UK transport workers "routinely denied access to toilets"

Unite has released its research to coincide with World Toilet Day  (Tuesday 19 November) the theme for this year is ‘no one left behind’.

A recent survey of nearly 5,000 bus drivers, who are members of Unite, found that 83 per cent of them are “not supplied with a list of toilet facilities or a map should the need arise on routes”.

The lack of accessible toilet facilities on a bus route is a particularly important issue for bus drivers as shifts are regularly 5 and half hours long before they have a break from driving and forcing drivers to wait that long before using a toilet can cause serious health issues and can also result in them becoming distracted and losing concentration while driving.

A separate survey of over 4,000 lorry drivers also identified a major issue with a lack of access to toilets. The survey found that when asked the question; ‘when sleeping at a lay-by are you able to easily access toilet and washroom facilities’ 89 per cent of respondents said they rarely or never had access to such facilities.

Lorry drivers are regularly forced to sleep in lay-bys in order to comply with driving regulations due to the chronic lack of truck stops.

Unite assistant general secretary Diana Holland said: “Transport workers the length and breadth of the UK are being denied toilet dignity on a daily basis.

“Unite is using the opportunity of World Toilet Day to highlight this public health problem and this year’s slogan of no one being left behind is particularly apt as, transport workers are definitely being left behind when it comes to toilet dignity.

“The lack of access to toilets is simply intolerable and can and does result in our members developing severe health problems and in some cases being forced to quit their jobs due to medical conditions.

“This is an issue for all transport workers, but a lack of access to toilets for women when they have their period or are going through the menopause, or facilities where they risk abuse or sexual harassment, are more barriers faced by women working in this sector where they are already underrepresented.

“Employers have a clear legal duty to provide adequate toilets for their workers and Unite will be ensuring that those duties are met.

“No workers should be denied toilet dignity by either not having decent facilities or by not being able to freely access them. That is why Unite supports the global transport workers sanitation charter being launched for this World Toilet Day and we are calling on all employers to sign up and make a difference.”