215
submitted 7 months ago by someguy3@lemmy.world to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] hedgehogging_the_bed@lemmy.world 100 points 7 months ago

Being a non-smoker back then was a giant pain-in-the-ass at any workplace too because any smoker could and would take a break for a cigarette once an hour and then so would the manager and they'd get to be buddies but if you were known as a non-smoker you didn't get a break because you "didn't need one" I knew dozens of people, especially in healthcare, who took up smoking because that was the time to be social with each other and the managers.

[-] BeardedSingleMalt@kbin.social 68 points 7 months ago

The hospital I worked at caught a LOT of flak when they started making people clock in and out for smoke breaks in the early 2000s. The smokers complained they only took a couple breaks a day for only a few minutes. Within the first month they found out people spent over half their days on smoke breaks.

[-] Riven@lemmy.dbzer0.com 10 points 7 months ago

Lul that happens in my office but it's small and they either all know each other or are related. I take desk breaks and because I'm the unofficial office IT nobody says anything. Someone tried once, Im magically never available to help them with IT stuff. Word spreads around this office. Even the owner of the company an office over doesn't say anything if he sees me on my phone at my desk. I know my worth, they know my worth.

[-] Devi@kbin.social 41 points 7 months ago

Smokers getting better chances at promotion because they smoked with the bosses was standard when I started working.

[-] Wiz@midwest.social 3 points 7 months ago

Yeah, maybe we worked at the same place!

[-] ki77erb@lemmy.world 14 points 7 months ago

This was an issue in the military too. The smokers would take their smoking breaks. So I started taking non-smoker breaks. lol

[-] hedgehogging_the_bed@lemmy.world 3 points 7 months ago

My husband tried to take an "apple break" when he was in the air force and his boss laughed at him. He just took up smoking again after that so that he could take the break.

[-] ReiRose@lemmy.world 14 points 7 months ago

When I quit smoking I refused to quit my breaks. It was just a shop, so it was a solo break, I would take a stick of incense and sit outside while it burned for five minutes. This was pre-smartphone and it was really peaceful.

[-] spiderman@ani.social 9 points 7 months ago

that was the time to be social with each other and the managers.

sadly it's still a bit true, a friend of mine who was in the same office told me the only time his manager was social was during smoking breaks or after office hours (like at parking spaces etc..)

he quit smoking when i first met him but all the pressure and stuff made him pick smoking again, hope he quits it again.

[-] guyrocket@kbin.social 3 points 7 months ago

Wow. Dozens of people started smoking to be outside with the smokers? That's crazy. That must have been during the denial phase in smoking's history.

[-] Frozengyro@lemmy.world 24 points 7 months ago

It still happens. Many jobs allow smokers an hourly or more frequent break, but expect non smokers to keep at it. The result is many people starting just to get the same break they should give everyone.

[-] hedgehogging_the_bed@lemmy.world 4 points 7 months ago

Dozens of the people I've known personally and most of this was in the 90s and early 2000s. I was part of the "smoke free" class of 2000 and the anti-smoking education started in Kindergarten for us. Imagine dozens of 5 year olds crying as their teachers explained with songs and videos how the adults in our lives were all going to die horrible deaths and it was up to us kids to educate them and help them quit. In school, at least twice a year. Yet by the time we reached the workforce, smoking was still a big part of the working culture and I watched pretty much everyone I knew with a full time job take up smoking at one point or another.

this post was submitted on 18 Apr 2024
215 points (94.6% liked)

Ask Lemmy

26890 readers
1823 users here now

A Fediverse community for open-ended, thought provoking questions

Please don't post about US Politics. If you need to do this, try !politicaldiscussion@lemmy.world


Rules: (interactive)


1) Be nice and; have funDoxxing, trolling, sealioning, racism, and toxicity are not welcomed in AskLemmy. Remember what your mother said: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. In addition, the site-wide Lemmy.world terms of service also apply here. Please familiarize yourself with them


2) All posts must end with a '?'This is sort of like Jeopardy. Please phrase all post titles in the form of a proper question ending with ?


3) No spamPlease do not flood the community with nonsense. Actual suspected spammers will be banned on site. No astroturfing.


4) NSFW is okay, within reasonJust remember to tag posts with either a content warning or a [NSFW] tag. Overtly sexual posts are not allowed, please direct them to either !asklemmyafterdark@lemmy.world or !asklemmynsfw@lemmynsfw.com. NSFW comments should be restricted to posts tagged [NSFW].


5) This is not a support community.
It is not a place for 'how do I?', type questions. If you have any questions regarding the site itself or would like to report a community, please direct them to Lemmy.world Support or email info@lemmy.world. For other questions check our partnered communities list, or use the search function.


Reminder: The terms of service apply here too.

Partnered Communities:

Tech Support

No Stupid Questions

You Should Know

Reddit

Jokes

Ask Ouija


Logo design credit goes to: tubbadu


founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS