Please Relieve Me, Let Me Go
The work ethic of Ebenezer Scrooge appears alive and well in Scotland. The Scotsman reports that meat supplier Brown Brothers has recently negotiated a small pay increase with its workforce in exchange for a Dickensian agreement whereby employees only visit the loo at set times.
MD 'wee' Martin Godfrey (who evidently took the Ghengis Khan MBA programme) commented that "...unscheduled toilet breaks could cause significant disruption
is it not better to come up with a deal to discourage that from happening?" adding "they have already been paid to manage their own lavatorial affairs".
Production workers spending a penny outside allotted times will, on average, be deducted an hour's wage of GBP 5.86 a week. It is not clear whether these restrictions extend to management 'comfort breaks'. Amazingly, Brown Brothers have acted lawfully, successfully exploiting a 'loo'phole in the various H&S rules and regulations that states that whilst employers are obliged to provide suitable rest facilities, they aren't obliged to let employees use them.
Evidently, peeing as a privilege not a right on paid work time isn't restricted to the UK. In the US, the Bureau of National Affairs recently highlighted a rise in the wearing of adult nappies on production lines, and came across a company that discouraged employees from drinking during work hours to reduce the need for toilet breaks. In Sweden 15,000 bus drivers have staged a successful 13-day strike over the length of time they can spend in the loo.
Volvo are declining to comment on reports that in the future, drivers seats will have a fully integrated cistern.
So next time you feel the urge to moan about the size of your bonus, spare a thought for those workers who literally feeling a squeeze.
Production workers spending a penny outside allotted times will, on average, be deducted an hour's wage of GBP 5.86 a week. It is not clear whether these restrictions extend to management 'comfort breaks'. Amazingly, Brown Brothers have acted lawfully, successfully exploiting a 'loo'phole in the various H&S rules and regulations that states that whilst employers are obliged to provide suitable rest facilities, they aren't obliged to let employees use them.
Evidently, peeing as a privilege not a right on paid work time isn't restricted to the UK. In the US, the Bureau of National Affairs recently highlighted a rise in the wearing of adult nappies on production lines, and came across a company that discouraged employees from drinking during work hours to reduce the need for toilet breaks. In Sweden 15,000 bus drivers have staged a successful 13-day strike over the length of time they can spend in the loo.
Volvo are declining to comment on reports that in the future, drivers seats will have a fully integrated cistern.
So next time you feel the urge to moan about the size of your bonus, spare a thought for those workers who literally feeling a squeeze.
Here Is The Writer : Martin Gallagher
Martin Gallagher has never played for West Ham or England, nor had a number one hit single, but he has worked in the City for many years (for what that's worth). A life-long Londoner, he made the migration from east to west a few years back and is still trying to get used to the absence of fried chicken takeaways and the over abdundance of coffee shops. Martin is married, has two daughters, and is also interested in travelling, football and writing. He hopes to publish his first novel 'sometime in the future'.
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