Nadia Ziyad

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That was a doozy!

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This meeting is adjourned at 3:19pm!

Malcom Elliot is our final speaker, wishing us a happy fall! You too!
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He says he used to work at the airport, and the idea of getting bombarded with smoke after a long shift appalls him.

He also insists it’s not going to stay in the lounge and will permeate the entire airport.
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Paraphrasing him:

‘Getting into a plane next to someone who spent their last 20 minutes in a cigar bar will make your flight intolerable’

Dr.Phillip Gardner is our next commenter- saying he’s been fighting for the last 20 years to remove tobacco from the marketplace. Insisting that African American clientele will be disproportionately affected by this cigar lounge.

She also says that Secondhand smoke exposure should not be a bargaining chip used against employees- implying that their tips and pay are not enough to cover the cost of this public health issue.

This person too is protesting against second and thirdhand smoke in DTW.
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“There is no safe level of exposure to second hand smoke.”

She says she has video evidence she’s willing to share. Then running out of time, our next commenter speaks up.

She then shares a customer report concerning a delta passenger being accosted by an employee over luggage that had been carried before with no issue. She was asked to leave the plane over this same employee accusing her of shoving them into someone else.
The speaker comes to the board to follow up.

This is the third commenter who says “Boo” to the WCAA board .

The next commenter speaks on the same issue and personally shares that she has family experiences with growing up around people who smoke. She’s allergic to tobacco- and laments the board’s insistence on putting her health at risk.

“DTW is my airport too.” She says in her final minute of urging them to reconsider this decision.

Moving to online commenters, a woman named Daniel- certified tobacco addiction specialist- strongly opposes the lounge as well.
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Highlighting the effects of Thirdhand smoke- which is when smoke clings to clothes walls and other things, like carry on luggage.

Bringing current events into the fold, she mentions the amount of people worried about their healthcare benefits right now that don’t deserve the added risk of exposure to cigar smoke on top of that stress.

Another commenter takes her shot at speaking up she too has dissent for the cigar lounge proposition. Saying that moving forward with this would roll back more than 15 years of established protections for customers and employees.

Urging that cigars cater to such a finite part of their customer base

Paraphrasing her, she insists,
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‘What I can tell you as a lung doctor is that there’s no ventilation system that can mitigate the health impacts of smoke’

Detroit named toughest city for asthma sufferers in new report - BridgeDetroit Detroit tops the 2025 Asthma Capitals report, highlighting the city’s struggle with high asthma rates, ER visits, and asthma-related deaths, underscoring the urgent need for systemic change

She references this article!
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www.bridgedetroit.com/detroit-asth...

The next commenter is a pediatrician against asthma, who I assume will also be protesting this cigar bar inside of Wayne county’s airport.
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She says there’s decades of science against this- and a national movement against smoking in public spaces.

“Who wants this? Who’s pushing for this? Who wants to fund this? Please tell us.”
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She asks again for them to not continue with the pursuit of this lounge- speaking on behalf of that 87%.

Context here:

www.freep.com/story/news/l...

Our first commenter wishes us a happy fall! You too girl.
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Getting into the meat and potatoes of her comment- she says she’s been to these meetings for the last year talking about ‘the cigar lounge’, and that 87% of people from the customer satisfaction survey don’t want it !

We proceed to the chairperson’s comments- which is a brief acknowledgement of everyone’s efforts. He then moves us on to…
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Public comment!

He sends his hearts and prayers out to federal workers during this time, and assures that they’ll continue to be supported by WCAA.

He says that in response they’ve launched a federal worker lunch program that will run until December-or until the government shutdown is over. June also says he admires how quickly they were able to get this lunch program going.

The Chief operating officer report is over, it ends with June Lee proudly describing their workplace as a place where workers should look forward to coming to.

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He then Takes another moment to acknowledge people working without pay because of the government shutdown-

It’s at this point I should mention that the audio quality for this zoom is quite abysmal ! Bear with me .

He goes on to talk about their peer recognition platform which he refers to as “an internal social media” called ‘Props’. Employees reward one another for outstanding behavior in the workplace.

While giving us an overview of their workforce, he also talks about employee engagement which includes: a suggestion box, cultural celebrations, Employee resource groups and bring your child to work day.
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Riveting !