Wow, and I thought our smoking laws were a bit tough! As an 'ex' smoker, I must say that I am deeply grateful to the government for imposing the laws that they have, it has made my ability to breathe a lot easier to say the least. Having said that, I also understand that smokers have the right to choose to smoke . . . or not and I am not sure if I would be very understanding, if my right to take a 'smoke' break was suddenly taken away from me.

I know several companies in South Africa use the 'tea' breaks as allocated 'smoke' breaks and this seems to work quite well, but I also have a problem with these, especially in the huge shopping malls. Shopping is smoke free shops is an absolute pleasure, I must say, but walking out of the mall can become an absolute nightmare.

My main shopping mall is Cresta and I usually park in the undercover roof parking next to the post office. Coming out of either of the entrances from the parking into the mall there is absolutely disgusting. You walk out of this smoke free environment into these billows of cigarette smoke (especially in the winter when it is cold or in the summer when it is raining). Mall staff congregate as close to the door as possible and smoke in huddles. The smoke billows into the entrances/exits of the mall and unsuspecting patrons are required to walk through this mess. This is also true of all the other entrances and exits to the mall, not only the Cresta one, but all of the other malls around the country. The entrances and/or exits become huge astrays.

It seems that non-smokers are required to get their daily dose of cigarette smoke whether they want to or not!

Bosses plan to stub out smoke breaks
22 June 2007 at 11h00

More than a third of employers plan to axe cigarette breaks when the smoking ban comes into force in England next month. It was already known that the new laws would bring an end to "smoking rooms" in the workplace, with staff having to go outside to light up. But bosses will use the ban as an opportunity to stop smokers from taking cigarette breaks at all.

A survey of more than 250 firms revealed that 36 percent planned to stop smoking breaks entirely when the ban becomes law on July 1. Business and trade union leaders called such moves "excessive". UK Trade Union Council's Brendan Barber said: "If going outside isn't an option, hardened nicotine addicts may be tempted to smoke in secret on company premises. "Under the ban, anyone caught smoking in enclosed public places faces a £50 (about R710) on-the-spot fine. or being summonsed to court.