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Do employee bathrooms have to have cellphone signal?

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mercale88

New member
What is the name of your state? California

We just got into a new building. Some employees have noticed that you can't get a cellphone signal in the bathroom. I'm guessing its something to do with the material in the walls. They are saying it's a safety issue and bathrooms need to have cell signal and it needs to be fixed.
 


T

Taxing Matters

Overtaxed Member
There is no federal law that mandates cell phone reception in a bathroom and no state has such a law so far as I am aware. Typically the requirements for building standards are set locally by the county/city in which the city is located. While cell phones are everywhere today there are still gaps in coverage and what coverage areas are provided are largely left to the cell phone provider and customers to work out. If the building codes require the bathroom to be built as it is there isn't going to be a way to force either the building owner or the cell carrier to provide coverage in there. Moreover, some buildings/businesses specifically exclude bathrooms from cell phone coverage as a privacy issue.
 
Z

zddoodah

Active Member
mercale88 said:
We just got into a new building.
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"We" being...your employer, I assume.


mercale88 said:
Some employees have noticed that you can't get a cellphone signal in the bathroom. I'm guessing its something to do with the material in the walls. They are saying it's a safety issue and bathrooms need to have cell signal and it needs to be fixed.
Click to expand...

They can say whatever they like, but that doesn't make it so.


mercale88 said:
Do employee bathrooms have to have cellphone signal?
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No (and, frankly, the very notion that there might be a legal requirement about this is patently absurd).
 
M

mercale88

New member
zddoodah said:
"We" being...your employer, I assume.




They can say whatever they like, but that doesn't make it so.




No (and, frankly, the very notion that there might be a legal requirement about this is patently absurd).
Click to expand...

No, I meant we as in the owners.
 
cbg

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
I reviewed the state building codes. There is no such requirement. Your employees are wrong.
 
quincy

quincy

Senior Member
mercale88 said:
What is the name of your state? California

We just got into a new building. Some employees have noticed that you can't get a cellphone signal in the bathroom. I'm guessing its something to do with the material in the walls. They are saying it's a safety issue and bathrooms need to have cell signal and it needs to be fixed.
Click to expand...
Why would some of your employees find the restrooms unsafe?
 
quincy

quincy

Senior Member
mercale88 said:
Because they can't call for help from in there.
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How far away from the offices are the bathrooms? And why would employees be afraid they might need to call for help? Do you employ especially vulnerable workers or especially violent workers?

I see far more problems with cell phones in bathrooms (e.g., invasion of privacy issues).

Whatever the case, like the others have said, unless there is an odd local ordinance, there does not appear to be any law requiring bathrooms have cell service.
 
M

mercale88

New member
quincy said:
How far away from the offices are the bathrooms? And why would employees be afraid they might need to call for help? Do you employ especially vulnerable workers or especially violent workers?

I see far more problems with cell phones in bathrooms (e.g., invasion of privacy issues).

Whatever the case, like the others have said, unless there is an odd local ordinance, there does not appear to be any law requiring bathrooms have cell service.
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We don't have offices. The example they used was a medical emergency.
 
B

Bali Hai Again

Active Member
quincy said:
Tell them if they fear they will experience a medical emergency while going to the bathroom, they can take a buddy into the restroom with them.
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That would require a 2X’s larger restroom and further loss of productivity. I believe the issue is that management is concerned that employees will spend too much time in the restroom playing on their phones if cell service is available and not doing their jobs. I once had a manager who positioned his office to keep track of the use of the restrooms and the time clock before cell phones.
 
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