I bet you feel really dumb right about now

My state recently passed a no smoking law. The only real impacts it has on my company are 1.no smoking within 8 feet on an entrance, so no more stepping just outside the door onto the patio to smoke and 2. signage must be posted regarding #1.

To comply, I printed approved signs from the state's website and laminated them. I posted the ones for our common spaces, and I gave the appropriate supervisors the ones for their areas. An e-mail was sent to all our managers and supervisors notifying them of the contents of the law and their responsibility to see that it is enforced.

Yesterday I went to a different part of our building. While there, one of the associates informed me that last week a manager had taken down all the signs for their area. Was it this area's manager? No. Did the manager ask if he could take them down? Of course not. I immediately went back and sent a professional e-mail stating that signs had been posted by my request. I asked the sign remover to let me know why he took them down. I of course copied my boss. The manager replied that he felt the signs give permission to just walk 8 feet out the door and smoke rather than limiting smoking to just our designated areas. So he couldn't have talked to someone about this? Instead he takes it upon himself to remove the signs and not tell anyone? I forward the manager's response to my boss and said "FYI. This has to be posted". He then sent a message to the manager, stating "It's the law. Please put them back up." He of course copies this manager's boss, the boss's boss, and several other managers.

This morning I get a call from the manager in question. He asked "Do you have a copy of those signs that I wasn't supposed to take down?" I told him I would send him a link and immediately did so. I bet he feels dumb right now. No only did he act like a little kid by doing something he shouldn't have done in a really weaselly way, he got called out about it in front of a whole lot of management.

We pay you a WHOLE lot of money to be a manager. Grow up and act like one.