Policy on Smoking in the Cab?

I'm gonna kick in my nickel in this thread. The company shouldn't team up, or even slipseat drivers who are smoking/non-smokers. Don't get mad at the guy who doesn't want you to smoke in the truck, it's the company's fault, not his. Infact it's illegal to force a non-smoker to drive a unit that has been driven by a smoker! Well, in California it is anyway.

It sucks, but I can't be around heavy smokers anymore, I get plain sick to my stomch and want to vomit. It used to never really bug that much until I was around it at work all the time for a year and then I got really ill. It sucks.

 

well look at it this way...........

if your state laws say you can carry a conceald weapon, but you you're driving through a state that forbids weapons, and you get stopped, you are breaking that state's law.

if your state has a speed limit of 75 mph, and you drive through ohio doing 75, i think you'd be breaking the laws there too...........right........??

we will never know every state's local, city, town, village laws, and no one can ever expect us to know them either, but ignorance will not fly by any judge when you stand before him/her. i'm sure "no smoking signs/billboards" will be posted along many highways/bi-ways to inform us about some of the more pertinant laws we need to adhere to.

and by the way, gun laws are plainly posted along many highways in Massachuesetts, as well as radar detector law signs are posted in Virginia.................so, signs ARE POSTED.................

 

Now that sounds like an intelligent, adult resolution to this situation! It is no wonder children act the way they do nowadays!

 

We have a no smoking in the workplace law here, and this applies to company vehicles. Of course, everyone says that nobody is going to pull a truck over and ticket the guy for smoking. Well, we had one guy in Eastern Ontario pulled over on the 401 highway and ticketed (not sure the amount). And here in London, we had the local by-law people follow one of our drivers around for an hour and write down all the times that he was smoking. They came in and talked to our district manager and said they didn't want to be [jerks] about it, but they would ticket us soon if we didn't encourage compliance. So it is now a matter of company policy subject to the disciplinary process spelled out in our contract.

 

Well, there is a reason people do get upset about some smokers. I am assuming if it is mentioned to you that you are one of the polite smokers. You know, the ones that use the floor for an ashtray and wouldn't even consider spraying some Febreze or Lysol before they got out of the truck to be courteous to the person who is getting in the truck next. Are you one of the drivers that throws your lit cigarette out the window instead of putting it out in the ashtray, then emptying the ashtray at the end of your shift? The gauges are all covered with ashes and you let it for the next person to clean up. Hmmm, why would that bother anyone? I smoked for a long time and most of my coworkers never even knew that I did smoke because I cleaned up my truck at the end of the shift and didn't go blowing smoke in everyones face when I wasn't in the truck. This is the same as everything else, the bad apples and impolite spoil it for every one else, then wonder why people are offended by their actions! I see no reason why you can't share a truck with someone who smokes, just takes a little respect and courtesy for your fellow driver. There are also some very nasty tobacco chewers out there too! Spitting on the floor, or have a cup in the cup holder full of spit and just let it there when they get out of the truck, tobacco spit running down the outside of the door....real nice!

 

I smoked for nearly twenty years. Started when I was nine. Lost my dad and mom and mother-in-law to cigs. Ten, twenty and thirty years too soon respectively. I wouldn't have quit but got allergic and nearly died because I would start to feel good and have a smoke and go flat on my back. I couldn't figure out what was wrong (DUH). Like everybody has been saying, it is against the law in California to smoke in your cab. A lit cig dropped on the highway is worth about six hundred bucks. Half the beaches in the state won't allow you to smoke. Any work facility (which means most buildings) will not let you smoke indoors and some nowhere on the grounds (It is an OSHA issue). If I was still smoking I think I would get the hint.

 

Well, I don't think smokers are criminals. I just think they need to be a little more thoughtful about people who don't smoke. Being allergic to smoking is one reason why a person would have a no smoking sign in their truck. But rather than respect that request (god knows 1/2 of these guys are stopping every hour for coffee and to flirt with a waitress somewhere, they could smoke then) they scheme to make it even worse for you. I do have one of the non smoking signs in my tractor. About 98% of the time I am driving it. People fill in when I am on vacation, or if I take a long run somewhere in a sleeper. I never had a problem with smoking until 1 guy was in there for 3 days and it was unbelievable how messed up the truck was. The ashtray was completely full, then he decided to use the cup holder for an ashtray and must have had the windows completely closed and the recirc shut off because the smell was bad. I mentioned it to my manager and he got a no smoking sign for me and told me to let him know if there were any further problems. When the substitute drivers come, they are told up front there is no smoking in the truck.

 

When my roommate started with his present company, they didn't have a truck available for him, so he drove a truck that belonged to a team that was on a 2 week vacation (his company doesn't normally slip seat). They mentioned to him that the couple didn't smoke, but didn't tell him he couldn't smoke in it. Out of respect for these people and their truck, he didn't smoke in it for the 2 weeks he drove it. Whenever he 'needed' to smoke, he found a spot to pull over, stepped out and smoked. Took just a few minutes and he was on his way. When they got back, they thanked him for taking such good care of their truck -- especially by not smoking in it. He said no problem, thanks for allowing him to use the truck so he could make some money. He said he treated that truck with kid gloves while he had it, because he would hope if someone used his truck while he was away, that they would do the same. A little respect goes a long way. However, I think banning smoking in the workplace -- even if you are the only one in the workplace -- is ridiculous! If I worked out of my home, would I be prohibited from smoking in my home? That's what they are asking of these drivers and I don't think it's right. Just my .02