This is some BULLSHIT - female toilets at work

[HonestlyPromisely]

Main building and separate smaller building

Smaller building (where I work) is very very old. Roughly 60 women and exactly TWO men work in there.

Female toilets are constantly blocked out of use. When this happens we have to traipse over to the main building. They’ve been out of action for two weeks now and maintenance have put an email around to say they will not be fixing them as building is due to be torn down in 6 mths and they will just keep breaking.

Women will have to walk over to main building (about 50m away) to use the loo

Why the fuck can’t the men go to the main building and we have the mens toilets which apparently work absolutely fine?! They have 3 cubicles and 2 urinals, we have 3 cubicles.

AIBU here? Shouldn’t the two men be asked to go over to the main building given there’s only bloody two of them?

You sound very very angry about such a small issue, unless it’s just your posting style.

Do you mean 50m? That’s a tiny distance, 2 lengths of an average swimming pool, a few seconds walk.

It sounds like management haven’t bothered to think about it, just said the female toilets are broken, we’re not fixing them. Has anybody actually replied pointing out that as there are so few men it would make more sense for the male toilets to become female and the men to use the main building ?

As pp have said, I would be wary of saying the male toilets should be used by everybody, that’s setting a precedent for unisex toilets in the future, which are not acceptable.

Or mobility issues. Maybe the only person with mobility issues is a man.

@FluffyBooBoo

50 metres?

Do you all feel like this, or do some of your colleagues welcome the chance to get up and stretch their legs, even for that short distance? I would, especially if it's a sedentary office type job.

This. 50 metres really isn’t that far to walk to a toilet. I worked in late buildings where it was the norm.

@TracyMosby

Why do the womens toilets keep getting blocked but he men’s dont?

Probably because the men's are only used by 2 men

We were punished with this at work once. Open plan office. Mens toilet was closer than womens. They had a disabled toilet and as there was no one with a disability at that time turned a blind eye to us using it.

Then the toilet would continually be blocked. So they told us we weren’t allowed to use it any more.

50m? Come on OP. If it was a minority of women would you expect them to give up the closer toilet for the majority of men?

It's just luck of the draw. The issue is slow maintenance of facilities, not that men should give up theirs.

If it was a real trek then maybe ok as it would affect productivity if 60 people were having to spend ages schlepping to the loo and back several times a day compared to 2, but 50m is negligible.

AIBU here? Shouldn’t the two men be asked to go over to the main building given there’s only bloody two of them?

Have you made that suggestion?

If you are whinging about 50m, I would suggest you need the exercise.

Is there anything stopping you using those toilets? Just use them? What would they do? Tell them you are gender fluid.

@ChangingStates

Just share the toilets there are- if only 2 men they can hardly ever be in there. If women really don't want to be in there when a man there could be a sign on the door that men put up or flip or whatever that shows toilet is currently in use by a man

Please stop coming up with perfectly reasonable and easy solutions.

These are not required on mumsnet!

@cakeambush

It is a long walk if you have continence issues.

So they should all use the current mens toilets.

Loos don’t just block. Direct your anger at your scumbag colleagues who can’t manage to use a loo correctly

In the nicest way..you are being an absolute arse! You all need to share the toilets there is absolutely no reason why the men should walk over instead of the women so the only answer is to share the functioning ones as unisex.

Eh? I’m confused. The men’s toilets work perfectly fine.. what’s numbers got to do with it?

60 women needing the toilet are more or less desperate or urgent than the two men needing the toilet? This is purely just sexism covered in ‘minority’

I would absolutely love this - if every toilet break meant a 10 minute dally from work.

I might go and flush some cling film down my nearest ladies right now...

I don't see why the men should have to go over to the main building.
But it's well out of order that the company are not repairing the toilets.

50 metres isn't far but if it's pissing down with rain it's not particularly nice and a lot of working time would be lost with people putting on a coat, finding an umbrella, walking over to the toilets and taking off coat and stowing umbrella on the way back. That's a lot of time multiplied by 60 women.

I think they should repair the women's toilets and the focus should be on getting that done rather than making the men go to the main building and the women taking over their toilets

They should just make the toilets unisex and close the urinals.

And take the outer door off! You can’t have a unisex toilet with an enclosed area between cubicles and main corridor.

Everyone should have proper toilet provision regardless of numbers anyway

Having to go to another building for the loo would make me extremely anxious

@TheReluctantPhoenix

It is 50m outside! That is a long way if it is pouring and 2 degrees.

With 60 women and 2 men, men should have to compromise.

Why? Why should the men have to compromise? Should the women be expected to do the same?

OP, just suggest a time share; 8am to 10am its women's time. 10am to 12pm it's men's. 12pm to 2pm women's, etc, etc.. that's a compromise and fair for all.

I’m trying to be sympathetic but all the toilets are in a separate building here much further than 50m from my work station AND I’m only allowed to use them a 2 specific points in the the day. I’m a teacher and have worked like this for 20+ years.

50m? My work is a collection of small building, some with toilets in, some without. We all need to routinely walk outside to get to a different building, or to a toilet. The easiest solution if it’s raining is just to wear a coat with a hood. I’m glad I have an active job where I’m walking around a lot, it’s good for me. Maybe try and see the positives in this scenario? 50m really isn’t that far, and it means you get a bit more activity into your day.

I'm torn on this one because there isn't a toilet in the building I work in and I have to walk more than 50m across a courtyard to get to the loo. It's a massive pain in the arse when it's pouring with rain!

I think the most sensible option is for the mens to become unisex for anyone who feels comfortable with that arrangement. Anyone else can go to the other building.

Don’t make it a gender thing, ask to make them unisex, (or to repair the ladies).

Don’t try and take away the toilets for the men, that isn’t fair and won’t go down well either.

@SeenYourArse

In the nicest way..you are being an absolute arse! You all need to share the toilets there is absolutely no reason why the men should walk over instead of the women so the only answer is to share the functioning ones as unisex.

Only on mumsnet would it be ok to call people names for suggesting that 60 women should be inconvenienced for the sake of 2 men.

I do feel a bit sorry for the men who might need to share with so many women, because maintenance won't fix the ladies. If it was reversed I'd feel the same.

BABAHOTELS sign idea is a good one, if the toilets do have to be shared.