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?

Sorry, who are we talking about now ? I was talking about the manager who has refused to do anything about it. He’s a manager, it’s his responsibility to step up and sort it out. It’s a matter of law and not for the employees to ‘sort out amongst themselves’. If he’s lacking in confidence or misinformed then perhaps he’s not suitable for a management position. Doesn’t help the OP.

@Yewdontknowme get this in writing somehow, eg. Email your manager outlining the situation and asking what they can do to solve it, and then give ACAS a ring. This is a clear cut case of disability discrimination.

Oh piss off.

No. You only call an ambulance if you need one ffs.

You are telling the OP to cry wolf and run risk of not getting an ambulance in the case of actual full anaphylactic shock.

Again, bad advice.

You can’t fake anaphylaxis. A seizure is nothing like anaphylaxis.

Advice like this is literally why people with nut allergies don’t get taken seriously.

Im sorry about your friend.

At no point did the OP say that the allergy was airborne so I'm not sure why posters are harping on about this being impossible.

@RandomButtons yesssss but they obviously have no idea about allergies so that would never know 😂😂 you could take bleeding from the mouth and say it was the allergy and they'd probably be none the wiser

This is the worst and most irresponsible piece of advice on the thread - OP, please ignore it. The body’s response to a nut allergy isn’t a seizure - it’s anaphylaxis, which involves physiological responses and symptoms, including choking. Faking it would result in the employer calling an ambulance, and the paramedics would immediately know that it wasn’t real. Then the OP would be sacked. And rightly. There are established legal routes to go down to have the situation easily resolved. This is not one of them and you should be ashamed of yourself for suggesting it.

Agreed. Plus it would mean an ambulance wasn't available for someone who does need it

YANBU

take some proper legal advice. Your work have a duty to manage workplace health risks and make adjustments.

the other woman has not been discriminated against. What a vile woman

The fact people are taking what I said as serious and literal .....

😂😂😂

Ah, I was talking about those calling the OP spineless. The manager is not up to the job, I agree.

OP you are getting some really bad advice here.

You need to talk plainly with your manager and explain the severity of the situation. Personally I’d phone Anaphylaxis U.K. as a starting point - they have given us excellent and helpful advice in the past when childcare settings refused to keep the child’s epipens in the building. They are the best placed to advise you on workplace laws and what you can do to keep yourself safe. https://www.anaphylaxis.org.uk/

A child was due to be starting school in reception a few years ago- we were informed that he had a nut allergy. Head teacher decided we were to be a nut free school. Everyone - staff, children, visitors and parents were told that anything including nuts was not allowed on the premises. It was not a difficult choice and everyone got used to it. No fuss, just care. We even researched whether conkers were ok to have on displays in autumn. Your co worker could easily find other things to eat if she tried.

This is a health and safety issue. You don't need a solicitor yet but there are several actions you should take and if your employer still fails to act, you should then consult a solicitor.

Firstly, as PPs have said, write everything down. Note dates, times and details of incidents and conversations with your colleague and manager(s). Email the notes to yourself. If you have conversations with your manager, follow up with an email confirming what was discussed.

Secondly, you need to raise a grievance. Write them a letter (or email) and enclose/attach medical evidence of your allergy. Point out that they have a legal duty of care and this includes following health and safety legislation. Summarise what's happened so far. Ask them to complete an urgent risk assessment and send you a copy. Point out that if they do not take appropriate action you will need to seek further advice (up to you whether you specifically mention Acas, a solicitor and/or the HSE at that point). Send to your line manager and their line manager.

Read these links too:

https://www.acas.org.uk/employment-contracts-and-the-law/employer-and-employee-duties

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/work/grievance-meetings/dealing-with-grievances-at-work/

We missed the “lol” at the end of your post. Because it wasn’t there.

Don’t joke about with anaphylaxis.

If you’re not serious, then don’t post it. But don’t come back and try to make light of it just because you’ve been called out on it - better to ask MN to delete it. There’s an old saying. Better to keep quiet for fear of being thought a fool, than to open your mouth and have it confirmed.

I think it's important because people tend to assume nut allergies are airborne, which leads to incorrect steps to combat the risk of exposure like the PP suggesting OP open the windows - that will likely accomplish nothing.

If reactions aren't airborne, then it's fine for people to eat nuts in the same room as someone with an allergy as long as they take appropriate steps like wiping down all surfaces with an appropriate product (nuts aren't bacteria so alcohol heavy anti bac sprays will do a much worse job than something soapy). In practice that can be difficult to catch everything (door and drawer handles for example) but with enough care it's possible. Doesn't sound like OP's colleague will do that though.

Since when does the choice to be vegan/veggie trump an actual allergy which no one chooses?

Contacting HSE a good shout too

OP doesn’t need to do any of this. And, as you rightly say, she doesn’t need a solicitor. She has a qualifying disability under the Equality Act 2010 which the employer is clearly aware of as they have already made a reasonable adjustment under the Act by banning the eating of nuts in her office. As per my post upthread, she now needs to make her employer aware of the consequences under the Act if they don’t take action to enforce the protected workspace they’ve created. You’re right in that it’s a health and safety issue, but the Equality Act is a quicker route to resolving the issue.

Exactly this.

Posters are suggesting that the OP is making it up or must be allergic to something else as the allergy can't be airborne.

That is excellent. What a well put together and balanced resource

I'm always curious about this. Why for nut allergies but not milk (for instance)? Most fatal anaphylaxis in children is from milk. Yet my son's school failed to ring me when cheese was thrown at him but call me every time someone eats a peanut butter sandwich (and he's not even allergic to peanuts)

(I mean I know the answer, too hard to ban milk, but its far better to ensure people are trained in first aid and safe procedures than ban one product and then think the school will be safe)