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HomeMy WebLinkAboutR2003-029RESOLUTION NO. ~9~7~--t~ 7 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS APPROVING REVISED CITY POLICY REGULATING USE OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS BY CITY EMPLOYEES; AND DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the City of Denton, Texas has a smoke free workplace policy for city employees to regulate the use of tobacco products by city employees; and WHEREAS, the City of Denton, Texas desires that the smoke free workplace policy should be expanded to include other tobacco products; and WHEREAS, the Director of the Human Resources Department for the City of Denton has presented a revised policy regarding employee rules and regulations concerning the tobacco products policy; and WHEREAS, the City Council, desires to adopt such policy as an official policy regarding employment with the City; NOW, THEREFORE, THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS HEREBY RESOLVES: SECTION 1. That Policy numbered 108.03 "Use of Tobacco Products" of the Personnel Policies and Procedure Manual of the City of Denton attached hereto and incorporated by reference herein, is hereby approved as official policy of the City of Denton, Texas, and replaces former policy 108.03. SECTION 2. That the foregoing policy is attached hereto and made a part hereof and shall be filed in the official records with the City Secretary. SECTION 3. That this resolution shall become effective immediately upon its passage and approval. PASSED AND APPROVED this the /~day of ~~ ,2003 EULINE BROCK, MAYOR ATTEST: JENNIFER WALTERS, CITY SECRETARY APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM: HERBERT L. PROUTY, CITY ATTORNEY S:\Our Documents~.esolutions~3\Use of Tobbacco Products Polic'~.doc CITY OF DENTON POLICY/ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE/ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTIVE SECTION: HUMAN RESOURCES REFERENCE NUMBER: 108.03 SUBJECT: STANDARDS OF CONDUCT FOR EMPLOYEES ~rHAL EFFECTIVE DATE: 06/01/92 TITLE: USE OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS LAST REVISION DATE: 9/16/03 I. POLICY STATEMENT The City of Denton desires to conduct its operations with the utmost regard for the safety of its employees, its customers, and the public. One of the most valuable assets of the City of Denton is its employee workforce. In recognition of that belief, the City promotes the health, safety, and well-being of each individual through progressive health and benefit programs. The City's obligations include concern for all employees in all areas of known hazards and because environmental tobacco smoke is a carcinogen shown to cause disease, including cancer, in healthy non-smokers, as well as aggravate allergic reactions including watery eyes, coughing and headaches in susceptible individuals, all of which lead to impaired performance and increased health care costs. In addition, the use of smokeless tobacco is offensive to many people, citizens and co-workers alike. A work environment in which employees are allowed to use smokeless tobacco products promotes an image that many regard as unsanitary and unprofessional. It is therefore the policy of the City of Denton to limit use of smoking tobacco products and the use of smokeless tobacco products by City employees to certain areas designated by the City Manager or his/her designee. II. ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES A. Definitions: Municipal Facility" means any building or structure owned or operated by the City of Denton. Open air vehicle" means any vehicle owned or operated by the City of Demon which, by its design, is incapable of isolating passengers fi.om the f~ee flow of outside air. An "open air vehicle" does not include automobiles, buses, vans or trucks. Smoking" means the combustion of any product or material containing tobacco. Smokeless Tobacco Products" means any product or preparation containing tobacco, including chewing tobacco, snuff, and smokeless tobacco, but not including cigarettes, cigars, or pipe tobacco. Vehicle" means any car, u:uck, bus, or van owned or operated by the City of Denton, used for conveying persons, supplies, equipment, etc. HRJPOLICY/108.03A PAGE_2_OF~ POLICY/ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE/ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTIVE (Continued) TITLE: USE OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS REFERENCE NUMBER: 108.03 The use of all tobacco products, including smokeless ones, is prohibited within any municipal facility of the City of Danton with the following exceptions: 1. Suspects and witnesses may smoke in designated areas of the Police Department during interviews and interrogations. Employees may not smoke in these areas at any time. 2. Smoking is permitted in a designated area of the jail. The use of tobacco products is prohibited in City of Denton vehicles. The use of tobacco products in open-air vehicles is subject to the discretion and approval of the supervisor of that area. The Director of Facilities Maintenance or designee shall conspicuously place "No Smoking" signs at the entrances of all municipal facilities and shall additionally place signs designating authorized smoking areas in the Police Department. Employees will be allowed to smoke outside the City of Denton facilities during their normal break period and lunch so long as they are at least twenty (20) feet away from an entrance or exit to the building. An entrance or exit to the building is defined to include any entry steps or ramps. An employee shall responsibly dispose of all waste products generated by his or her use of tobacco products. Notwithstanding any other provision of this policy allowing the use of smokeless tobacco products, a supervisor may prohibit the use of smokeless tobacco products in any area where employees fail to responsibly dispose of waste products generated by the use of smokeless tobacco products. Any employee who uses tobacco products in violation of this policy is subject to disciplinary action as outlined in Policy 109.01 Disciplinary Action. Smoking Cessation Programa: City employees who experience performance or personal difficulties while ovemoming a hicotine addiction may seek help through the City's health insurance program or Employee Assistance Program (EAP), outlined in Policy 107.10 Employee Assistance Program. Interested employees or supervisors may contact a representative of the Human Resources Department for assistance. Supervisors are responsible for communicating this policy to, and enfoming the policy upon, their employees. HR/POLICY/108.03A