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AIBU?

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Original poster

Man cleaner in women changing rooms

372 replies

Globaluser · 22/01/2022 08:17

So I moved to Europe a year ago nearly and just recently started coming to the gym.

In this gym there were no notices up to state there’s both male and female cleaners. So I was caught kinda off guard when I walked out the shower and came across a man mopping the floors.

So I’m wondering since I didn’t really go to any u.k gyms. Is this actually normal?

I mean for me that means I will be showering at home from now on, as I see a difference between women seeing me naked and a man seeing me naked.
So I just wanted to ask how many of you would mind and how many of you have come across a male cleaner in a womens changing room in the u.k.
Thank you ☺️

OP posts:
Original poster
Globaluser · 23/01/2022 05:30

@MrsSkylerWhite

Can only repeat, as another woman, I wouldn’t want to see a naked person of either sex stepping out of the shower. Why could OP not wrap a towel around herself? Hardly a radical idea.
I really don’t understand why posters on here hate to see a naked woman. There is nothing wrong with a woman taking off her towel fully to put on her clothes. Absolutely nothing wrong with it.

There is however something very wrong with dismissing peoples concerns however unlikely they may be.

OP posts:
imoutofhere · 23/01/2022 05:40

[quote girlmom21]@fandangoclem what are you 'Ffs'ing at?
I don't particularly want to see naked women wandering around when I'm at the gym Hmm[/quote]

Yes. If you're in a communal area then put a towel around you.

I don't want to be seeing anyone walking around with no clothes on!

SpringRainbow · 23/01/2022 05:48

I haven’t been to a gym for ages, but I did once have gym membership for a couple of years.

This thread has made me realise I never once saw anyone cleaning the shower/ changing areasConfused

They must have been cleaned at some point because they never came across as dirty or anything. It just never really crossed my mind until now that I never stumbled across a member of the cleaning team.

completely misses point of thread

FWIW I probably would have been shocked to see anyone cleaning the changing rooms/ shower.

autienotnaughty · 23/01/2022 07:22

If you had posted on the feminism board you would have got a very different response!! It's good to see a mix of responses though not just the men and trans women are not dangerous rant. I actually agree in theory womens changing rooms should be a space for women but understand that it's not always practical. I do feel there should be cubicles for privacy though. I would speak to gym about cubicles rather than staffing.

autienotnaughty · 23/01/2022 07:23

Sorry meant to say *are danderous bloody auto correct 😂

ElftonWednesday · 23/01/2022 07:29

It used to happen at one gym.I went to (with notice, shouting before coming in) but I still thought it was a bit rubbish and unacceptable. It seemed to often happen at a really busy time - there was a big communal area and loads of women would be getting ready for work. Half an hour later the place would be empty. Instead of showering and getting changed in a relaxed way, dozens of women were sent scurrying for clothes, towels and cubicles because of this one man.

Pigglyjiggly · 23/01/2022 07:36

@ElftonWednesday

It used to happen at one gym.I went to (with notice, shouting before coming in) but I still thought it was a bit rubbish and unacceptable. It seemed to often happen at a really busy time - there was a big communal area and loads of women would be getting ready for work. Half an hour later the place would be empty. Instead of showering and getting changed in a relaxed way, dozens of women were sent scurrying for clothes, towels and cubicles because of this one man.
Really..are you sure this is true..because most women don't care and most most men are just doing their job and not interested in seeing half naked women. Apparently anyway
TwentyFirstCenturyTricoteuse · 23/01/2022 08:12

What's the point of asking a predominantly UK site about European gym changing room habits? Not to mention that expectations in Spain likely won't be the same as in Finland.

girlmom21 · 23/01/2022 08:19

I really don’t understand why posters on here hate to see a naked woman.
There is nothing wrong with a woman taking off her towel fully to put on her clothes.
Absolutely nothing wrong with it.

But a lot of us think there is something wrong with it. So if we think somethings not right or makes us uncomfortable, we're wrong.

But if you think there's something wrong with a male cleaner and it makes you uncomfortable, you're right?

If you're arguing that it shouldn't happen because you don't like it you have to respect that with other peoples feelings too.

MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor · 23/01/2022 08:24

Why could OP not wrap a towel around herself? Hardly a radical idea.

Here another idea that's not radical. How about the gym either makes sure that women are fully warned if males are going to be in the changing rooms when women are undressed, or, shock horror, make sure their cleaning staff are female.

Not that hard really is it.

girlmom21 · 23/01/2022 08:25

@MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor

Why could OP not wrap a towel around herself? Hardly a radical idea.

Here another idea that's not radical. How about the gym either makes sure that women are fully warned if males are going to be in the changing rooms when women are undressed, or, shock horror, make sure their cleaning staff are female.

Not that hard really is it.

They can't only employ women to clean ffs. It's discrimination.
MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor · 23/01/2022 08:34

They can't only employ women to clean ffs. It's discrimination

It's perfectly lawful to have exemptions under the EA for single sex spaces.

Ffs.

ElftonWednesday · 23/01/2022 08:39

It's usually because they are cheapskates and don't want to pay for two cleaners, male and female. If you are paying private gym membership, it is pretty outrageous of them.

girlmom21 · 23/01/2022 08:40

@MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor

They can't only employ women to clean ffs. It's discrimination

It's perfectly lawful to have exemptions under the EA for single sex spaces.

Ffs.

They're not recruiting a cleaner for the changing rooms. They're recruiting a cleaner for the gym.
MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor · 23/01/2022 08:42

They're not recruiting a cleaner for the changing rooms. They're recruiting a cleaner for the gym.

And in that gym there are single sex spaces that require consideration under the EA. Is it really that hard for you to grasp?

lap90 · 23/01/2022 08:44

I can't say i've experienced this in the UK. In my current gym of 4/5 years there are female staff who attend to our changing room.

londonrach · 23/01/2022 08:45

It's very normal in the UK. Sometimes a sign up sometime s not

girlmom21 · 23/01/2022 08:48

@MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor

They're not recruiting a cleaner for the changing rooms. They're recruiting a cleaner for the gym.

And in that gym there are single sex spaces that require consideration under the EA. Is it really that hard for you to grasp?

The requirement must be crucial to the post, and not merely one of several important factors.
MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor · 23/01/2022 08:48

@londonrach

It's very normal in the UK. Sometimes a sign up sometime s not
Yet never in the gyms I've been to. But then when I'm paying a fucking fortune for gym membership then I don't expect to see males, in whatever capacity, in the changing area where women undress. As the most minimum standard I would expect to see a warning that it was happening, every single time.
JigglyPiggly · 23/01/2022 08:49

@MrsSkylerWhite

Can only repeat, as another woman, I wouldn’t want to see a naked person of either sex stepping out of the shower. Why could OP not wrap a towel around herself? Hardly a radical idea.
This!

At my gym the men cleaning are more likely to need to bleach their eyes over concealing an erection.

I don't want to see other women walking around naked (it's always the ones who have no business walking around naked too)

MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor · 23/01/2022 08:50

The requirement must be crucial to the post, and not merely one of several important factors

Ah, so you think that men in the changing room with no warning, where women undress, is not crucial to the post?

Incorrect.

MrBlobbyLivesNextDoor · 23/01/2022 08:53

I don't want to see other women walking around naked (it's always the ones who have no business walking around naked too)

Maybe not. But it's still not possible to completely cover up when getting changed from under a towel.

WomanStanleyWoman · 23/01/2022 08:54

They're not recruiting a cleaner for the changing rooms. They're recruiting a cleaner for the gym.

Which includes two single sex spaces.

jessieminto · 23/01/2022 08:55

I know this is normal and perfectly legal but just wanted to share my experience. As a manager in a call centre I moved jobs due to the pandemic. My new employer was in centre of a very large city and we had a very high number of female part time workers, as well as a very diverse mix of ethnicities. There was one set of male/female toilets with around 30 cubicles in the female ones. They never closed for cleaning, and the cleaner was male.

It's normal in call centres to give an average of 10 mins per day, averaged over a month, for toilet breaks. This is on top of 2 paid breaks plus unpaid lunch. If people go over that regularly then investigation and disciplinary proceedings start. I've always prided myself on being a very fair manager, identifying medical needs and making adjustments etc but also being tough on people taking the piss.

I had a group of 3 women who all went to the toilet together, signed off the phones at the same time, would take around 10-15 mins each time and would go 3-4 times in a shorter 5 hour shift. Eventually went through disciplinary and have each a warning, at no point did they give an explanation for why the took so long or often.

Then one day I came out of the toilets and all 3 were stood there. Stopped me and asked if the male cleaner was inside. I wasn't sure and checked for them. They were Muslim. Afterwards I sat them down and found out that they can't use the toilet if the cleaner is in. So they all go together, abandon the attempt if he is in there. 2 of them use the toilet while one is a lookout, as he comes in and starts cleaning without waiting. They sometimes abandon mid-pee. They would then wait until he'd gone, and go again.

I was gutted I'd given a disciplinary for this behaviour and had no idea the set up had created this. I made reasonable adjustments and asked for their warnings to be removed but HR said no. I quit that job because of it.

Just because it's normal in the UK doesn't make it ok.

girlmom21 · 23/01/2022 08:58

A gym with two cubicles in the womens changing rooms is not recruiting 2 cleaners per shift. It's just not feasible. It's not big enough. They can't pick which sex they want to recruit because either way one of the changing rooms will have a cleaner of the opposite sex. Therefore, the sex of the cleaner isn't covered by the Equality Act.

I agree there should be a sign and a shout from the cleaner when he's coming in the room. But OP was in the shower so we don't know he didn't shout.
She can request a sign is put up but she's also saying she should be allowed to be naked where she likes so shes now aware that may mean she's naked in front of a man. Her choice.