Smoke breaks are ridiculous, amirite?

Working in a kitchen as a non-smoker, 1000% agree. I once got yelled at for taking a bathroom break when half the damn kitchen went outside once an hour for a smoke. It's an annoying double standard

by macejkovicsheri 1 month ago

Go outside with the smokers and pee there.

by Correct_Card 1 month ago

Instructions unclear: peed on coworkers

by macejkovicsheri 1 month ago

Some may enjoy that...

by Middle-Magician 1 month ago

Might get a raise even

by Strong_Farm_1773 1 month ago

You mean you are not friendly tree?

by Middle-Magician 1 month ago

Who said anything about having to pee?

by Edenmoen 1 month ago

Doesn't change the plan

by denesikalayna 1 month ago

Do it!

by Correct_Card 1 month ago

Assert Dominance

by DealerOk 1 month ago

Warm piss discs 😎

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I did that in the military. Just leave with the smokers and stand there.

by Fun_Bear_2048 1 month ago

I have a friend in the army who told me people will smoke on purpose for this reason. Apparently if you don't smoke you're a sucker. I don't know if still like that today.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Yeah, there's a double standard there. I worked in a bar where pretty much everybody behind the bar including the bar manager smoked. So the one guy that didn't was bitching about us taking smoke breaks. He said he should be able to take breaks too. And we all just looked at him and said "Yeah." He didn't like that answer. But that's what we all agreed on. That he should get just as many breaks as we did. We told him to go outside when he wanted to and take a few minutes to himself. It kind of backfired on him.

by annalise64 1 month ago

same--see my reply above.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Those who dont smoke should still get the same amount of breaks, orrrr be able to add them up and take a whole week off work once a year

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Incentivize people to quit. You don't smoke, you get an extra week of vacation. They do it in Japan already.

by caleighauer 1 month ago

What if i don't want a weeks break in Japan?

by Competitive-Range466 1 month ago

Easy. Start smoking.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Ok, i will. I don't fancy being shipped off to Japan

by Competitive-Range466 1 month ago

"We don't fancy you being shipped here either, gaijin."

by Perfect-Rule 1 month ago

I heard of a story (internet age who tf knows how true) where someone raised this issue in their office, and ultimately the compromise was that if you didn't take smoke breaks, you got to leave hours early on fridays as all the break time accumulated instead. It apparently caused at least one person to quit.

by Plus_Look 1 month ago

My smoke breaks are like 2 minutes long. I also vape so I dont have a burning cigarette in hand. And that time includes me walking from the corner of the office to the grassy patch outside and back. Some people disappear for 1.5 hour lunches but i take 30 minute lunches. Its all about time management skills.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Easy response to "well you don't smoke" is, "Yes, I don't intentionally poison my body with hundreds of inhaled carcinogens that will shorten my life expectancy, cause me health issues in life and raise my risk of heart attack."

by caleighauer 1 month ago

I would never have said "you don't smoke" to anyone back when I was smoking, but I can tell you that your response would not have the effect you're hoping for.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Then they'd just say something like: "well you have more life to live so you can handle going without as many breaks."

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I don't think this is an unpopular opinion, but I agree. I smoked in culinary school just for the extra breaks and to stay up on the banter.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

That's why I started smoking

by Careful_Cap_5466 1 month ago

I was furious when teammates took 5-8 smoke breaks a shift--15 min each! Come on! Then if I needed to step away I needed a reason.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

As a smoker I've never once gotten extra breaks. Typically sacrifice food for nicotine. I also only take five mins and I'm back on the floor hustling.

by Dahlia44 1 month ago

How often do you take ‘5 minutes?'

by Anonymous 1 month ago

At my work, we got two paid 15 min breaks with per day. This is separate from our 30min lunch which is unpaid. Every hour, we were also entitled to take 5 min bathroom break. I worked at a grocery store.

by Neat-Bother9546 1 month ago

I'm pretty sure my state (or is it a federal worker's right?) requires employers to give a 15 minute break every 2 hours plus a half hour lunch…pretty easy to go out every two hours and spend ~7 minutes per break.

by harrisjeanette 1 month ago

Definitely state. That is considered a luxury amount of time here in the deep red

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Y'all aren't guaranteed two 15s and a lunch? Sometimes I forget how much of this country is still so behind.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Nope. That'd be "laziness". Hey, if you're a minor though you get to sit down sometimes so good thing for the 15yos lol. What a caring society we have <3

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Blue state here and no guaranteed breaks at all

by boganabby 1 month ago

State. My state doesn't require to give any kind of break at all, including lunch.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I've had like 40 different jobs across different industries working for companies big and small, and I've never worked at a place where smokers got breaks that non-smokers didn't get. I have however, worked at casual places where anyone could step away for a few minutes if business allowed. And I suspect that's really the case in most of these situations where people are complaining about extra breaks. They could step outside if they wanted to without smoking but they choose to cry "no fair" instead.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I've smoked for ages. At one job, HR griped about my smoke breaks to my manager who relayed the complaint to me. I started tracking how much time I was actually away from my desk, down to the second, for eating, peeing or smoking. After two weeks of that I presented an invoice for the 2+ hours I did not use of my lunch break and 2 15 minutes breaks per day for that period. I never heard another word about it. But you go right ahead and be as assuming and indignant as you like.

by oreillyotho 1 month ago

That was not clear at all. You talked about travel time to and from breaks, never once mentioned consuming all allowed breaks in full and then some.

by oreillyotho 1 month ago

You were talking to someone else who also said they don't take extra breaks?

by Anonymous 1 month ago

thats kinda pathetic to be honest. being so addicted to nicotine that you dont eat

by LoudAd928 1 month ago

You're tryna say addiction is bad? We got a genius over here

by Anonymous 1 month ago

true, it seems like the other guy has his own vices, too. GHB, weed and molly, quite special to call someone pathetic when they take date ra*e drugs lmao

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Lmfao what's pathetic is your virtuous attitude. I eat one meal a day, and have for a long time.

by Dahlia44 1 month ago

Look at you doing the Lord's work.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Bro figured it out. Addiction is bad.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Kind of pathetic you need PED to get in shape…..

by New_Permission_259 1 month ago

management, lol :)

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I would lol

by Anonymous 1 month ago

100% me too

by Anonymous 1 month ago

good you're not OP's manager

by IngenuityExtension59 1 month ago

I've worked with plenty of people who pretended to smoke so they could take smoke breaks lol.

by Agreeable_Weekend709 1 month ago

Management, CCTV, not wanting to be an asshole to your co-workers

by Anonymous 1 month ago

lol I sarcastically say I'm going to go smoke whenever I need a minute of fresh air. They know damn well I don't smoke

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Nobody.

by Gillianwitting 1 month ago

Do they still sell those candy cigarettes with the red dot on the end? It could be candy cigarette break. Or those chocolate cigars that say congrats it's a boy or girl. Candy break time.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

As a previous longtime smoker having worked many jobs, I've never received breaks that weren't granted to everyone. Where are these magical places of employment?

by Mother_Mango 1 month ago

Same

by Anonymous 1 month ago

You never just said while walking out the door "i'm stepping out for a quick smoke break"? that's usually how it's done. it's not in writing or "received" in any official capacity, it's commonly understood and accepted in a way that saying "i'm stepping out for a quick walk" typically isn't.

by Plus_Look 1 month ago

Every place I've worked in except one has had smokers take extra breaks. Some of them were gone practically unnoticed it was so fast, others we've had to search them out bc they were gone so long. Especially restaurant work.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Worked at a hotel, this was a thing there. People would just disappear to go outside for 10-15 mins to smoke, several times through out the shift. Apparently from the responses it's common at restaurants as well.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

My coworkers asked me why I leave an hour before them every day. "I don't take smoke breaks and just pile them all on the end of my day". Kinda shut them up.

by nickwelch 1 month ago

Sure you do

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Instead of trying to take away smoke breaks, push employers to recognize quick pee and micro breaks for mental health as valid.

by CopyApprehensive2495 1 month ago

Seriously that's always pissed me off. I'm not a smoker never have been. It's always pissed me off seeing coworkers taking smoke breaks when I am lucky if I even get a lunch.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

And as soon as my coworker would go for a smoke, suddenly the shop is flooded with customers. It was only coincidental but it was stressful! Put a nicotine patch on and get back here! I'm drowning at the registers!

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Yup has happened to me too at a few different jobs.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

This isn't an unpopular opinion. Most jobs give you equal breaks whether you smoke or not.

by harrisclare 1 month ago

This has not been true anywhere I've worked personally

by Plus_Look 1 month ago

Random internet stranger, you and I have had different work experiences, and that's ok. I hope you have a great weekend!

by Lolita71 1 month ago

It irritates me as someone with chronic pain that these dunces can be like oH nO I gOtTa gO tAkE mY sMokE bReAk eVeRy HoUr oR iLL sPoNtAnEoUsLy CoMbUsT!!! But i can't take 15 minutes to rest my spine every hour

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I don't know if this a corporate world thing but absolutely NO job I've ever had let you randomly take a smoke brake. NONE. You smoked on the same brakes and lunch time that everyone else gets. You'd get written up and eventually fired for not working during working hours.

by Available_Spot5598 1 month ago

Ditto. Never worked at a place that's offered any extra breaks for smokers. We just smoke during the regularly scheduled breaks that everyone has

by OrchidHungry7909 1 month ago

It's not really something "offered", it's usually just this unspoken agreement where smokers go out for a break and management ignores it. It's a pretty common thing for hourly jobs.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I've held plenty of hourly jobs, and no place I've ever worked at let people do that. I'm sure it exists somewhere, but I've never worked somewhere that has

by OrchidHungry7909 1 month ago

It would appear you've never worked in a restaurant

by vprice 1 month ago

I don't know if this a corporate world thing but absolutely NO job I've ever had let you randomly take a smoke brake. NONE. You smoked on the same brakes and lunch time that everyone else gets. You'd get written up and eventually fired for not working during working hours. I don't think I've ever seen someone use that "brake" spelling like this

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Probably depends on the work environment. I work in an office and the smokers leave all the time for smoke breaks. There's nothing that really says they can, but there's nothing that specifically says they can't. They just go.

by Possible_Tell_5075 1 month ago

I mean, I've had salaried jobs where it was pretty much "get the work done but we don't really care how or when you do it" where smokers came and went as they chose, but again, that was the same breaks in work afforded to everyone else. It was no different then the guy who constantly checks up on his kids or the lady who took off to Starbucks whenever she was in the mood. This idea that everyone else is glued to their desk but smokers can bail whenever and everyone just accepts it isn't something I've seen in my life

by Available_Spot5598 1 month ago

I've worked plenty of jobs where management smokes and all the smokers frequently go out on extra breaks together. I think the functional policy really depends on the direct sup/managers stance on it. If they smoke smokers can grab a cig almost whenever. If they don't they won't allow that.

by Plus_Look 1 month ago

you just need a cig too

by Anonymous 1 month ago

My office doesn't track breaks so people can go out to smoke, go for a walk around outside, chat in the break room, fix up some food whenever, walk some laps in the halls to get steps in, etc. No one abuses this because everyone gets their work done on time. Taking multiple breaks is a good thing for anyone, smokers or non smokers alike. Workplaces that treat their employees like prisoners is more of the problem rather than people taking smoke breaks. Obviously things are different in service jobs where people disappearing for 10-15 minutes every hour disrupts things for everyone. Ideally enough people are on a shift to where EVERYONE can take a break now and then, but easier said than done unfortunately.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Service jobs are generally the ones where smoke breaks are abused.

by michealbrekke 1 month ago

They should allow fart breaks.

by loudonnelly 1 month ago

Pretend you smoke and get an extra break. Don't take away your coworkers extra breaks just because you aren't savvy enough to use it to your advantage.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

A manager or boss, typically.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Say "Im taking a smoke break" and just don't smoke. Just match the same number of breaks as you see the actual smokers take.

by ernie73 1 month ago

Have you ever actually tried just taking a break? You don't need to announce it, just spend 5 minutes away from your station doing whatever you feel like.

by Forward_Assist8056 1 month ago

It's a real thing. If you join the military you'll see.

by DropPure 1 month ago

More like spoken like someone who's been shafted with extra work because of smokers and their breaks

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I also don't really like the secondhand smoke from it either, it makes me cough when they come back in.

by welchtrinity 1 month ago

Agreed. If you work at anything less strict than a call center you will see people leave 2-3 times per half day. What is really disheartening to me is when a supervisor or manager smokes too and is gatherer of people to join them.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

1000% agree, once I was on boarding a staff going over the handbook and she and she had asked if she could have a smoke break. I was completely baffled by my opinion aside realistically I didn't understand the idea of her needing a smoke break for a shift that was 3 to 4 hours long. I understand that it is a habit that isn't easily broken, but do that when you get home.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

No one needs a smoke break. They just want a smoke break.

by caleighauer 1 month ago

This is true. I work in a hospital and somehow everyone that does smoke makes it all the way to an actual designated break without spontaneously dying from a lack of smoke break. I don't personally smoke but I don't ever once remember anyone disappearing to smoke at any non designated break and that's generally one 45 minute to an hour break in the middle of an 8 and a half hour shift.

by michealbrekke 1 month ago

I never used to get breaks then I started taking smoke breaks even though I didn't smoke and nobody cared I just left for 5 - 10 minutes at a time.

by anabelrunolfsdo 1 month ago

Absolutely

by Illustrious-Stick 1 month ago

Ive been lucky to work in jobs where they were not a thing. People smoked on their regular breaks or not at all

by zboncakangel 1 month ago

The CEO would get a few of us 3/4 times a day for " weather checks " it was almost a social club but we did solve some problems out there.

by Public-Penalty-9255 1 month ago

I 100% agree but if I see someone take a smoke break I go out there and stand with them, if they get a break so do I.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Agreed. When I was a waitress/bartender, I used to say I was taking a smoke break just so I could go sit outside for a few minutes. It was the only break I would get, and I was only allowed it because "I smoked"

by Anonymous 1 month ago

As a smoker, who only takes the normal break times and doesn't even stay out for the entire 10 to 15 mins I don't see why they would need an extra break, working I hours gives you two 10 min breaks and at the very least a 30 min lunch

by Kellireichel 1 month ago

i just vape indoors like a normal person

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Non smokers should go for "a breathe" when smokers go for a smoke.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

There is a simple fix, just start smoking too

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I worked at a factory for summer help while in college in the warehouse, guy I worked with brought a cooler of Pepsi's. Every time the smokers went out for a smoke he took a Pepsi break. Foreman didn't like it, but there was nothing he could do. You should not be penalized for not smoking by having to work.

by Such_Discussion_8653 1 month ago

Damn, you Americans need unions bad When I worked retail, every 4 hours on shift gave you a 15 min paid break, and an 8 hour would also give an hour unpaid lunch. Not the greatest, but better than nothing.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

At my workplace non-smokers just go outside with the smokers and stand upwind. Everybody having a fun little chat or communal moment of quiet. If anybody dared starting to complain to cause unequal break allowances, there would be a riot.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Just take a smoke break and don't smoke. You're mad at the wrong people.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Why does everyone always default to taking away breaks from people rather than just demanding they get the same breaks?

by Justus08 1 month ago

I think smokers see extra breaks as a perk of smoking. But you still win because they die horrible deaths from lung cancer etc

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Agreed. They shouldn't be able to have smoke breaks unless they're actively quitting

by aufderharkitty 1 month ago

I get two hour lunch break, this should be the standard for everyone (I do 9-5)

by Pleasant-Violinist27 1 month ago

Have you ever worked with a smoker who cannot take a break to smoke? It's intense, you'll want them to have a break. - ex smoker

by KeyCommunication883 1 month ago

Counterpoint: smoke breaks are good, because it gives you ammunition to take the same number and duration of breaks as your smoking colleagues.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

10 minutes times 10 cigarettes, how long is it? C'mon man!

by Winter_Conclusion 1 month ago

I vape(quit smoking cigs two years ago), but I just wait until my lunch break to leave somewhere else and do it. Just that normal break, no other time. Now and even when I smoked, I was always able to just wait until my lunch break. Sure I want it but it doesn't drive me mad so long as I can do it at lunch.

by Trentonwhite 1 month ago

By labor laws, I forget the exact spelling, at 4 hours scheduled you get a 15 minute break, at 6 hours you get a 30 minute lunch and at 8 hours you get a second 15 minute break. My problem with that is I can't fill 15 minutes. A smoke takes 5-8 minutes, my phone battery sucks so I don't want to scroll, reading I'm either checking the time every couple minutes and not getting into the story or I do get into the story, start to relax and don't want to work after. But back to it, I had a boss once that argued "You get 15 but it takes 5 to smoke, so just one doesn't count." But then, of course, we had a guy that spent more time outside the shop smoking than in. I say you are entitled to your 15, do with it what you want but that's all you get.

by Ambitious-Rice6992 1 month ago

Shidd I'm a smoker and I agree. If you can't last 3-4 hours between breaks, you got a problem

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Started smoking at 28 because of this.

by Flashy-Capital 1 month ago

as someone who's worked in a true variety of food service establishments and smoked at many of them, i simply cannot be convinced that this is a real thing.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I'm a smoker and everytime I see someone say this I'm confused. I've never worked somewhere where smokers were given more breaks. Everyone gets their two 15 min breaks and one 30 min unpaid break. I also usually just go my whole shift without smoking so maybe I'm just not a heavy smoker like the people you are talking about. But I've never witnessed this at any of my jobs.

by meaganprice 1 month ago

You can take the same break if you don't smoke. You just breathe and clear your head.

by Gillianwitting 1 month ago

I worked an absolutely brutal factory job once and about half the people taking smoke breaks actually picked up smoking just so they could spend a few more minutes a day outside.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Everyone should get those breaks. Whether you use them to smoke or not should be irrelevant

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Apparently only 12 percent of adult Americans smoke now, so this likely isn't an unpopular opinion. This isn't taking into consideration people who vape though.

by arelycollins 1 month ago

This is the crabs in a bucket mentality. Don't advocate for reducing the number of breaks smokers get; advocate for increasing the number of breaks everyone else gets to match.

by ines46 1 month ago

I've never gotten extra breaks. I get the breaks they give you and that's it. Where are these people that get extra breaks working? 🤷‍♂️

by Prize_Ladder1249 1 month ago

As a smoker I can avidly say that I have NEVER gotten extra breaks to go smoke. I just got the same 2 daily 15s and a lunch as everyone else for an 8-10 hour shift. Those are my smoke and coffee breaks.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

You need to view it the other way around: non-smokers shout take the same breaks that smokers do.

by Exciting_Ferret 1 month ago

If you don't take smoke breaks, you waste that time in other ways. So what difference does it make?

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Presumably the smoke break people are also wasting time outside of their breaks as well

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I sincerely have never worked anywhere that allows smokers to take extra breaks, so I'm always confused when I see people say this. Sure, if it happens, that sucks, but sounds like more of a management problem than anything. I'm a smoker turned vaper, and I take the same amount of breaks as everyone else.

by Anonymous 1 month ago