Yesterday, the WCB's new smoking regulation went into effect:  Here's are the rules from the WCB web site:

 

Under the new regulation, which comes into effect May 1:

  • Employees must give their consent to work in a smoking room and are protected from discrimination if they do not give consent.
  • Employee workstations cannot be located in a smoking room.
  • Workers can enter the smoking room intermittently to perform their duties but cannot work more than 20 per cent of a shift in a smoking room.
  • Hospitality and gaming establishments that choose to allow smoking on their premises must have separate rooms for smoking and non-smoking customers.
  • Smoking rooms must be structurally separate and can be no more than 45 per cent of total floor space in hospitality settings and 65 per cent in bingo halls.
  • Air from smoking rooms must either be ventilated directly to the outside or cleaned through a system that meets a minimum standard of 95 per cent operating efficiency at a 0.3 micrometre particle size.

 

The important bits are the last three items, about the separate rooms for smoking and non-smoking customers.  Now, how may restaurants, pubs, and bars, have actually gotten around to building a wall between the sections and installing all of the ventilation equipment?  Right, not very many.  And how many do you think are going to just try and ignore the regulation?  Most of them, I would think.  And unfortunately, from what I hear, the WCB is taking a 'complaint driven' approach to enforcement.   So, if nobody complains, then nothing will be done.

You can see where this is headed can't you?

The next time you are in a restaurant/bar/pub, take a quick look around to see if their smoking and non-smoking sections are physically separated.  I'm guessing that unless the place is completely non-smoking, then the sections will not be physically separated.   Then, after your meal, come home and write a short letter to the WCB.  Their email address is ETSQuery@wcb.bc.ca.  It could look something like this:

 

Dear WCB,

From what I understand the new smoking regulation requires that 55% of a public establishment must be smoke free and physically separated from the non smoking section.  If so, I'd like to let you know that a local pub in my area is ignoring the regulation.  I went there last night and nothing seems to have changed.  The pub is Pheasant & Quail Public, 3110 Lakeshore Rd, Kelowna.

Sincerely,

Dave Littley
Kelowna, BC
May 2, 2002

 

Hopefully, they will be fined.  Hopefully, they will realise that of the three choices: building separated sections, ventilation, etc; being fined for not complying with the WCB regulations; or making the place completely smoke free, that they will pick the least expensive choice and make the place smoke free.

While I'm still pissed off that the WCB was overridden on their original smoking ban, the current ban may be adequate to get a lot of places smoke free.

May 2nd, 2002