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Work Changes

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  • 22-04-2011 12:01am
    #1
    LegacyUser
    Registered Users Posts: 166,026 ✭✭✭✭


    Just a couple of questions. I work in a hospital/nursing home in Galway.

    The hospital have implemented some things I dont agree with. Wondering where I stand with a couple of issues.

    There's now a staff changing room where all staff are now meant to change at the beginning and end of work. This is a room with no individual changing booths, so I'm expected to get changed in front of other staff members. A lot of people start and finish at a certain time so this room will be packed at this time of the day. Can they force me to use this changing room?

    Also, we have been informed we cant wear our uniform in and have to change into it when we get to work. The uniform was bought by myself, not the hospital so have they right to tell me I can't put it on until I get to work?


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    #2
    LegacyUser
    Registered Users Posts: 166,026 ✭✭✭✭LegacyUser


    No one any ideas?


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    #3
    LegacyUser
    Registered Users Posts: 166,026 ✭✭✭✭LegacyUser


    hospitalw wrote: »
    There's now a staff changing room where all staff are now meant to change at the beginning and end of work. This is a room with no individual changing booths, so I'm expected to get changed in front of other staff members. A lot of people start and finish at a certain time so this room will be packed at this time of the day. Can they force me to use this changing room?

    Well, this is certainly not something that I would be comfortable with, and I would request management to install some sort of makeshift cubicles - it really should not be a major or expensive operation at all. Not sure what the legal view would be, but I think you should definitely consider raising this with management. In the meantime, surely there's another room somewhere you could go to to get changed?
    hospitalw wrote: »
    Also, we have been informed we cant wear our uniform in and have to change into it when we get to work. The uniform was bought by myself, not the hospital so have they right to tell me I can't put it on until I get to work?

    A pet hate of mine is seeing nursing staff wearing their uniforms outside of a hospital/nursing home/whatever. I've seen them nurses outside smoking, or eating in restaurants, etc, wearing these, and then going into work. Is this not a pretty major health and safety issue? I sincerely doubt the fact that you bought it yourself should come into play (consider this - just because you bought it yourself, should you be allowed to never wash it, if you didn't want to?) It makes sense that if you wear your uniform in the premises only, you are minimising the amount of germs being brought into the centre from outside.


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    #4
    problemchimp
    Registered Users Posts: 1,025 ✭✭✭problemchimp


    Is the changing room mixed? If not, then what is the problem?
    Maybe wearing the uniform into work increases the risk of germs, although I have based this assumption on nothing whatsoever.


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    #5
    tenchi-fan
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,339 ✭✭✭tenchi-fan


    problemchimp wrote: »
    although I have based this assumption on nothing whatsoever.

    It's a pretty good guess.

    Op, communal changing rooms are pretty standard and I doubt your employer is doing anything wrong or which violates your contract or employment laws. Of course, there should be one changing room for men and another for women.

    Gyms, secondary schools, and any place I worked in that had a changing room (Dunnes stores for example) didn't provide people with private booths for changing in.

    It sounds like you have body image issues. Maybe discuss this with a manager or HR and ask can they accommodate you (it may be considered a disability, therefore managers should approach it with sensitivity)

    You second question, about "can they stop you from taking the uniform home" is a bit of a smokescreen. The answer, however, is that they're probably looking at things from a health and safety point of view. I doubt you'd wear your work clothes around the house so it's not entirely unreasonable for them to ask you to leave them at work for hygiene reasons.


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