User pay concept
The reason for charging money is to offset maintenance
The use of toilets is emphatically important for everyone at all places, however, it comes at huge costs so we are to be considerate to support the businesses that do care about public health in many ways.
– Keshwa N Krishna
THE ‘user-pay’ toilets were built around 74 AD in Rome towards the first century BCE in Europe, Latin America, and the USA.
The charge is often collected by an attendant or by inserting coins, in some freestanding toilets in the street, the fee is inserted into a slot by the door. Mechanical coin-operated locks are also used. Some more hightech toilets accept card or contactless payments.
Sometimes, a token card be used to enter a pay toilet without paying the charge. Some municipalities offer these tokens to residents with disabilities so these groups aren’t discriminated against by the pay toilet.
Some establishments such as cafés and restaurants offer tokens to their customers so they can use the toilets for free, but other users must pay the relevant charge.
United Nations’ resolutions on the convention declare the use of public convenience as a human right which means that a State is obligated to create the conditions to ensure it is affordable to rich and poor alike.
Before it was a practice in many places toilets were used free at the expense of the owners or occupiers in most public places. This is exemplified from the time of British rule in many countries they governed from time immemorial.
However, these facilities were kept in a state of mediocre conditions with high costs of maintenance and vandalism. Costs were met by the government or statutory institutions serving the members of the public during official working hours.
In developed countries, the user pay concept of toilets was introduced to ensure better hygiene facilities were provided to clients/consumers as part of expectations for uses such as showers with towels, soap, and other basic needs.
Toilets may be located either inside/outside a building, e.g. a shopping mall, department store, or at the bus station.
The reason for charging money is usually to offset the maintenance caused by damages to pipes and fittings, equipment. Offsetting the costs of purchasing sanitary napkins and other essential hygienic needs, and paying the attendants.
Fiji
Here in Fiji, there have been a lot of concerns raised by members of the public for many years regarding the conditions of toilets/lavatories in government institutions and major shopping outlets in the country.
It means a lot to do with provisions of tissue paper, disinfectants/sanitisers, soaps with hand towels, and hot/cold water. Needless to mention, these are expensive commodities to provide, and in addition to employing fulltime workers looking after the convenience for say six to seven days per week. If costs are calculated annually, which may be more than thousands of dollars.
In addition to other costs in the washrooms, there are frequent vandalism and thefts. Toilets are mandatory and required to be provided in supermarkets, hospitals, sports stadiums, and maybe other places where thousands flock together at a particular time, and the use of lavatories is necessary.
In some outlets, the use of toilets is free, and also user pay at a few places of business. In the case of eateries and supermarkets, much time is spent with their families, the consumers derive benefits such as discounts on many food items and buyers may save a lot.
Laws
There are sanitary laws in the country, the Public Health Act and Regulations, Occupational Health and Safety, including other guidelines provided by the World Health Organization and the International Labor Organization.
These laws and guidelines are provided to ensure that sanitation is well maintained at all business premises or workplaces with the responsibilities given to the owner/occupier of the premises. Under the Public Health Act, Cap 111, Section 127 (3), (4) private toilets are required for either sex in all public places exceeding 12 persons.
In addition, extra facilities are provided for females with babies to change napkins. Separate bin for sanitary napkins for females, and washing facility for babies.
Full-time attendants are employed at municipal bus stands and other suitable locations by the municipalities to ensure public health and safety are maintained always, but their use is confined to late evenings.
The use of toilets is emphatically important for everyone at all places, however, it comes at huge costs to the providers, so we are to be considerate to support the businesses that do care about public health in many ways.
All the local authorities (rural/urban) are mandated under the Public Health Act, Regulation
36 to ensure its compliance.
There are other areas of concern such as providing garbage bins and their collection and disposal at regular intervals.
The damages that may occur to many facilities and regular cleansing and disinfection are other areas of concern.
These are other added costs.
Conclusion
Moreover, there are no specific laws on the use of the user pay concept in Fiji, however, there are companies that have already started charging customers and people are happier to use a clean and safer place to use these.
On the other hand, many companies are providing these services for free. The laws in Fiji do not mention anything about charges etc.
Guidelines from the Central Board of Health, within the Health Ministry, may be necessary to support this concept arbitrarily.
It may be better to introduce this concept in major institutions, but to be considerate of those who may be disabled or poor. In the end health and safety with the concept of a healthy environment are enhanced.