About Me

My photo
Delta, British Columbia, Canada
I took very early retirement from teaching in '06 and did some traveling in Europe and the UK before settling down to do some private tutoring. As a voracious reader, I have many books waiting in line for me to read. Tell me I shouldn't read something, and I will. I'm a happy, optimistic person and I love to travel and through that believe that life can be a continuous learning experience. I'm looking forward to traveling more some day. I enjoy walking, cycling, water aerobics & and sports like tennis, volleyball, and fastpitch/baseball. I'm just getting into photography as a hobby and I'm enjoying learning all the bits and bobs of my digital camera. My family is everything to me and I'm delighted to be the mother of two girls and the Gramma of a boy and a girl. I may be a Gramma, but I'm at heart just a girl who wants to have fun.

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Have a cigarette - please!

I found the following story on page C2 of today's Vancouver Sun. It reads as follows:

The owner of a small German computer company fired three non-smoking workers because they were threatening to disturb the peace after they requested a smoke-free environment.

The manager of the 10-person IT company in Buesum, named Thomas J., told the Hamburger Morgenpost newspaper he had fired the trio because their non-smoking was causing disruptions.

Germany introduced non-smoking rules in pubs and restaurants on Jan. 1, but Germans working in small offices are still allowed to smoke.

"I can't be bothered with troublemakers," Thomas was quoted as saying. "We're on the phone all the time and it's just easier to work while smoking. Everyone picks on smokers these days. It's time for revenge. I'm only going to hire smokers from now on."

I actually laughed out loud!

4 comments:

Welshcakes Limoncello said...

Me, too! What era is this man living in?!

the walking man said...

I am 53, have been smoking since i was 7, I applaud this man for his right to run his company the way he wants.

I am courteous, don't smoke around non smokers and will go outside if there is no smoking but there has to be a balance somewhere that doesn't border on smoker harassment.

We know the facts and people can think of us as weak willed but the simple truth of the matter if we wanted to stop the unfair taxes alone would do it.

There are commercial "smoke eaters that can keep a room free of cigarette smoke, but oh no no one will put one in during a new construction so they can hang that smoke free environment. I just hope they like picking up the butts outside the door, because a lot of places now don't even provide an outside container.

Peace

mark

Anonymous said...

We've had no smoking in public places for several months in the UK. It's wonderful to eat a meal in a restaurant without someone else imposing their habit on you and your food.

However, I am dismayed by the apparent onus on employers, pub and restaurant owners, hospitals even!, to provide a smoking area. This is often a huge awning with patio heaters, tables & chairs in the garden or on the frontage of the building.

So smokers are still in our faces!

Sorry Mark, smoke by all means, but not over my space.

Leslie: said...

Hey Shirl, we now have a law prohibiting smoking within (I think) 500 meters of the doorway to a public place. It was because smokers would hover at the doors and everyone had to walk right through the heavily smoky area to get in and out. It's so much nicer now!