Restrictions on Vaping and Texting Go Into Effect: Today is Gonna be the Day That the Florida Legislature Is Gonna Throw It Back to Employers*

By now you should’ve somehow realized that today (July 1, 2019) the amendment to the Florida Clean Indoor Air Act, which implements the 2018 constitutional amendment prohibiting vaping in the workplace, goes into effect.

Hopefully, businesses and employers realize what they have gotta do now that the use of e-cigarettes in indoor workplaces is prohibited. The word is on the street that indoor workplaces will become an oasis for non-smokers – who likely never really had a doubt that that the fire in the hearts of vaping employees would eventually go out.

Employers can no longer choose to allow employees to vape indoors. Those using e-cigarettes will now be relegated to designated smoking areas–-presuming employers provide smoking areas. Although we don’t believe any vaping employees will feel that great about this decision now, it is the law, and maybe it’s gonna be something that saves them.

Beyond that, all roads that employees have to drive are winding, and now all the lights from their cellphones won’t be blinding. Because, as of today, texting while driving has become a primary offense rather than being a secondary offense. There are many things that we’d like to say about this, but primarily, this means employee drivers can be pulled over for texting while driving without violating any other traffic law. Maybe, this will be a law that saves people.

Regardless, employers will need to throw it back to employees who are driving while working and make sure that they somehow realize what they’re not to do. We don’t believe that any managers should refrain from training their subordinates and requiring employees to avoid texting-and-driving. That way, the managers can also be the ones who save their employee drivers and protect their employers’ businesses. Read more about the new texting law.

Both of these laws—after all—could have positive consequences on the health and well-being of workers and be the laws that save them.

* see ”Wonderwall” Oasis 1995

Jennifer Fowler-Hermes
jfowler-hermes@williamsparker.com
941-552-2558