Businesses prepare
for Big Isle ban
on smoking
HILO >> Since Hilo restaurant owners Ric and Debra Maiava declared their Ken's House of Pancakes smoke-free last year, business picked up so much that they hired more workers.
"It has been nothing but great ever since," Ric Maiava said at a briefing on Hawaii County's new workplace smoking ban that goes into effect Feb. 1.
The Maiavas voluntarily went smoke-free last June after all their employees voted for it.
The Hawaii County Council passed the ban in July but exempted bars and lounges and delayed the effective date until February.
The Hawaii Island Tobacco-Free Partnership put on briefings in Kona Wednesday and Hilo yesterday to explain the law to business owners.
Businesses benefit, Maiava said. White ceiling tiles turned brown by smoke had to be washed every few months, he said. Now they stay clean, saving money.
Debra Maiava said the restaurant lost a few smoking customers, but most still come and stay a shorter time. That makes room for more customers.
One area of the law causes confusion. Employees have to smoke outdoors a "reasonable distance" from doors and windows. But the phrase "reasonable distance" was not defined.
Shane Aburamen said all of the seating in her fast-food drive-in restaurant is outdoors. She was wondering if she should designate a separate area for employee smoking.
Beth Kuch, of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii, advised her to do so.
The new Hawaii County law will be the toughest in the state. Although free-standing bars and lounges are exempt, bars attached to restaurants will have an additional six months to go smoke-free or be walled off so they become similar to free-standing businesses.
Honolulu's law is similar to the Big Island's, but it allows smoking in outdoor areas of restaurants if they are separated from the main restaurant. The Big Island law bans smoking in any part of the restaurant, indoor or outdoor.
Maui's law covers various public places but few workplaces. Kauai's law covers some workplaces but has several exceptions.