Toilets in the workplace, in the office – design principles, regulations, guidelines

Toilets are among those rooms that are mandatory in every office and workplace. Regulations accurately specify such issues as their number, distance from workstations and equipment. Therefore, in order to ensure adequate sanitary conditions for employees, it is necessary to become thoroughly familiar with them.

Toilets in the workplace

Properly equipped restrooms in the workplace greatly affect employee satisfaction and comfort. They make a company perceived as caring about the people it employs, which translates directly into opinions about it. This is one of the elements that make a workplace can be perceived as attractive or not. Therefore, it is necessary to take care not only of the legally required elements of toilet equipment in the workplace, but also the aesthetic and ergonomic design of the room.

In addition, an adequate distance from the workplace restroom contributes to increased productivity. When an employee can satisfy his physiological needs at any time without having to travel long distances and wait in lines, he can better focus on performing his duties.

Work comfort is also improved when the bathroom is additionally equipped with a shower. While providing one is a necessity for places where manual labor is performed, it is worth considering installing them in office bathrooms as well. In particular, staff who have direct contact with customers should be able to refresh themselves before work. This is important not only in summer – such solutions are also appreciated by people who, for example, commute to work on bicycles.

Toilets in the workplace – regulations

According to regulations, toilets in the workplace must, above all, be easily accessible and open at all times. The room can be opened with a key or special card, but in this situation all employees should have them.

Easy access to a restroom in terms of labor law means, first and foremost:

• adequate distance – the staff toilet, according to regulations, must not be more than 75 from the workplace. The exception is when the work is performed outdoors. Then the distance from the workplace to the toilet can be up to 125 meters.
• The location of hygiene and sanitary facilities in the same building as the workplace. The law allows the situation where they are located in another building – then these must be connected by a passage that eliminates the need to go outside. If one passes between heated rooms, the passage must also be heated.
• Placing toilets on each floor where employees are located. The exception is those floors where less than ten people work. According to the regulations, then it is sufficient to have access to toilets in the workplace located on the nearest floor.

In addition, employees should be allowed to enter the bathrooms directly from the passageways. At the same time, toilets in the office must be separated by a room with washbasins. The ideal situation is also to equip bathrooms with self-closing doors.

In terms of toilets, the Labor Code also specifies that the room where the bathroom is located must be:

• heated,
• ventilated in accordance with current building standards,
• well-lit,
• not lower than 2.2 m,
• lined (walls and floors) with ceramic tiles or moisture-resistant stoneware.

According to the Labor Code, free use of a restroom that is easily accessible and properly equipped is one of the basic rights of employees. The above cannot be neglected – if this happens, by law, personnel have the right to refuse to perform their professional duties. In a situation where it is not possible to provide such a room (for example, in the case of work performed outdoors), the regulations allow the use of portable toilets.

Toilets in the workplace – technical conditions

According to the Decree of the Minister of Infrastructure, rooms intended for toilets in the workplace must meet specific technical conditions. The minimum dimensions of the room, the width of the door, the height of the walls and partitions and other issues are specified.

A single toilet cubicle (so-called separate toilet) in a toilet that is not adapted to the needs of people with disabilities must be at least 90 cm wide. In front of the toilet bowl there must be a clear space of min. 90×60 cm in plan view. In the case of a toilet at work, it is possible to install sinks in the toilet cubicles. In such a situation, the aforementioned area also serves as a space in front of the washbasin.

The doors – whether to the toilet, the vestibule, or the entire bathroom – must open to the outside of the room. Their minimum width is 0.8 meters (0.9 in the case of toilets for people with disabilities), and their height is 2 meters. In addition, they must be equipped with openings located in their lower part. The cross-section of the openings must be a minimum of 220 square centimeters.

The vestibule must be separated from the cabin room by a full-height wall. Only washbasins can be installed in it. Similarly, the partitions separating the women’s and men’s toilets must be full height walls for the full height of the room.

Other technical conditions that toilets for employees must meet are specified in the Ordinance of the Minister of Labor and Social Policy of September 26, 1997; according to it, when toilet cubicles are placed on one side, the width of the passage next to them must be at least 1.3 meters. On the other hand, in rooms where urinals are to be placed opposite the cubicles or rows of cubicles are arranged opposite each other, the width of the passage should not be less than 2 meters.

When planning the installation of a toilet at work in a compliant manner, it is important to keep in mind that they specify only the minimum necessary to move around the premises. In practice, if at all possible, bathroom spaces should be larger – especially in cubicles.

Number of toilets in the workplace

The number of toilets in a workplace must be matched to the number of employees. When planning it, you need to take into account whether the employees are women alone, men alone, or people of any gender. This is because, like locker rooms, sanitary facilities, washrooms or shower rooms must be separate for men and women.

How many toilets there are per employee therefore depends on the number of employees and their gender. According to § 28 of the regulation:

?1. There shall be at least one toilet bowl and one urinal for every thirty men employed on one shift, but not less than one bowl and one urinal with fewer employees.
2. There shall be one toilet bowl for every twenty women employed on one shift, but not less than one bowl with fewer employees?

Not only the number of restrooms for employees is also important. Regulations also regulate washrooms. For administrative and office workers, there must be one washroom for every 30 men and one for every 20 women. On the other hand, for dirty work (including construction) and work involving exposure to harmful substances, there should be one washbasin for up to five people.

In workplaces where showers should be provided, there should be one cubicle for no more than eight people. On the other hand, in places where personnel are exposed to infectious, radioactive, irritating, allergenic, dusty or odorous substances during their work, a minimum of one cubicle for every five people should be provided.

Toilets in the workplace – sanitary guidelines

According to sanitary guidelines, the dimensions of the toilet in the office described above should allow free movement inside. However, the height of the room is also important. It should not be less than 2.5 meters. If the toilet is located in the attic, basement or cellar, it can be lower – the regulations allow it to be lowered to 2.2 meters, provided that it is equipped with mechanical supply and exhaust ventilation.

There are also guidelines for the height of toilet installation at work. The standards also specify at what height other fixtures, such as hand towel containers and bathroom fixtures, must be located. For example, the installation height of a toilet in an office or other workplace must be such that the toilet seat is 40 cm above the ground.

Shared restroom for employees and customers

According to the Regulation of the Minister of Infrastructure of April 12, 2002 on the technical conditions to which buildings and their location should conform, workplaces and public buildings must have public toilets. These can be shared toilets for employees and customers – in the case of office spaces, there is no need to designate separate rooms for staff.

According to the Ordinance, workplace toilets can be coeducational only in places where fewer than 10 people work per shift.

Workplace bathroom design

A good workplace bathroom design emphasizes more than just meeting regulatory requirements. It is especially important that the room is hygienic and safe. To this end, all finishing materials and fixtures must be easy to keep clean. Good solutions include:

• Finish the walls with hydrophobic tiles or paints that are resistant to water, mold and stains,
• durable and water-resistant materials, such as stoneware or architectural concrete,
• Flush-mounted fixtures – no unsightly scale deposits form on them,
• Flangeless toilet bowls – in this type of toilet seats there are no hard-to-reach nooks and crannies, so they are easier to keep clean.

The design of the bathroom at work should assume not only the necessary minimum. It is important to match the equipment to the specifics of the company and staff. For example, if there are young parents among the employees, or the restroom may also be used by customers, it is worth including such equipment as folding wall changing tables.

More and more companies are also choosing to incorporate equipment such as flushing toilets, thermostatic faucets and waterless flush urinals into their office bathroom design. These solutions reduce the use of utilities and toilet paper – so they are not only eco-friendly, but also economical.

The ideally designed bathroom in the office combines functionality and aesthetic aspects. The use of designer appliances and materials makes it become not only a place where one takes care of physiological needs, but also a kind of asylum, providing a moment of solitude in a pleasant environment.