Work place banning nuts?

Semi serious question – have the number of people born with allergies gone up or did we just kill a lot of them off early back in the day? Seems a significantly larger issue now than in the past.

A quick google suggests they have even in a short term of 7 years.  I will leave you to read the search results…

I can’t see how this ban would be practical. Someone could go out on their dinner time and eat something nutty, not wash their hands (I don’t after I eat everything) and unknowingly shake hands with someone they hadn’t met in the company yet and inadvertently kill them.

Well for all we know the OP works in food manufacturing…..

But you can ask for basic hygiene principles to be applied. There are medical privacy issues with identifying somebody and basic HR issues

Could that person also work from home?

Such as pressures and influences that could be seen that they are the problem and ultimately be a constructive dismissal case.

I guess the OP could have just emailed the Fun Police at his work for some more details and let us know what the reasoning and thinking was behind that. Easier than expecting STW to know the full details of what is going on.

It also sums up how many people work in very relaxed places, spending time in big industry, around big magnets, in food and bev plants and medical/pharma places you just read the rules on the way in and moderate what you are doing accordingly. Just one of those things about work places.

I can’t see how this ban would be practical.

I doubt that it’s meant to be. It’s meant to be a legal protection for the company so that if anyone dies, the company lawyers can pretend that the company did everything within their power to protect their employees.

It’s simply an arse covering exercise so when someone does bring in a nut and someone else has a reaction they can show they’ve done everything they could reasonably be expected to do to mitigate the risk.

Damn you Hols2

In reality you aren’t going to make a huge workplace safe no matter how hard you try unless you ban all food from the building and people have to shower and wear matching protective suits.

Of course it’s not fool proof it’s about minimal exposure risk.

It’s simply an arse covering exercise so when someone does bring in a nut and someone else has a reaction they can show they’ve done everything they could reasonably be expected to do to mitigate the risk.

It’s not a very good arse covering exercise then because if they have highlighted it as a significant enough risk to ban nuts, then not having effective control measures in place to prevent someone bringing in a nut and causing another to have a reaction is a bit of an open goal.

I agree it’s no good for arse covering – if anything it does the opposite – if someone dies then as noted they could be liable for not enforcing properly – they’d be better saying sorry but there may be nuts here so you have to take your own precautions…if arse covering is the objective that is…

As for those near a tree with nuts on. Well that’s simple, it’s not all nuts the most common being peanuts. Not only do peanuts not grow in the uk they don’t grow on trees.

Of course, peanuts aren’t actually nuts. So with regards to the OP it would appear that peanuts would be allowed on the premises.

First they came for the peanuts, then they came for the bananas…

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/9783713/Banana-ban-at-BBC-after-one-member-of-staff-suffers-allergy.html

Of course, peanuts aren’t actually nuts. So with regards to the OP it would appear that peanuts would be allowed on the premises.

That took a lot longer than I thought it would.

😉

That took a lot longer than I thought it would.

Try halfway down the first page, 19hours ago.

Yes, that’s before I posted.

It’s risk management… I’d imagine there is a new employee who has a severe allergy..

It’s not unreasonable in that scenario.

No they can’t guarantee a bit of nut dust won’t float in through the window but they can mitigate the risk a lot.

It’s a bit like why they don’t give out complimentary nuts on planes any more.. And I’ve been in planes recently where they have announced a passenger with a nut allergy and instructed no one to open any nuts that they may have brought on board.

It’s not a big deal really, considering the consequences.

It’s not a big deal really, considering the consequences.

You’re right. Goodbye evolution.

You’re right. Goodbye evolution.

Goodbye horses surely, to hide all traces of nuts.

Semi serious question – have the number of people born with allergies gone up or did we just kill a lot of them off early back in the day? Seems a significantly larger issue now than in the past.

Seemingly down to the increasingly hermetically sealed lifestyle we lead where people have lovely insulated homes with no draughts or air exchange meaning toxins cannot get out. Leads to an increase in allergies, athsma etc.

Are the severity of these kind of allergies getting worse? I never recall hearing of cases of ‘airborne anaphylaxis’ in previous decades (in which era no-one would countenance banning nuts from schools/workplaces etc).

Could just be a lack of reporting, obviously.

I have a nut allergy and discovered the airborne reaction thing.

Took a while to work out that every time I went to my parents at Christmas I’d have sneezing fits and itchy throat etc. Turned out they’re been cracking walnuts.

I don’t think it’s more common I have a mate close to his 60’s with the same allergy, I just think people give it more attention.

I know someone who was refused service in a restaurant because the manager couldn’t ensure they’d be no nut contamination, despite it only being a tree nut allergy.

Worst thing is I really like them and was absolutely fine until I ate and reacted badly to a Brazil nut.

As said before I can eat Peanuts they’re not the same thing, I just don’t like them.

Seemingly down to the increasingly hermetically sealed lifestyle we lead where people have lovely insulated homes with no draughts or air exchange meaning toxins cannot get out. Leads to an increase in allergies, athsma etc.

Thats bollocks.

You can’t develop an allergy unless you’re exposed to the allergen, people aren’t born allergic to bees for example.

Worst thing is I really like them and was absolutely fine until I ate and reacted badly to a Brazil nut.

/Waits for Psling.

After the Brazil nut reaction, the reaction to other nuts started and worsened in severity.

Memory is a bit hazy on it as it was the early eighties.

After the Brazil nut reaction, the reaction to other nuts started and worsened in severity.

Yup, the attacks get worse each time it’s a nasty condition to have.

Thats bollocks.

Cool. Got a source for your claim?

Here’s one for the ventilation part of mine:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK224478/ (I will concede this is athsma based as opposed to allergens in general)

And here’s some for the hygene hypothesis:

https://theconversation.com/what-are-allergies-and-why-are-we-getting-more-of-them-40318

https://www.allergychoices.com/why-are-allergies-increasing/

https://www.aaaai.org/conditions-and-treatments/library/allergy-library/prevalence-of-allergies-and-asthma

I do think there’s a lot of of problems with bringing children or animals up in clinical environments.

They don’t get exposed to nature.

I do think there’s a lot of of problems with bringing children or animals up in clinical environments.

So where are these clinical environments? I see plenty through work but very few in the real world

Exactly Mike which is why it’s bollocks. I also think squirrel is confusing asthma causes with severe allergies.

Sowing the seed for me there, Drac.

The anaphylactic shock thing seems to be more likely with a peanut allergy. I’m in my 60s and have suffered a nut allergy since I was about 5 or 6 but this is what might be called a tree nut allergy (although I can also react to coconut). Back in the sixties people would remark “how unusual” when my parents advised of my allergy. I do not suffer anaphylactic shock; I get a wetting and tingling in my mouth and, if I ingest, I usually vomit almost immediately. I avoid peanuts and don’t actually know how I would react to them (though I have kissed girls that have eaten peanuts and I haven’t died yet…).

I also have to avoid marzipan and almond based mixes which I can react to, though not so violently.

Of course it’s arse covering (call it reasonable precaution if you want).  They’re not checking bags on entry are they, as that wouldn’t be deemed by a court to be a reasonable adjustment to accomodate the new employee. Schools ban nuts in packed lunches but there is an implicit acceptance by the parents of nut allergic kids that that is all they can do.

I never recall hearing of cases of ‘airborne anaphylaxis’ in previous decades (in which era no-one would countenance banning nuts from schools/workplaces etc).

How far back do you want to go? 20 years ago at uni I had a friend who would start getting swollen lips and throat if someone in the same pub started eating nuts. It was unusual, but not unheard of.

Just about everyone (including medical professionals and academics) will agree that allergies are on the rise. Nobody, to my knowledge, has proven a cause (not a correlation, not a hypothesis, but a p<0.05 cause). Declining breast feeding rates are another correlating factor nobody has mentioned yet.

Would it not be better that the person who has the problem be identified

This thought just popped into my head….