working title

Nonsmokers don't get breaks

Why do smokers get so many breaks and nonsmokers get none? At one of my deli jobs, there was a break room or storage room in the back of the store. I was the only nonsmoker working at there (at that time) including the owners. All of my coworkers would go into the back room, sit at the table, and talk and smoke. They called it taking their break. One day, I tried taking my break.

I walked confidently into the room where my boss already sat smoking, and announced, “I’m taking a break.”
I pulled out a chair and sat down, enjoying the break from being on my feet, waiting on customers, all day. A smile shown proudly as I reveled in my break time. It was, however, short-lived. Two minutes into my break, my boss said, “I have something for you to do since you’re not doing anything.”

At every job, smokers get regular breaks. We’re all entitled to them, though I’ve never seen nonsmokers take them. I know I haven’t! Legally, an employer is required to give breaks after a certain amount of time spent working. But smokers are the only ones I see taking off their aprons, stepping away from their desks, announcing loudly, of course, “I’m going for a break.” And they get away with it! I remember doing it all the time when I was a smoker. Every hour to two hours, I’d just announced that I was going outside for a smoke, and no one ever stopped me. It helped that my boss was a smoker, I guess, but it just seems like smokers get special privileges over nonsmokers. How do they do it?

In hindsight, I think my problem was in not having something with me. It could have been a book or magazine, a lottery ticket, a cell phone, anything would have worked! But no, I sat there at my one break, nothing in my hands, staring off happily into space (aka the dirty walls of a storage room), which apparently signaled a message to my boss of, “I’m bored. Give me some work to do!”

When I started all of my jobs, I remember someone explaining to me how many breaks I got, to make sure I took my breaks, and where to go to take my breaks. But I never saw anyone else take a break (unless they were a smoker), and when you’re the new person, you don’t want to be seen as less of a worker than anyone else. You’re in that scary probationary period where they’re trying to see if they think you’re a fit or not. You don’t want to stop working, even though it would be smarter to stop working. I’m sure there’s a study somewhere that proves an increase in productivity and an elevation in mood for people who take regular breaks from work, but it looks bad, doesn’t it? That’s the issue, it’s a constant struggle between appearances and mental stability. This is why the whole work environment makes no sense to me.

So next time you nonsmokers need a break, make sure you have a goal in mind. Go for a daily walk, say you need to check your voicemail or get something from your car. . You won’t look bad for leaving your cubicle or counter for a minute, and you’ll do a better job! If you have a purpose, you’ll get a break. If you sit doing nothing, they’ll find some work for you to do.