Can I smoke at work?
Only where the employer allows it — and not paid. Under the Workplace Ordinance (§ 5 ArbStättV) the employer must effectively protect non-smoking staff from tobacco smoke. He may ban smoking at the workplace, in the building and often across the whole premises, or restrict it to designated smoking areas — part of his domestic authority and right to direct. There's no right to a (paid) smoke break: anyone who interrupts work to smoke must, in many firms, clock out; that time then doesn't count as working time.
📋 The rules
- The employer must protect non-smokers (§ 5 ArbStättV)
- He may ban smoking at the workplace/in the building/on the premises
- Allowed only in designated smoking areas (if any)
- No right to a paid smoke break
- Smoke breaks must often be clocked out/made up
🔓 Exceptions
- If there's a designated smoking area, smoking is allowed there in the intended (break) time
- A long-standing, expressly tolerated practice can become a claim in individual cases (rare)
- In your statutory break you may do as you wish — including smoking, outside banned zones
⚠️ Penalties & fines
It's about the right to direct, not fines against you. Anyone who ignores a workplace smoking ban risks a warning and, on repetition, dismissal. Anyone who frequently takes smoke breaks without clocking out can face the charge of working-time fraud — a possible ground for dismissal. Stick to the workplace rules and clarify how breaks are to be recorded.
📎 Official sources
- § 5 ArbStättV · Protection of non-smokers →
- Federal Institute for Occupational Safety (BAuA) · Smoking at work →
- DGB · Smoking, breaks and working time →
❓ Frequently asked
Can the employer ban smoking?
Yes. From non-smoker protection and his domestic authority, the employer may ban smoking at the workplace, in the building and often across the whole premises, or restrict it to smoking areas. Staff must comply.
Do I have a right to a smoke break?
No. There's no right to an extra, let alone paid, smoke break. In your statutory breaks you may smoke (outside banned zones); short smoke interruptions during work you must, in many firms, clock out.
Does the smoke break count as working time?
Usually not, if you interrupt work and clock out for it. That time isn't paid. It's different only if the employer expressly allows smoke breaks as paid working time — but there's no right to that.
What happens if I ignore the smoking ban?
You risk a warning and, on repetition, dismissal. Anyone who also frequently disappears to smoke without clocking out can face a working-time-fraud charge — which can be costly under employment law.
Does it also apply to e-cigarettes?
Often yes. Many employers treat e-cigarettes and vapes like normal cigarettes and ban them indoors to protect non-smokers and the air. The respective workplace rule is decisive.
🔎 Common searches
What people search to land here:
- “smoking at work allowed”
- “right to smoke break”
- “smoke break clock out working time”
- “employer smoking ban workplace”
- “non-smoker protection workplace”
- “smoke break paid working-time fraud”