I have a nut allergy and colleague eating nuts in office.

[Yewdontknowme]

I’ve been working with this company since June. It’s with a small company with two open plan rooms in the same building. There is no HR department just the owners and the general manager and supervisors. One room is nut free as myself and an intern are severely allergic, the other room is ok for nuts. We never have to go into the other office. We are allocated space based on what we do within the company and wfh isn’t an option. For the past few months everything has been great.

A supervisor has returned to our office this past fortnight after maternity leave. It seems she is really popular among the other women in the office. She has ignored all the signs and warnings and has been eating nuts at her workstation, which is making me wheeze and my throat and mouth are itching until I get away home. I’m working dosed up on piriton and with fingers crossed I don’t need to use my epipen.

Our manager is a bit of a coward so has been trying to deal with this woman calmly including offering her a space in the other room but she’s refusing to swap rooms as she wants to be with her friends and likes the bigger workspace she has. She is claiming it’s discriminating against her as a returning mother and a vegetarian and so she will continue to eat what she wants, as in her words “they’re not eating the nuts themselves so they’ll be ok”. For what it’s worth I too am a vegetarian. She also told us to get epipens. Myself and the intern can’t go into the other room as the work in there is totally different to what we do. We need the facilities in this space. Our manager has told us we need to sort it out among ourselves.

I appreciate this is a management problem but what am I supposed to do in the meantime? I’m still on probation and this woman is a long standing staff member. It took me a long time to find this job after redundancy in lockdown and I’m terrified I’ll be laid off after my probationary period runs out because of the drama this causes. I can start looking for another job but I fear it will take me over a year again.

AIBU to expect the manager to deal with this woman instead of having to sort out a ‘compromise’ myself?

Out of thousands of food stuffs she has chosen the one that other staff members are allergic to. Sounds a bit like sticking it to the new starts on her return. Go straight to the owner if necessary op obviously nut allergy can be lethal she's either very nasty or very stupid. Good luck with it op.

You have a legal right to a safe workplace. She does not have a legal right to eat nuts at work. Your employer is liable - and she is likely to also be personally liable - if you are injured by her actions.

Get ACAS/legal advice on exact legislation and consequences then escalate above your useless manager.

And as well as the legal position,.spell out the potential medical consequences in detail - including making them understand than an epipen is not a cure. A lot of people are under the misapprehension that it goes reaction > epipen > all sorted, rather than the reality of reaction > epipen > a bit of extra time for the ambulance to reach you and get you to hopsital where they can hopefully (but no guarantees) use a combination of ventilation and extensive medical treatment to stop you dying .

If you weren't on probation, I would suggest leaving work every time you have a reaction, because you are sick, pointing out in the process what is giving you a reaction.

But you are, so definitely ACAS or your union, if you are in one. There is a case law that severe nut allergies are disabilities. Your employer is impacting on your ability to do your job effectively by refusing to provide effective accommodations. This requirement starts as soon as they know of your disability. I actually think the whole office should be nut free.

As a vegetarian, returning mother, your colleague fills me with rage.

Came on to say a) this is appalling you poor thing and b) what @NeverDropYourMooncup said; paper trail

I would start to get stuff in writing with this manager.

I would also go and stand outside every single time this happens.

The colleague would behave the same way if you had been there years I suspect and no one is going to die if they leave their nuts at home to eat solely at home.

Hopefully she will die of oxalate poisoning : )

I can believe it completely. People are quick to throw around words like wet and spineless to try and goad an over-assertive response but they don't have to deal with the consequences, OP does. The fact is, she's on probation, and her manager is weak. If he's as conflict-avoidant as I think, he will simply fire her than deal with the aggro and manage properly.

OP you've had some good advice, and you do have to be a bit smarter than bluntly pushing back purely because you're right. The two big ones are keep a papertrail for everything, and remind them of their common law duty of care.

I know allergies can be unpredictable and only you know how dangerous this would be, but I would be tempted to ermm... more loosely manage your allergy on one occasion so everyone can see how badly it affects you. Not to the point where you need your epipen, but after making it very clear to your manager in writing about the legal consequences for his inaction - bloody show him it in action.

Lay the groundwork, and then strike

Some great advice on here about your rights OP. Definitely take this up.
I just wanted to say how gobsmacked I am that someone can be so arrogant and callous to knowingly bring physical harm to you and shrug it off suggesting you just simply use emergency medication to deal with it. She’s a fucking monster that’s disgusting!

I’m vegan and ear lots of nuts for protein and fats..I manage perfectly fine for 8 hours without them!!!!

This needs addressing -speak to Acas or a solicitor. You have a night to work in an environment that doesn’t make you ill.

but start looking for another job incase “your work isn’t u to standard” at the end of the probationary period I’m afraid. It’s not fair but work places rarely are.

Paper trail 100%.

Every-time you start wheezing/symptomatic email your manager and say you need to leave. Inconvenience them as much as possible.

As them about undertaking a “new” risk assessment as things have changed in recent months.

Absolutely. The company could be in trouble if this is not sorted. You could see your GP and see what they advise.

Fuck ACAS

Contact HSE, you have a legal right to a safe working place.

And to the poster who questioned whether this is a true allergy the OP carries an epi pen…

I had a colleague who didn’t believe in anaphylaxis - as a way of proving I was an idiot woman and anaphylaxis was all in my head following two ITU admissions he put my allergen on my workspace whilst I was out of the room… you can guess how that ended.

At the time my colleagues refused to give evidence but I got a nice little chunk of money however it’s nothing compared to the stress of being in hospital again.

HSE were brilliant and it was actually the hospital doctors who contacted them.

Also my ACAS comment was more that yes contact them but take this much further as well.

It is also a police matter potentially…

Agree with what others have said but in addition, as chocolate teapot manager has said to sort out out between yourselves, I'm wondering if there is any kind of team meeting where you can bring up the problem? The bare facts that you have 2 staff with nut allergies, selfish bitch with nut obsession and an impasse. As it stands, you are unable to ensure your own safety and this leaves the company open to legal repercussions. Does the team have any suggestions?

My mind is boggling that the manager has abdicated their responsibilities here, surely there is somewhere higher this can be taken? It's absolute madness.

https://joelsonlaw.com/insights/food-allergies-an-issue-for-employers/

This may help.
Also I second calling Acas.

Relevant part of the link shown in screenshot but tbf the whole page is worth a read

My understanding is that this level of allergic reaction is classed as a disability

Therefore you, as the disabled person, have certain rights and adjustments must be made, by law

In addition a risk assessment must be actioned and documented

Genuine question, could you be allergic to something else? Airborne nut allergies are extremely rare (my son is allergic to nuts and was told this by two specialists). Just because it is rare it doesn't mean it's not happening to you, but definitely worth considering there may be a different cause.

Are you serious Terrytibby?

From Anaphylaxis uk

Is contact through touch or smell a risk? People with peanut and allergy often worry that touching or smelling nuts could cause a serious reaction, but research suggests this is not common. One small study showed that when 30 children with serious peanut allergy had contact with peanut butter through touch or smell, none of them experienced anaphylaxis and none reacted to smell. A third had a mild reaction to touch including redness, itching or rash in a small area, but these were not serious, and no medication was needed. The researchers concluded that at least nine out of ten children with similar allergies would not have a serious reaction to touch or smell, but the study only looked at peanut butter, not other forms of peanut. In another study, 84 children were positioned half a meter away from a bowl of peanuts for half an hour and none of them had a moderate or serious reaction. The researchers also collected peanut proteins from the air and the amounts of peanut protein were so small they were very unlikely to be able to cause moderate or serious allergic reactions. These studies only looked at peanuts, but there is no reason to think that tree nuts would be any differen

Im quite surprised by this.

I've worked in 3 large london offices of ftse 100 listed companies, and never seen any nut bans. In all 3 products containing nuts were available in on site cafés and people ate all sorts at their desks.

Op its really, really, really rare to react to nut allergens via air with out ingesting. Is it possible that either the office isn't being cleaned properly? Just being in the same large, air conditioned room with someone eating nuts it would be unusual for you to wheeze.

Nuts tend to be banned in schools (against allergy uk advice) because children are silly and share food, don't wash hands etc

I’m really sorry you are going through this. I agree with messages above, a paper trail is always important in workplace issues. And it is the responsibility of your manager to address it.

You could also try to educate her by giving her some literature (short article, news item) on the affects of nuts on those with the allergy. She might not thank you for this, but who knows, something might sink in.

It sounds like she is backing herself into a corner of not being able to back track without ‘losing face’ though. She sounds awful, really ignorant.

Yes, when my son kept having allergic reactions at nursery, I put it down to his nut allergy. I asked the specialist team we saw whether we should ask the nursery to reinforce again that nuts shouldn't be in packed lunches. They said the nursery should be doing this anyway as children swap foods, however it is very unlikely to be airborne. It turns out he was allergic to kiwi which he only ever ate at nursery, and it stopped when they eliminated it. I'm not trying to be goady or saying that the OP isn't having an allergic reaction to nuts.

Lots of good advice on where e.g contacting ACAS. I agree with keeping a paper trail but would also say go backwards ie take pictures of the signs, get copies of any do the emails telling staff is the 'new' arrangements. they have already framed their duty of care and now it seems to me they are ignoring it by telling you to enforce.

I know you are worried about the fact that you are on probation however how long can you actually work there under these circumstances. Is this the employer for you? If you 'push' it you may get a positive result.

Good luck - we can help support you

You are right

But I would point out that nut bans in school are not recommended by Anaphylaxis UK

Reasearch f

" the Airborne exposure to peanuts did not produce severe reactionsMany people suffering from an allergy to peanuts are afraid to having a reaction to peanuts through the air. But a new study provides reassuring news.
Caroline Nilsson. Photo: Photo group Södersjukhuset.
Text: Ola Danielsson, first published in Swedish in the magazine Medicinsk Vetenskap no 2/2021.
In the worst case scenario, people suffering from an allergy to peanuts can have life-threatening symptoms. It is more unclear whether airborne exposure, e.g., being in the vicinity of peanuts, can also pose a risk to people suffering from an allergy to peanuts.
"Many allergy sufferers are concerned about airborne reactions," says Caroline Nilsson, a researcher at the Department of Clinical Science and Education, Södersjukhuset, Karolinska Institutet.
She has now tried to get to the bottom of the issue of airborne peanut allergy through a series of trials in which 84 children with peanut allergy participated. The children had to sit in front of bowl containing 300 grams of peanuts at a distance of half a metre. The bowl was subsequently removed and the child was observed for another hour.
"It went perfectly fine. Two of the children had mild symptoms, itching of the eyes, but no one else had any reaction," says Caroline Nilsson.
Other scientists have also tried to induce allergic airborne reactions from peanuts, but so far no one has succeeded. There is also no described case of severe reaction or death from peanuts via the air.
Peanuts. Photo: Pixabay.com
Caroline Nilsson, however, takes the experiences of airborne reactions seriously.
"If you have experienced a severe allergic reaction from ingesting peanuts through your food and later sense the distinct smell of peanuts, your body may have a reaction to this. The immune system can be activated and play a trick on you. However, this is not an allergic reaction and there are no severe symptoms that occur in that way," says Caroline Nilsson.
The substances that are perceived as the smell of peanuts are not the same substances that can trigger an allergic reaction.
"The odour molecules do not consist of proteins. They are simply the proteins that your are allergic to," says Caroline Nilsson.
However, the researchers were able to detect traces of peanut protein in the air using sensitive measurement methods, primarily at a distance of less than one centimetre around the peanuts.
"The amount of protein in the air is so small that it is unlikely to cause moderate or severe allergic reactions, something we have not seen in any of the participants in the study either.”
Reference: Clinical & Experimental Allergy, April 2021

Document ALL instances to date via email.

Contrast HSE

In your email explain the seriousness and give an ultimatum.

Collaborate with intern and have them send the same note

I can't believe the OP is being told they must be wheezy due to a dirty office! So the separate office has worked for months with no issue then this colleague returns and starts eating nuts in the room and OP has a reaction, but it's not related to her eating nuts! This has gone downhill fast.

OP you have to go to ACAS for advice and above your supervisor to next level.

Start recording everything as if they pay you off it will be disgusting. I'm absolutely in shock reading your post.