Expensive smoking breaks: Boss gives non-smokers an extra day of vacation

Created: 11/17/2022, 11:30 am

By: Martina Lippl

Smoking break at work: the boss gives non-smokers more vacation (symbolic photo).

© imago

Smoking employees are too expensive for a boss.

Non-smokers are now rewarded with an extra day of vacation.

Food – smoking breaks during working hours are always a sensitive issue.

While some take a cigarette break, others continue to work.

But smoking also goes against the grain of many bosses.

It takes time and therefore money.

A logistics company in Essen is therefore giving its non-smokers an additional day of vacation.

Expensive smoking breaks: Boss gives non-smokers an extra day of vacation

The head of the company thinks that's only fair: "Someone who smokes five to ten times a day - of course, a lot of working time is lost," explains Sebastian Bülowius on RTL.

According to his own statements, the former chain smoker wanted to do something for the non-smokers in his company.

Half of its 20-strong workforce smoke and the other half don't.

There is about five minutes of smoking time per cigarette.

With five to six cigarettes a day, that adds up to 30 minutes – not including travel time.

Compensating for additional breaks with a free time advantage is generally permissible under labor law.

Punishing smoking per se would be inadmissible.

For example, anyone who smokes during an official break should actually also be given a day off, explained specialist lawyer for labor law Nathalie Oberthür in a similar case to the dpa news agency.

Workers have the right to one rest break per day.

Smoking breaks cost the company a lot of money

According to Bülowius, the additional vacation days cost 2,500 euros per year.

The smoking breaks would cost 35,000 euros.

Employees therefore have a choice: Fluppen or free time.

It remains to be seen whether the vacation day will motivate some people to stop smoking, which is harmful to their health.

In any case, the non-smokers are happy about the additional day of vacation, as can be seen from the RTL report.

The idea of ​​extra vacation days for non-smokers is not new.

In 2017, a company in Tokyo made headlines around the world: The company in Tokyo gave its non-smoking employees six vacation days.

Smoking break or coffee break - What is part of the working time?

German workers do not have a right to smoking breaks.

Several courts have made it clear that smoking a cigarette during work is not considered a permissible break in work.

However, paid working time can also be wasted during the coffee break in the office kitchen.

Going to the toilet is considered a permissible break from work.

But pursuing a basic need can also vary in duration from person to person.

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Important: In principle, rest breaks are stipulated in the Working Hours Act.

However, they are not part of the working time and are usually not paid.

There are exceptions in some collective agreements.

The employer can therefore demand that missed working hours - including coffee breaks - be made up, or ban them completely during working hours.

Employees are entitled to 20 days in a five-day week.

According to § 3 BUrlG, the legislator assumed a six-day week when passing the law and set vacation days at 24 days per year.

Like breaks at work, vacation is used for recreation