Worker told to leave Festival Park shop over e-cigarette row

SHOP assistant Michelle Capewell was ordered to leave the store where she worked after puffing on an electronic cigarette.

The 41-year-old, who works at a photographic studio inside Festival Park's Mothercare branch, was on the main shop floor when she took the device out of her pocket and had one drag.

Mother-of-two Michelle claims she then received a phone call from her employer PixiFoto telling her to leave the store.

She has not returned to work since and says the reaction was 'over-the-top'.

Michelle, of Uplands Road, Abbey Hulton, said: "I was talking to my area manager at the time, about a misunderstanding about what time I should have started my shift that day and I was feeling stressed.

"The day before I had bought an e-cigarette and it was in my pocket. I didn't even think about it – I took it out, had a shot of it and put it back in my pocket.

"Then about five minutes later I got a call from a manager to say I used my e-cigarette on the shop floor and to get my stuff and go."

E-cigarettes – which contain batteries and 'e-liquid' containing a nicotine dose – produce a vapour which can be inhaled. They are seen by many as a way to quit smoking, but they are not licensed as a medicine in the UK. There are currently no laws restricting their use in public places, although many premises have banned them.

Michelle, who has quit her 20-a-day habit since using the e-cigarette, said: "I have seen customers using them on the shop floor and nothing has been said.

"There are no signs up and nothing has been sent out to us saying we were not allowed to use them. I'm not saying I should have done it, but it was a one-off and only for a couple of seconds. "The shop was quiet at the time. "The reaction was over the top – there was no warning, I was just told to leave. I was gobsmacked. If I had been given a warning, I wouldn't have done it again."

A PixiFoto spokesman declined to give details of the alleged incident, but said: "Michelle was told to leave the store. She is still employed by the company and is currently on paid leave while we investigate other issues."

There are thought to be 1.3 million e-cigarette users in the UK, compared to nine million tobacco smokers. Simon Roberts, who sells the devices at his Hanley store Vapour-Shop.co.uk, said: "I am against banning their use. This is different to smoking. It doesn't give off any smell or do anyone around the person harm. A lot of smokers are swapping to them, which must be a good thing."

The Sentinel revealed in August that the University Hospital of North Staffordshire had issued a complete ban on staff using electronic cigarettes. Workers were ordered to leave the UHNS site in their breaks to 'light up' the devices.

The British Medical Association advises doctors to suggest e-cigarettes only where a patient is unwilling or unable to use licensed nicotine-replacement products like gum and patches. Councillor Adrian Knapper, Stoke-on-Trent City Council's cabinet member for health, said that currently there is a lack of scientific evidence to show whether e-cigarettes are safe or not.

He said: "Until the evidence is available we cannot recommend use of the product to smokers wanting to quit.."