Construction workers need flushing toilets, says BC trades group

Examples of a porta-pottie (left) and a washroom trailer (right). (Shutterstock)

As a measure to improve working conditions for people employed in the trades, BC Building Trades is urging the provincial government to mandate higher-quality temporary washroom facilities at construction sites.

Currently, construction workers at sites are forced to use porta potties, which are described to be far from ideal — “unsanitary, filthy, stinky, unlit,” and without any heating or cooling.

Human waste drops into an unsealed collection tank with a blue deodorizer liquid, and there are typically no other amenities or equipment that promote individual health safety and facility cleanliness.

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To address this, the organization — representing 22 craft construction unions and over 40,000 unionized workers across BC — is launching a campaign this week to require flushing toilets on larger construction projects with 25 on-site workers or more.

This threshold would align with the requirements in place in Quebec since 2015, which also mandates at least one toilet for every 30 workers, washrooms located within 500 ft of the site, and specific levels of maintenance, lighting, location, temperature, ventilation, supplies, and cleanliness.

As well, this past summer, Ontario’s provincial government also enacted major changes that doubled the number of on-site washrooms, required at least one women-only washroom, and improved quality relating to lighting, the provision of hand sanitizers when running water is not available, the complete enclosure of single toilets, and the maintenance of the facilities in a state of good repair.

“Construction workers have been faced with unsanitary and undignified washroom conditions for too long. We need the provincial government to step in and stand up for the people who build this province,” said Brynn Bourke, the executive director of the BC Building Trades Council, in a statement.

“After the pandemic, it became clear that construction companies are not willing to meaningfully improve sanitation conditions for construction workers. We need the provincial government to step in.”

Bourke says other industries such as film and television production and tourism have found ways to bring clean, flushing toilets to their mobile work sites.

The film and television production industry is known to use mobile trailers for their portable washroom needs at on-site filming locations. Such trailers provide not only single-stall toilets that flush into a contained sewage tank, but also air heating and cooling, hot and cold running water, and garbage bins.

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