Public Employee Press

Union gets safety measures for Coler Hospital smoking room

DC 37 and Local 420 settled a grievance in November that protects 20 Institutional Aides, Nurse's Aides and Smoke Watchers from prolonged exposure to secondhand smoke in the Coler Hospital patients' Smoke Room.

"We all know the dangers of secondhand smoke, so we could not stand by and let members work without protection," said Local 420 President Carmen Charles.

The stipulation resolving the grievance gives the Health and Hospitals Corp. 60 days to implement these measures: improve ventilation and clean daily; limit patients' smoking to three scheduled times a day; set the room's maximum occupancy; post smoking hazard signs; and provide workers with appropriate respiratory protection.

After a quadriplegic patient sustained third degree burns while smoking, the state Health Dept. ruled that smoke rooms are permitted at HHC facilities, employees must help quadriplegics don fire retardant aprons and light their cigarettes, and Coler must station Local 420 Smoke Watchers outside to monitor smoking patients.

Local 420 Chapter Chair Anita Holder-Thompson and Council Rep Sallie Stallings filed the grievance, "because secondhand smoke is very dangerous and contains known carcinogens," Stallings said.

The union insisted that management act on the findings of an inspection report by the DC 37 Safety and Health Dept., which said that because secondhand smoke has higher concentrations of carcinogens than mainstream smoke, workers need better respiratory protection. The report listed many hazards, quoting the U.S. Surgeon General, who says secondhand smoke causes heart, circulatory, respiratory and pregnancy problems, asthma, numerous cancers and impaired immune response. It pointed out that according to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, "There is no safe level of exposure to secondhand smoke. Any exposure is harmful."

HHC denied the grievance. But an impartial arbitrator told management and the union to "work something out." DC 37 Senior Assistant General Counsel Erica Gray-Nelson negotiated the stipulation.