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76
The above cases represent a class of workshop of which there is
a large number in the Borough of Hackney. They exhibit very
very plainly some of the difficulties in the administration of those
parts of the Factories and Workshops Acts relating to the provision
of sanitary conveniences, especially having regard to the requirement
of separate conveniences for the sexes.
Is it reasonable or requisite to enforce separate accommodation
when the number of a particular sex does not exceed those in the
above quoted cases, the number of persons of the opposite sex being
small also? If it is not reasonable or requisite, then—1st, a
standard should either be fixed by law, i.e., it should be definitely
laid down whether one, two or more females may, having regard to
decency, use the same sanitary conveniences provided for males,
where the number of males does not exceed a certain number; or
one, two or more males may, under the same circumstances, use
the sanitary conveniences provided for females. 2nd. Or the
difficulty might be met by giving power to the local authority to
exercise some discretion in this question of the separation of the
sexes, the same as they may in regard to the sufficiency and
suitability of sanitary accommodation for dwellings : and a strong
argument for allowing such discretion may be found in the fact that
we are really dealing in many instances with dwelling houses, a
part of which is used as a workshop or workplace. 3rd. If neither
of these suggestions is adopted, it should definitely be declared that
separate accommodation must be provided even for a single male or
a single female if employed with persons of the opposite sex.
In many cases where employers of labour have been called upon
to provide separate conveniences where one or two females have
been employed with a larger number of males, and vice-versa, the
employers have dismissed the females or males, retaining only
persons of one sex in their employment. In other cases employers
have made arrangements with the owners of neighbouring property
for the sanitary conveniences there to be at their disposal for the
use of the one or two males or females for whom no separate