Fired for smoking e cig at work?!

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crevenew

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Mar 4, 2011
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Arizona
Given your profile I am not clear where/state you work in - really doesn't matter. As you can see I'm in Arizona. A couple things particular to your situation; Your a contractor so work termination is easier than with an employee. However the reason for the geographical distinction is this. In Arizona there is one major- major hospital group. They have a full campus no smoking policy at all their hospitals. Recently I was in the hospital for elective surgery and requested my surgeon write an order to allow me to vape 24/7 while in the hosp. This was accepted and allowed w/o question by the hospital. So in summary while you are worried about vaping on a no smoking facility there are exceptions made and the door is not completely shut. Given this a case could be made that a worker FTE or contractor vaping is not the only person that has vaped at and under the hospitals facility.
 

Secti0n31

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Feb 13, 2011
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To the OP, frankly most hospitals have a zero tolerance policy for use of tobacco products anywhere on the PROPERTY let alone in the building, so it could be bad news. However they wouldn't fire you without notice, or cancel your access card. It's probably a technical difficulty. I don't know what to say, other than not to vape in a no smoking area without permission, or some serious stealth skills. Be careful with that because there are a lot of ignorant and intolerant people in the workplace, and half of them are the bosses.
 

MaiTaiMary

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Nov 10, 2010
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I've worked in hospitals as staff and contract for 30 years and if no one called and told you not to show up for work on Tuesday, I think you're OK. I've had my cards quit working because, as mentioned before, someone put in the wrong expiration date. If they cancelled your access card for a reason, they would have called the company you're contracted thru and told them.
 

BGabe

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May 14, 2011
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So vaping isn't a big issue, but they probably can't tell the difference over a security cam. Granted I agree that it is probably just a an IT issue or it was shut down for the weekend. But consider this, if it was a real cig, there are probably tons of pure O2 tanks and probably a line system of O2 running throughout the hospital. I would have to say that if I were in the position of security I would immediately disable you from entering exiting any other area. But, just because like I said, they probably couldn't see the difference.
 

Newbz

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Dec 7, 2010
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All of this assumes that someone was intently watching the camera feed (of a closet, no less!), knew who the OP was by name, had the authority to instantly fire said OP, and then for some reason didn't have the OP escorted from the building by security.

The OP didn't get fired, I'd wager. I'd further wager that no one even saw the infraction. Not that I'd pull a move like that ever again in a hospital.
 

Saintscruiser

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Jul 24, 2010
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I like the bathroom idea the best. Since there isn't any tell tale 'smell,' I don't see what the big deal is. I agree that your card may have a glitch and that if you were fired, someone would be escorting you off of the property.

(Taking out soapbox from under desk) It seems to me, you quit smoking (which is a major feat in itself) and the vapor is harming no one. If you are questioned about it, tell them you were not aware of a 'no vape' policy and you won't do it again....period. Next time you need a couple of e-tokes, go to the bathroom. If a camera is in there, it should be against the law! (putting my soapbox back under desk) :)
 

digitalness

Full Member
Jul 2, 2011
8
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On Land
Good points... The camera was a Netbotz camera which emails authority with still pictures when movement is detected.. in addition it provides live feeds over internet explorer.. anyone have experience with quality of Netbotz pictures or video? ??? So there would not have been anyone watching the video feed until the camera captured, recorded, and emailed...
 

dwarren

Full Member
Jun 12, 2011
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Royersford PA
All of this assumes that someone was intently watching the camera feed (of a closet, no less!), knew who the OP was by name, had the authority to instantly fire said OP, and then for some reason didn't have the OP escorted from the building by security.

The OP didn't get fired, I'd wager. I'd further wager that no one even saw the infraction. Not that I'd pull a move like that ever again in a hospital.

The cameras in places like these, and especially hospitals and data centers, are there to monitor. They are increasingly high-tech and are designed to catch something exactly like this. Also any type of tampering or theft. I would bet a paycheck that someone saw it almost immediately. And tracking the badge through previous sections of the building is a simple task. Within 15 minutes the video can be watched, person identified, and access revoked for a smoking infraction. The hospital would not escort a contractor from the building. They would contact employer with a complaint. This is exactly the sequence of events that would occur IF the video had been seen. Again, I do not believe OP was fired, but the circumstances tell me that is what happened. Especially since OP was in that closet for the first time for the vape...
 

redheadone

Vaping Master
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Feb 2, 2011
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North Carolina
You are not going to believe this but your e-cig may have been he cause of your card not working. On the instructions that come with your kit it states not to put your e-cig near or around anything like credit cards car keys or anything of that nature I have actually heard of someone's debit card not working because they had it in the same pocket as their e-cig
 
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