Mc Donalds And Baby Changing

Scioch

BunShopVoyeur wrote: »

:rolleyes:

BunShopVoyeur wrote: »

:rolleyes:

:rolleyes:

Dudess

Don't mind the child-haters OP (they would have been right at home working in industrial schools back in the day) - nobody said a lack of baby-changing facility is a massive problem, but it isn't pleasant when you're in town with a crying, poopy baby... something which the same people would also have a problem with. And you were treated horribly.

It's correct that there are extremely few child-friendly eateries in Ireland. On the continent it's standard for restaurants to have a play area.

BunShopVoyeur

LordSmeg wrote: »

BunShopVoyeur wrote: »

:rolleyes:

BunShopVoyeur wrote: »

:rolleyes:

:rolleyes:

:rolleyes:

RaRaRasputin

Dudess wrote: »

Don't mind the child-haters OP (they would have been right at home working in industrial schools back in the day) - nobody said a lack of baby-changing facility is a massive problem, but it isn't pleasant when you're in town with a crying, poopy baby... something which the same people would also have a problem with. And you were treated horribly.

It's correct that there are extremely few child-friendly eateries in Ireland. On the continent it's standard for restaurants to have a play area.

Are you kidding me? Where on the continent do you find more child play areas? I am from the continent and never encountered a more child-focussed society than in Ireland.

IrishAm

Andy Carroll wrote: »

Are you aware of what the laws are regarding disabled toilets? Have noticed one hilarious setup regarding that... so curious as to what the laws are.

There are no laws explicitly stating that a bar or restaurant has to provide disabled bathroom facilities either, although it is bad practice not too.

IrishAm

K-9 wrote: »

That's how business works.

Hence why we've laws to protect workers from just how business works.

Are you aware of what a baby changing facility is and how easy it is to install? This is McDonalds FFS.

Are you aware of the overheads such a business incurs?

An extra table to seat paying customers or build a baby changing facility.

Hmmmm, tough choice.

IrishAm

cruais wrote: »

But then who would eat all the happy meals?

Me.

Scruffles

IrishAm wrote: »

There are no laws explicitly stating that a bar or restaurant has to provide disabled bathroom facilities either, although it is bad practice not too.

the uk and northern ireland both have to have them under the DDA [disability discrimination act] the rest of ireland must have a similar act which woud cover it.

IrishAm

Scruffles wrote: »

the uk and northern ireland both have to have them under the DDA [disability discrimination act] the rest of ireland must have a similar act which woud cover it.

Disregard my previous comment, I was wrong. Any bar or restaurant which was built after 1991, or which has carried out renovation work must provide toilets for disabled people.

Sorry about that.

Biggins

admiralofthefleet wrote: »

So i was in mc donalds today having a burger and had 7 month old son with me. eventually he needed to be changed so off i went to the baby changing in the toilets
the next part enraged me. there was no baby changing in the gents and no disabled toilet, the baby changing area is only in the ladies.
i asked a member of staff where was i able to change the baby and she said 'only in the ladies but obviously you cant go in there'.
i couldnt believe it, the baby was starting to get cranky but she stood at the door of the ladies blocking it so there was no way i could go in.

im very angry over this, i feel its sexist that baby changing is only available in the ladies toilets. i ended up changing him in the car but could have prevented him crying for half an hour if baby changing was available to men. it was the donaghmede branch of mc donalds. im seriously thinking of ringing joe tomorrow over this and going further

thoughts?

I would have said "Fine - I will change him on a public table!"

Optimalprimerib

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

Optimalprimerib wrote: »

Alot of people are saying the op is overreacting. I think he under reacted.

2. There is no reason in the world one of the worlds most renown franchises should have facilities to cater for every one.

FYP

It's a massive over reaction, why on earth would you expect a fast food place to have any baby changing facilities at all? This whole thread is so ridiculous. Having a baby is the OPs problem, not McDonald's.People really need to get over themselves.
McD's whole reason for existence is to provide fast food to people and make money off it, they have no other responsibility to anyone after that.

So why do they have baby changing facilities in the first place. They market themselves as a family restaurant. If so they should have facilities to support that.

I see you have conveniently removed point 1 from my post which explains how he underreacted

K-9

IrishAm wrote: »

Are you aware of the overheads such a business incurs?

An extra table to seat paying customers or build a baby changing facility.

Hmmmm, tough choice.

Doesn't necessarily mean that at all.

RaRaRasputin

Irish AM,

I always like your comments, and I can't say that about everyone.

tk123

Kick them in the b@lls OP - ie complain on their facebook page

cassid

The shopping centre in Donaghmede just right beside Mcdonalds, have a baby changing area upstairs, its a single room so men or women can use it. You get the key from the security desk beside the doctors. Save you changing in a car if in the area again

iguana

stupidusername wrote: »

You can't dismiss the reasoning of demand so easily. As pointed out already, demand is what drives business. It just doesn't make sense for a business to invest in something that isn't legally required or financially beneficial. There can't be that many fathers wanting to change their babies and coming across this problem, else we'd have heard about it by now surely. or McDonalds would have baby changing facilities to please both genders, because it'd be bad for business for them not to.

Are you for real? Have you ever heard of McDonalds? Their main customers are people with children and a huge amount of their customer base are going to be single/separated/divorced fathers.

As for 'we'd have heard about it by now surely' I guess you have been living under a rock because these complaints were being made regularly from the late 80s onwards. As soon as the baby changing facilities started appearing complaints of this nature started appearing all over local newspapers and were regularly heard on radio shows. It's a central plot point of 1995's hit British romantic comedy Jack and Sarah, when Richard E Gere's, titular Jack, can't find a changing facility for his daughter Sarah, resulting in him meeting the movie's female lead. So in the real world it was a big enough issue nearly 20 years ago for a popular movie to hang on it, but in your world the OP is the first person to ever encounter this problem.

Dudess

It's a "first world problem", "there are far more pressing concerns", "parents should never leave the house with small kids in the first place" yadda yadda... Iguana, bow to the wisdom of the non parent who's an expert on parental concerns.

Rara, Belgium. Close friend of mine lived there for a year and said it was a regular feature. What's child-friendly about Ireland? I suspect that notion is held only by those who feel children should never be brought out in public until old enough to behave... as if that's so simple.

xzanti

Battered Mars Bar wrote: »

Wtf Could you not just lob him up on the sink counter in the mens jacks?

Yes, change his nappy on the cold marble sink.. Lovely.

RaRaRasputin

Dudess wrote: »

It's a "first world problem", "there are far more pressing concerns", "parents should never leave the house with small kids in the first place" yadda yadda... Iguana, bow to the wisdom of the non parent who's an expert on parental concerns.

Rara, Belgium. Close friend of mine lived there for a year and said it was a regular feature. What's child-friendly about Ireland? I suspect that notion is held only by those who feel children should never be brought out in public until old enough to behave... as if that's so simple.

I have never been to a place where children are adored like they are damn christ children altogether. Sorry, but i also never saw such a flood of children in the zoos, fast food places, public parks etc with such a great acceptance of them playing and running around. No one in this thread complained about children or babies or even parenting, but they are not the centre of the universe. Got it now, or do you want to turn around other people's words a bit more?

Motorist

Blame McDonalds for your little runt $hitting himself. Should have just changed him on the sink or brought him out to your car earlier.

BunShopVoyeur

Motorist wrote: »

Blame McDonalds for your little runt $hitting himself. Should have just changed him on the sink or brought him out to your car earlier.

You sound pleasant. Cheer up and try cracking a smile occassionaly and you might not feel the need to spew bile on an internet forum.

Are you lonely? Is that why you resent others having children/families?

nicowa

I was on graften st last month and needed to change my daughters nappy so I went in to McDonalds. The changing table - in the ladies - was so rickety and slanted to the ground that I refused to use it. I changed her on the counter. If I'd had time I probably would have complained to someone - if for no other reason someone might actually use it! Another time the baby changing room was down the corridor to the ladies and my husband refused to come down it to hand over the nappy bag. Yes, that's as much his problem as anything else.

I don't think it's much of an ask to have a baby changing station in both toilet areas. They don't take up much room when they're closed, and when they're open people pretty much accept that the baby needs to be changed. When such a huge volume of people shop, eat and travel with babies - therefore needing changing facilities - it's not a huge shock that a large percentage of those people would be men and that they need to use those facilities too.