Men in women's changing rooms

[Moggyd]

Just been into Marks and Spencer's changing rooms and there was a man sat outside the cubicle waiting for his partner. Right next to the big mirror where you come out and look. I didn't feel comfortable at all and wouldn't come out of the cubicle to show my friend the dress. I spoke to the member of staff and she said it was a recent change and men can go into the what was ladies changing rooms now because a few men have kicked off recently when refused entry. I feel pretty angry about this. Interestingly there was a sticker inside my friend's changing room as attached. Not put there by Marks. What do others think?

Not in the changing room but I wait for my wife outside in case she wants a 2nd opinion as she often does. I rarely try on stuff but when i do she waits outside - works for us.

As long as you have a couple, not a prob with us.

I understand from someone unfortunate enough to work for M & S that they are having to work very hard to keep their name out of the press in relation to incidents of indecent exposure and secret filming of women in their mixed sex changing rooms. Much like the NHS who denied the rape of a woman because they defined the transwoman responsible as a woman.

Using postcodes rather than the name of the store, not taking responsibility for calling the police unless the woman is insistent etc. It's worth women who are targeted in this way being insistent that the incident is reported to the police and using the name of the store in any witness statement.

Who could possibly have foreseen that?

I wouldn’t be certain that their wives really want them there either, but can’t (daren’t ?) say no

I work in retail and I asked a man politely to leave the womens changing room last week . He had his wife an teen boys in there . He had a right go at me saying I made him look like a perv ...

Err you do that yourself mate .. its a joint kids and womens but he had no need to go in because his wife was there .. also the teen boys ffs ! There is a super comfy sofa outside which I directed him too but I did think I'd get a complaint!!

What is wrong with some men !

@Treaclemine I think you are confused about the abbreviations. Most (normal) people are GC.

I was in a queue at primary, lots of women, one man. I’ve asked the staff, a young girl, about 20, if they have single sex changing rooms. And she said not anymore.

I asked her if she can raise it with her manager that customers like myself are not ok with this.

she said she understands and the managers know, other women have complained, they even had an incident with a man a few weeks before (didn’t say what happened).

She looked apologetic and i believe all women in the queue agreed with me, they were all interested in what the employee had to say, not one said anything about “inclusivity”. The man looked embarrassed, red in the face. He was an older man, around 50. I wasn’t talking about him specifically and I understand there was no changing room that he could have gone to to spare the women, but I have a little girl and me myself I’m not comfortable anyway.

so it’s not just M&S, it’s primary and Monsoon etc. I plan to either not go or complain to the staff each time I go. And the more I speak, the more other women will speak, and more men will get embarrassed and hopefully start speaking too.

so far there are willing to put up with crimes against women then take the side of women. So all of us need to speak at every opportunity.

*Primark and in Brighton btw which is supposed to be the UK capital of woke. Not for everyday women, I can tell you.

It couldn't be any plainer - "we know women hate it and that it goes wrong for women.... but male people want it and we're too scared to say no to them".

Male supremacism. Front and centre. Apologetic in many cases, but this is what this is. When a male right to not hear 'no' regardless of agenda comes before a female right to..... anything at all.

@ImherewithBoudica I think we need to organise to go in groups to these stores and complain, see if more women join, ask to see the managers and get them to explain to us why our safety and dignity is not important to them.

And film it too, for posterity. Light is the best disinfectant, as they say.

there is a lot of support and agreement but we’re too quiet. I doubt men would be doing the same if there was an issue this damaging to them

Not sure why your wife can't go outside the changing room area if she needs to show you what she has tried on, nor why you think that your (and her) wishes trump the rights of women to have a women-only space. Very selfish.

@CristinaNov182
I agree that boycotting will achieve very little unless there is publicity with it.
The numbers who have stopped shopping in M&S or who only shop online are too small

Perhaps I could get staff member to assure me that they will keep the space female only for me, then get a male friend to demand to come in and see how it’s dealt with?
We could a generate a huge public row and get security involved

I think it would be great to organise something like that @CristinaNov182

www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/cctv-released-after-man-exposed-14449259.amp

Just found this. I messaged Marks and got the same old reply. I've sent the above link and asked them how this could have happened due to their "safe" lockable cubicles. Let's see what they say.

www.express.co.uk/news/uk/723889/Marks-Spencer-executive-repeatedly-exposed-himself-female-colleagues/amp

Also this. M&S boss flashing at employees. Starts from the top folks.

Well done, Buttons, and thanks for doing this. I admire you for standing your ground when the man predictably got aggressive.

@buttons123456 Thank you. We need more women like you to stand up to these inappropriate men. It's not easy but we all need to stand together.

I hate men going in there , there is zero need . I send mine men with kids up to the mens disabled changing rooms .
Some of them are so entitled .. I clear the changing rooms half hourly and I've seen every bit if women because they don't close the curtain properly but you wouldn't expect a man to be in there would you !

Good grief. It has to be asked whether this executive "Health and safety" officer was in a position to influence the removal of safe single sex changing rooms for women. Experience shows that a number of predatory men are able to influence this in institutions.
The fact that 6 different women were unable to report him for this level of abuse says a lot about the culture at M & S and how unsafe women staff must feel.

Tralalalalalalalalalala, I am not in the least confused about the GC abbreviation, and my friend is, I think, perfectly normal, especially if it is normal to respond to news about the doings of TRAs with anger and the announcement that this has to stop. But a few decades back, he had not grasped that what is normal for a woman might be different from what is normal for a man, who would not need to look at Triumph Doreen bras. Which he would not have done.

what??

The imagery of a whole queue with handfuls of clothes all discovering that the changing rooms are not safe for them and handing them to the member of staff and leaving sounds like it would be quite powerful.

I would feel bad for the member of staff but would hope that they’d take the message back to management. None of these stores will get a penny of my money again.

@Raul57 I do hope you mean actually outside the actually fitting room structure don't you? ie waiting in the main shopping area.

Tralalalalalalalalalala, Oh, for goodness sake! I thought it was funny. I could say more but you clearly have problems with my use of English, so I won't.

<joining in slow hand clap>