To be pissed off with this shop assistant?

[OnEdge]

Was in a Motorway Services today, 30 weeks preg, carrying 1 year old and handbag. i got to the till and sat my son on the counter in order to free my hands to remove my money from my bag. There was a young lad in early twenties on the till next to mine who immediately said

"You can`t sit the baby on the counter because it is a health and hygene risk!"

So I picked him up and fumbled about and the lady at my till had to get my money out of my bag for me.

But what really made me cross was the bloke had to take both of his hands out of his mouth in order to tell me because he had been really really chewing a nail, actually gnawing on one IYKWIM.

So I said in a MN huffy fashion

"And thats coming from a man serving the public and chewing his nails"

AIBU to be offended regarding my son being a health and hygene risk or would you have been too?

He was probably worried your son could fall off the counter. He should have said health and safety, not hygiene.

What did he reply to that one?

I don't think it's your son specifically that's a health and hygiene risk I dunno, bum on counter (clothed I assume!) doesn't sound like a massive risk to me, but what do I know?

Ah, that'll be it belled, he'd have meant health and safety.

Because h&s people think we're going to plonk our kids on high things and then stand back and watch them topple off like humpty dumpty or push them for funsies perhaps?

It has been known Hectate. The numpties that let their children stand up in the shopping trolleys have alot to answer for.

he was a trained jobsworth, he thought he would get a medal for services beyond the call of duty. Don't worry about it, he didn't mean to offend.

Hecate - you are on form tonight

OnEdge - yanbu.

You should have handed baby to him to hold

Unfortunately I am one of those people who have in the past had to tell people to remove their children from the thingy you slide trays along on, for both H&S and Hygiene [more concerned about shoes then their clothes] people stood their children on the 3 bars, and when they fell [quite a few did] we were always to blame] and to avoid the distinction of being sued twice for falling children we did not allow them stand on any surface other then the floor [no standing on chairs, tables etc] and when the parents got stroppy we asked them to give us a written note accepting all responsibility if their child was injured.
But as no one offered to help when giving you the advice YANB TOYALLY U.

If your kid had an accident and got injured he would get in serious trouble

Zombie!

I cannot see the problem with being on the counter. Parents who put their children inside a shopping trolley but not on the seat on the other hand......scum of the earth.

Yup. H& H safety rules come into play, i am still quite amazed every day to ask parents to not let children sit on the glass of amusement machines it can explode at any time & it’s quite distressing to take a child to hospital on holiday with skin covered in glass I honestly think they must do it at home. They look at you astounded as if it’s the normal