
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, December 11, 1993                   TAG: 9312140271
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-7   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: New River Valley bureau
DATELINE: PULASKI                                LENGTH: Short

PULASKI COUNCIL MAY FORMALIZE CURRENT SMOKING POLICY

Pulaski Town Council will consider a smoking policy under which town employees can make any work area off limits to cigarettes with a written request.

That is essentially the current policy but, if council acts on the proposal at its Dec. 21 meeting, it would be formalized.

The idea is to improve the overall health of town employees, thereby also improving productivity and lowering absenteeism. The town staff will also look into possible incentives to encourage employees to give up smoking.

A committee considered Thursday whether to recommend that option, a complete smoking ban on town property, or a partial ban.

Formal action would raise the awareness of employees that they can designate their work areas as no-smoking areas if they wish, by making a written request to their department head.

``Someone's not going to go through a department head that smokes,'' Councilman Roy D'Ardenne said. He suggested that the request be made directly to the town manager.

Other council members objected that that would circumvent the regular chain of command. However, employees would be able to go to Town Manager Tom Combiths if they believed their requests had prompted any action against them\ by their department head.

by CNB