up  to  the  company  to  decide  if  smoking is to be
	allowed.  I never heard of separate coffee breaks, either. There
	is,  though,  a  law  against  smoking  in  public buildings and
	offices.

	I also   doubt  very  much  that  'the  majority  of  the  adult
	population smokes'.

	<PO>

Sorry, I was wrong on that -- I might have been thinking of an
agreement between Statskontoret (the government offices) and
their unions.  (And it might have just been a "pipe" dream.)

I've translated a Swedish government document on smoking in the
the workplace (AFS 1983:10 -- Begr�nsning oav tobaksr�kning)
and posted it in the NO_SMOKING notesfile as note 137.

(Press KP7 to add RAJA::NO_SMOKING to your notebook.)

Martin.