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Do you have suggestions for handling a shared bathroom where people aren’t washing their hands? We are not the only employer on this floor. I have had three gentlemen approach me saying that there are men on our floor who do not wash their hands, both from our office and the other office. The other office on our floor has guests visit regularly due to the nature of their business.

My complainers want to put a funny but direct sign in the bathroom. While it’s quite the ick factor, I can’t control people’s hygiene, and I certainly have no control over the other suite or their guests’ behavior. Do we put a polite “please wash hands” sign? Ask the building to? Let it go? The sign my employees want would definitely be off-putting to the other suites’ clientele. Why is this an HR thing?

People love to complain that HR acts like schoolmarms, because we’re constantly correcting and proclaiming judgments and stopping all the fun. But then, rather than speaking up to their coworkers and saying, “Dude, you didn’t wash your hands,” they come running to HR to solve their problems. The irony is not lost on me.

So that’s my first suggestion. Tell your complainers to speak up when they see it: “Hey, wash your hands!”

I know, I know, some people aren’t comfortable doing this. What if it’s the boss who isn’t washing up? It isn’t easy for you to tell the boss to wash his hands. (They don’t have a module on hand washing conversations in HR grad school, though they probably should, along with the “deodorant is your friend” class.)

While I’m not opposed to a funny sign (clean hands prevent awkward HR conversations about “personal hygiene concerns”), I also know that the people who aren’t washing their hands aren’t doing it because no one has ever told them to wash their hands.

It’s not like they see “Employees must wash their hands before returning to work” and go, “OH, MY WORD! I’m supposed to wash my hands?”

No, they know. And for whatever reason, they don’t care. So, here are some suggestions beyond telling your employees to speak up.

Spread the burden, not the germs

This has fallen into your lap, but there is another company involved. While you certainly aren’t responsible for their employees, everyone is touching the same door handles.

If you have a good relationship with this business, wander over and speak to your direct counterpart. While it would be great to move this to an operations problem, keeping it in HR makes sense since you’re HR.

Don’t go over and attack. (Why are your employees and clients not washing their hands? Didn’t they go to kindergarten?) Go over and say, “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we’ve been struggling to get everyone to wash their hands when they use the bathroom. I know you’re having the same problem with your employees and clients. Any suggestions?”

Two heads may be better than one. The other company’s HR head may be horrified and want to speak to the men from her company, and you can talk to the men from your company. That’s the best you can do.

Remember the law

From your question, it doesn’t seem like you work in food preparation or health care, but if you do, there are laws surrounding handwashing. California’s are particularly detailed, requiring washing hands before touching food and after sneezing, for instance.

If you fall under those rules, then you need to ignore my other suggestions and crack down on everyone, because the last thing you need is an outbreak of norovirus or fines for noncompliance.

Just let it go

While I agree that non-handwashers are gross, the reality is that life is gross. Most people don’t wash their hands with soap and water for 20 seconds. Most people don’t wash their hands every time they come in from outside, run to the store, or sneeze.

And we’re all still alive.

I know that it can be a serious problem. I got a terrible stomach bug this summer while on a trip to South Africa. I don’t know whether it was food poisoning or a virus, but I do know I washed my hands frequently on that trip.

We touch stuff all day long that many other people have touched. And we know that 20 percent of people don’t wash their hands after going to the bathroom. Add in all the other gross stuff that we touch. (I just realized I have no idea the last time I cleaned my keyboard.)

So tell your employees to speak up when they see someone forget to wash, provide hand sanitizer, and then let it go. If you get an immunocompromised employee, then you can make a much bigger deal out of the handwashing, but otherwise let it go.

I promise you’re touching much grosser things all the time without thinking about it. Wash your own hands, cough and sneeze into your elbow, and hope for the best.

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