smoke 'em if you got 'em

This post is targeted at BC/BS on Eastgate..
But only because that's the business I see every day.
Undoubtedly there are many.. Feel free to add the names of those businesses in the comment section.

Here is the thing.. I get that smoking is offensive to all of you non-smokers.. And I get that you don't want to see it or smell it.. or be exposed to it.
But just because you want those things, doesn't mean people are going to stop smoking..

The smoking law states that you cannot smoke within 15 feet of a business entrance.. Okay, I'm fine with that..
But that is the STATE law..
Anything beyond that, is at the discretion of the business.

BC/BS has a rule that you cannot smoke on the property..
They will not build a smoke shack, they will not designate an
area on the grounds with picnic tables and ashtrays. Nothing.
And it's not like high school where you could sneak a drag in the bathroom. I've heard you can't even sit in your car in the parking lot and smoke.

So, every morning when I pass BC/BS on my way to work, there are inevitably 5-10 people standing at the driveway entrance of the BC/BS property, trying to get their last puff in before they start their work day. I almost makes me a little uncomfortable.
And on the backside of the building there is a guard rail around the parking lot.. The employees are allowed to stand on the other side of that guard rail to smoke.
Remember the days of high school when all of the smokers were lined up across the street before and after school and at lunch, chain smoking.
If you miss those days, drive on out to BC/BS. It's almost nostalgic.

What's my point, you ask? I'm getting there.

BC/BS has a very lax dress code.. I believe they are even allowed to wear "lounging pants" to work..
So now in the mornings, you have 5 -10 people standing next to a big electrical or phone box (I'm not savvy when it comes to that kind of equipment) at the edge of the property, in their jammies, having their morning coffee and a cigarette..
Along with what I would guess to be 15 - 20 people at any given time, lined up along the back guard rail..
Or you might see several people crowded under one umbrella on a rainy day (I'm not sure ifthat's to keep them dry, or their cigarette). In the winter, they are huddled in their Uggs and winter coats.

This does not make BC/BS an appealing place to me..
Even as a smoker, I wrinkle my nose up every time I pass the building.
And for whatever reason, I try not to make eye contact..
Like I'm embarrassed for them.

Now all of you BC/BS people standing out there, don't send me nasty grams.. It's not about you.. I'm on your side. Really.

I have to wonder if BC/BS realizes how goofy the company looks for shunning their employees..
YOU ARE NOT GOING TO GET PEOPLE TO STOP SMOKING WITH THIS TACTIC.
Would it be so difficult to build a little shelter in the corner of the property.
This would alleviate the appearance that BC/BS doesn't like their smoking employees.
And it would alleviate the thousands of cigarette butts that are flicked outside of your building every year. if one person smokes 5 cigarettes a day, 5 days a week, 52 weeks, its 1300 butts.
In a building that big with that many employees, there are at least 40 smokers.
What's that, like 52,000 butts a year (you know they're all not being disposed in
an ashtray or garbage can)

As for you non-smoking employees, wouldn't you feel more comfortable if you didn't have to cross the picketing line of smokers?

Building a shelter is not condoning it, it's containing it..
We are talking about grown people making their own choice..
To most smokers it's a need.. Accommodate their needs and you will have less disgruntlement.