Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Reader questions (do not fit into other categories)
When should you disclose your BB problem to coworkers/acquaintances?
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tinyvampire
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Joined: Oct '09
Posts: 25
Posted 1 month ago
Fri Oct 9 2009 19:42:28
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hi, all:
we just had our first PCO treatment yesterday morning! i was giddy all day just knowing the ball is rolling...the PCO guy came to my workplace to pick up the payment check, and he gave me a very positive report. apparently our case is not that severe...
but then, later in the day at work, i started feeling extremely itchy, particularly when i use my heating pad. i know the itchy feeling from heat against your skin, but this itchiness was on my legs, shoulders, butt, etc...so now i'm worried that i've brought BB here with me via my clothing or bag, and that they come after me when the heating pad goes on.
maybe it's just BBIP (bed bug induced paranoia), but it seems to me lately too that a lot of my coworkers are itching and scratching (particularly one who sits near me), and have bites on their necks/faces (although maybe they're pimples and it's all a coincidence)...
now that most everyone has left for the weekend, i'm going to get to the task of dusting some DE around the floor and baseboards under and around my desk.
my boss and her partner both know about my problem, and a couple other coworkers who i'm close friends with also know.
but at what point do i need to "go public" with my BB problem?
thank you,
-tinyvampire -
DE= danger for all around you is like asbestos ~Inahlation danger!!! Caution Pestacide!! look at the top of the page long gray box full of instersting facts!! you should of disclosed it to them a long time ago now you risk the chance of reinfestation you probably did take it to work BB transfer is like lice!! but worse!!
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mangycur
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Joined: Sep '07
Posts: 275
Posted 1 month ago
Sat Oct 10 2009 13:13:01
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Tiny, I disagree with watkins. You don't have to go public with your bedbug infestation, ever. Having lived through bed bugs I can offer only my own experience. I get random hives. I may have always gotten them but before bed bugs I didn't notice them as much. After bed bugs, I notice them more because I am more aware. When I was fighting bed bugs, and for a long time after, I started noticing getting itchy at work, and I, too, freaked out and assumed I had spread them. But guess what? I didn't. I was just itchy. How do I know? It's been over a year and there is no sign of bugs at work. By now I would have seen bugsign, because they gotta eat, and if they're eating, they're maturing to adulthood.
The point is, don't assume you spread them. Co-workers might have pimples or hives. just stick to your bagging protocol when you get home every day, and trust that you're doing your best.
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buggyinsocal
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Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,130
Posted 1 month ago
Sat Oct 10 2009 13:35:45
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Especially in this economy, I think that people should be very careful about what they disclose at work. Only each individual can evaluate the environment at work. With the economy as bad as it is, if you disclose your bed bug problem in a workplace that would hold that against you, you could find yourself in the double financial bind of having lost your job and enduring the expense of fighting bed bugs alone. (and yes, I'm sure it breaks a law somewhere to fire someone for bringing bed bugs into the workplace, but good luck winning a lawsuit along those lines--to say nothing of the legal expenses you would incur fighting that fight.)
Also, if you haven't already done so, make sure that you read the FAQ on DE. It's a major inhalation hazard and should not be spread on the floor where foot traffic, dropped bags or boxes, and rolling chairs could kick it up where it could be inhaled by more people than just you. Spreading DE in your home is unwise enough, but doing so at work puts your coworkers at risk as well--which could ultimately make your workplace liable for any illness your coworkers suffer because of actions you took.
You couldn't pay me enough to put DE down in my office for exactly those reasons.
In addition, if the office has a bed bug problem and hires a professional pest controller, many PCOs won't treat places that have been self-treated with DE for the PCO's safety--at least until the DE has been cleaned up.
In addition, we've heard enough anecdotal stories from folks about the fact that exposure to DE makes their skin more reactive--more likely to cause phantom itching, more likely to have old bites flare up--that I would be very hesitant to leap to the conclusion that there are bed bugs at work without a lot more proof than you've offered so far. I'm not saying that it isn't possible; it is possible that there's an infestation at work. But is it likely? Hard to say.
I can second mangycur's point that when my bugs were gone but I didn't yet believe it, I swear my skin was about 6 times itchier than normal. Until I realized how cyclical it was and where the itch appeared, I was convinced that the irritation I get as the stubble grows in after I shave my legs was in fact a bunch of nymph bites. It wasn't; it was my bed bug related paranoia getting the best of me.
The safest course of action is, as mangycur suggests, to stick rigorously to the protocols designed to keep you from taking bugs from home into work. I would also, since your boss already knows (if you feel like you can do so safely) talk to your boss about your concerns if you have evidence that the workplace is infested--but only if you're 100% sure that you won't put yourself in financial jeopardy. In the workplace, the boss should be the one who makes the decision to treat the workplace or not--not you. Letting the boss talk to coworkers can also help protect you from any blaming coworkers might do if it turns out that they have infestations at home or that there is an infestation in the workplace.
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tinyvampire
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Joined: Oct '09
Posts: 25
Posted 1 month ago
Sat Oct 10 2009 14:38:37
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it was foolish of me to sprinkle the DE, even though i thought it was a tiny amount. you are right.
maybe i could put some glue traps with small hand heaters under my desk to see if i might be able to catch a sample, then go from there?
thank you all, very much.
-tinyv
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~~~Education is the number one source of fighting BB!! if we who have been thought it or are going through it don’t educate our family and friends on do's and don’ts then how are we as humans going it eradicate them!! not only are brushing it under the rug you are hitting them in the pocket too!! ~~ Think about it if you had been told before you had BB how bad BB were, wouldn’t you have taken the necessary precautions ~~~~~~AIDS ~~~~~education I will tell everyone including MY boss and Co workers ~~I don’t want to hit them in the pocket books too~~ YES I TOLD EVERYONE and will continue too so that they make and take the necessary precautions!! I love them enough to swallow my pride an tell!! NO matter how hard!!~~ If you are too scared too have you boss do it anonymously !! as long as it gets out there!! I would never want my worst enemy to go through this let alone my family friends an Coworkers ect !!!!! Education is the foundation of this website !!
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oh another thing does anyone know if you can be sued or get legally fired for BB!! You cant for spreading lice and cocaroaches!! I see lawsuit for wrongfull terrmination no matter where you are!!
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BiteTarget
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Joined: Oct '09
Posts: 3
Posted 1 month ago
Sun Oct 11 2009 0:27:37
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I agree with watkinsnewan on this one. I think having your boss make an announcement anonymously is a great idea. After all, maybe someone in your office was the actual source of your own bed bugs. If someone else in your office also finds BBs, you could be helping not only your coworkers, but all the people who live in their building.
I do think people need to know, so they can be informed. When I thought I had bed bugs I told a couple co-workers and eventually my boss before I had my inspection to also prepare them in the event I would need to take some time off to have an extermination.
Awareness and knowledge is the key to beating these bugs. Help our your fellow man.
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Bite targaetu put it better than i could of thanks
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earthangel
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Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 28
Posted 1 month ago
Sun Oct 18 2009 21:31:09
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I would not tell boss you have bedbugs. I might tell him you have heard there were some in your building, you're having your place cleared, something like that. Psychologically I think the bit of distance will help you and still allow you to transmit the info.
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tinyvampire
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Joined: Oct '09
Posts: 25
Posted 1 month ago
Wed Oct 21 2009 17:11:23
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hi, all:
an update: i ended up telling the coworker i sit closest to about my BB, and it turns out that he's covered in insect bites of *some* sort.
he's stayed up all night the last 2 nights searching for evidence (he hasn't found anything around his bed except for a dead wasp-looking insect that seems to resemble a bethylid wasp)....i told him he should have his place professionally inspected (his building has a BB clause on the lease) or try to catch a sample with passive traps, before panicking.
we'll see...
crossing my fingers for the bethylid wasp,
-tinyvampire -
tinyvampire
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Joined: Oct '09
Posts: 25
Posted 1 month ago
Wed Oct 21 2009 17:47:37
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i should have followed mangycur and buggy's advice and been more prudent about all of this....
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what is with this country and some people Where did our integrity go IT seems out the door! At least I can stand up and say I DID THE RIGHT thing!! HUSH HUSH~~ isn't that what gets people in trouble!!Lets keep our mouth shut and maybe no one will notice!! I really HATE people like that!! HUSH LITTLE BABY don't say a word !! what do you have to hide so what!! it is embarrassing SO WHAT!! There are ways to do the right thing!! RIGHT IS RIGHT AND WRONG IS JUST THAT WRONG!! People who hide things like this make me sick cause it is People like me and my Family who pay in the long run!! that is why BB are spreading as fast as they are!! we need to be educating not sitting on our BUTTS and do nothing!!There are ways around coming clean with out people knowing it was you!! They should come up with a law that says if you don't disclose you can be sued especially if you knowingly go in to work and and spread them with out telling anyone!! Just like when some one has AIDS!! all I am trying to really say is that you should NOT Knowingly pass these F*****BUGS to other places or someone else!! that is ONE of the reasons they are spreading so fast!!
I didn't inhale
I never had sexual intercourse with that woman!!are just two that come right off the top of my head!!
And WE ALL know how those turned out!! -
buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,130
Posted 1 month ago
Thu Oct 22 2009 0:03:50
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I have tried to be patient. I have tried to bite my tongue. I have tried to be civil. I have tried to let other people have their say and allow them to voice their own opinions without challenging them because everyone has the right to their own opinions. I have tried not to be alarmist. I have tried not to be judgmental.
But there comes a point, watkinsnewan, when diplomacy fails and I can bite my tongue no longer.
First up, as far as things that politicians said that were lies that had a profound negative impact on the US, I think the notion that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and was behind 9/11 has had a slightly more significant effect on the economy and credibility of the United States than, say, a philandering politician who did drugs many years ago. It's also a much more recent example. I'm a little puzzled as to why you'd go to a further removed and less influential example as your support.
Secondly, for the record, I told every.single.person whose home I had stayed in or who had shared a hotel room at a conference with me as soon as I found out I had bed bugs. I did so even though I was terrified of being financially responsible for treating their places if they found out they had them. Given how much I travel, that was a lot of people. It would have been a great cost, and even if I hadn't been legally responsible, I would have felt personally responsible.
So kindly stop preaching to the choir about the ethical responsibility to tell people about bed bugs.
Thirdly, if you can live in this day and age and believe that every single moral issue in the universe comes down to a binary division between absolute right and absolute wrong, then there's really very little common ground we're ever going to share on any issue.
Fourth, AIDS is a pretty poor analogy since it can only be passed through contact that is easily avoided--unlike bed bugs.
Fifth, do you currently work outside the home? And are you currently the sole income earner for your family? Because if you don't and if you aren't, I would politely request that you consider for a moment the fact that if I had gone into my job and announced that I had possibly brought bed bugs into the office, if I had a different boss than I currently do, with the economy being what it is, it's entirely possible that I would simply not have had my contract renewed the following year if that pest control had been needed and I'd cost the employer that much money.
Oh, sure, they wouldn't have had conclusive proof that I'd been the source, but for people who work at jobs that do not give them security of employment, racing in to suggest that you may have brought bed bugs into the workplace without yet having any confirmation is not a great plan.
And they never would have been foolish enough to admit that's why my contract wasn't being renewed, but it was absolutely a realistic possibility if things had worked out differently.
So in your view, does the fact that I didn't immediately disclose to every single person I worked with and my boss at my two jobs mean that I'm a horrible, unethical, selfish person?
I think not.
Does that mean that I don't think that people in an ideal world have an ethical obligation to disclose? Absolutely not. In an ideal world, people would.
And although I didn't tell my bosses at work, I told my officemates.
I scrupulously followed the protocols to avoid possible exposure.
I carefully monitored the situation to see if there was any sign of bugs in the office. Since I knew I reacted to bites, I knew I would know if they were there.
I do not consider that course of action any less ethical than racing in in a panic and flailing my arms around screaming about the menace that is bed bugs.
In fact, over time, I have done my best to educate coworkers about bed bugs in general so that they won't have the experience of running into them while traveling and inadvertantly bringing them home like I did. I know for a fact that one fellow conference attendee, told someone she'd been at a conference with, who found evidence of bed bugs at a hotel and left before checking into the room. So I know I've had a hand in preventing future infestations for at least one person.
If you don't work outside the home, you're not necessarily in the best position to be judging for others what they should do given the complex politics of their workplace environment. Every workplace is different. Some people work for large companies with deep pockets that wouldn't care. Others work for small companies with good ethics.
But not everyone is in that position.
And if you are in a two income family that has at least the possibility of having a second income if the bug bug discloser at work is fired-- a second income that might allow, for example, to pay the lawyer's fees that would be required to sue the company that wrongfully terminated you--perhaps your economic situation is less precarious than that of some of us.
And good on you that that's the case.
But I would personally appreciate it if you would consider slightly modifying the absolutist statements about the ONE TRUE ETHICAL WAY in your posts. Not only because it's basically telling me that I'm a horrible, unethical selfish person, but because you're giving out advice that could have disastrous consequences for someone who either felt guilted into doing something unwise or for someone who lacked the critical thinking skills to think about why such a course of action might be a bad plan in his or her individual situation.
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buggyinsocal I may not be as book smart as you are but the plain, and simple fact of the matter is I came from nothing and I will leave with nothing I was looking for a job when I found one with deep pockets that I am at right now and if they choose to fire me over BB than so be it ( I DID THE right THING I can LOOK my self in the mirror!!) then go out and look for another job!! My children will still have there NEEDS met No matter if I have to go digging thorough garbage for cans to recycle !! !! just one more F@@UP thing I can add to the F@@UP list I have!! And I am currently in school!! YOU see I have been on the streets That is where I cam from I know what it is like to go to A shelter and BEG for food for my kids!! SO WHAT I did the Right thing! I have been homeless A single Mother with three kids to support living out on the street!! Cause I did the Right thing!! SO WHAT It has made me Who I am today!! I would never go back and change A thing Cause you know what I can sit down with a wide variety of people and say I can truly understand where you are coming from!! I have been from the tallest mountain to the lowest gutter!! You say you do a lot of traveling well haven't you learned that there is a huge world out there DID you ever sit next to a woman on a airplane and listened to how they had to give birth to their child in a third world country cause there husband was there to protect OUR country!! Or helped a mother who had her hands full walking up the escalators!! You know what I mean!! What about This taken the jacket off you back in the freezing cold and give it to a complete stranger cause you could see it in there eyes that they were having a hard time!! and you knew you had a nice warm car to get into with a nice warm house to come home to!! Or as you pull through that drive through Order you food and instead of eating it you self give it to that family on the side of the street that who just got through asking for your help cause they were homeless cause you knew that you could go home and cook something !! Just smile at an elderly person cause You knew it would brighten there day While you had a migraine headache! I wish This on NO ONE!! Black white gray what ever!! I share my stories and I will run through the streets waving a red FLAG and say don’t jump Don’t jump Please DON’T JUMP If I see all other sitting on there bottoms!! I am not saying I am perfect by far!! But I will always try my best to do the right thing!! DL is not the way to go I will not creep around and wait and see! No one else should either!! And IMO you should never stick it to the guy or gal sitting next to you cause you don’t have the kahonas to address the problem!! At least if you come clean from the beginning you can have a defense if someone tries to sue you!! I am not saying anyone in this forum or on this site is a horrible, unethical selfish person, the point is don’t stick the other guy or girl in the back with BB (A KNIFE) Yea you have to protect you and yours first BUT you also need to think of others too!! I really don't understand why you would come on a site like this and help sooooooo many people and help educate them and turn around and say no don't !!!! I really respect your opinions but this is not one of them!! Maybe I am not getting something !! But What do I know I am the Newbite here!!
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watkinsnewan - 1 week ago »
oh another thing does anyone know if you can be sued or get legally fired for BB!! You cant for spreading lice and cocaroaches!! I see lawsuit for wrongfull terrmination no matter where you are!!Unfortunately, some people have been reported in the press as having been fired for allegedly bringing bed bugs to work. (These are bedbugger posts about bed bugs in the workplace.
We heard that NYC law firm firm Cadwalader (et al.) fired someone for bringing bed bugs into work.
Also, Gawker said Fox News in NYC also fired someone for bringing in bed bugs.
I am not a lawyer but do not think there's any law against it in the US.
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BiteTarget - 1 week ago » I think having your boss make an announcement anonymously is a great idea. After all, maybe someone in your office was the actual source of your own bed bugs. If someone else in your office also finds BBs, you could be helping not only your coworkers, but all the people who live in their building.
I do think people need to know, so they can be informed.I have to agree with buggyinsocal and mangycur.
Unfortunately, no matter how you may try to educate your coworkers or boss about bed bugs, the general public is generally working with a different set of ideas and beliefs about bed bugs than we are.
They may assume, if they later get bed bugs, that you brought them in. They may be right, but sometimes it goes in the other direction. If you react to a small infestation, and they don't react to or see a larger one, they themselves or the workplace could have had them first and they could have had no idea.
If these folks get bed bugs down the line, in 2, 12 or 18 months, they may blame you. If they live in NYC, for example, they could have gotten them on the bus. But you may will be the source in their minds, if you are the only one who ever mentioned this to them.
Even if they never get bed bugs, they may fear you -- even though you of all people may be taking precautions against spreading bed bugs you may not even still have at that time (just to be super safe), and even though their boyfriends/college classmates/mothers/hookah bar friends/etc. may be spreading bed bugs to them as we speak.
NOW, having said that, I am all for educating people in general about bed bugs, and all for telling your friends about bed bugs. I think we should spread the news far and wide. Whenever I tell someone, they either had an experience, know others who had, or will one day have one. There's a lot we can teach people about prevention and detection -- things we wished we knew before we thought we had a problem.
Taking extreme precautions to avoid taking bed bugs to work? Yes.
But going to your boss or coworkers and announcing you may have brought bed bugs to work when there's no concrete evidence there are bed bugs at work is very dangerous.That said, some people have disclosed and I think it has worked well for some -- this may depend on how well you get along with coworkers and boss, how educated they are about bed bugs, how badly your company needs to lay off some people. Seriously.
I don't think you necessarily did anything wrong in terms of disclosing, tinyvampire, and this may work out fine for you, but I do agree it is certainly not a simple right/wrong question of ethics.
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watkinsnewan - 7 hours ago »
They should come up with a law that says if you don't disclose you can be sued especially if you knowingly go in to work and and spread them with out telling anyone!! Just like when some one has AIDS!!watkins,
With all due respect, HIV/AIDs is not a useful analogy here.
Also, a good percentage of people with bed bugs have no idea they have them.
Those who do know and try to prevent spreading them in any way seem to be in the minority. Most people are unaware of ways to avoid their spread.
I find it interesting that you think people who bring bed bugs to work should not be fired, but people who have bed bugs (even if they do not transmit them to coworkers, perhaps because they took precautions to avoid doing so) and do not declare this at work should be sued.
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tinyvampire
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Joined: Oct '09
Posts: 25
Posted 1 month ago
Thu Oct 22 2009 7:25:59
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thank you so much, everyone, for giving me all of this food for thought.
i should say that i'm lucky enough to work in a relatively small office that has a very close knit staff, and our "corporate culture" is down to earth. i'm also blessed enough to have a boss who is very gracious, cool and reasonable.
most of the people i work around have travelled abroad (so maybe have awareness of BB) and are also reasonable and human. i would like to think that most of them would educate themselves about BB before overreacting, so i am trying not to worry. i hope i've done the right thing -- i dunno. it's just an unpleasant matter all the way around.
if i worked anywhere else (particularly my prior job), i don't think i would have told my boss -- at least not unless there was evidence that i brought BB to work.
i agree, nobugs, that even in a work environment such as mine -- it seems that it might be dangerous and unnecessary to spread the news about BB if there's no concrete evidence there. at this point in my case, i have mixed feelings about how i approached my suitemate with this...because he seems to be overreacting and panicking. to be fair -- the possibility of having BB is a very emotional issue, and he is being bitten by *something*. so i can understand why his anxieties are running high about it.
i'm trying to calm him by telling him to educate himself about BB, and to systematically check for BB and consider all of the other possibilities for the cause of his skin reaction before he jumps to conclusions. i've told him it is up to our boss to pass word along to the rest of the staff, and that it is up to her (and the other higher ups) to decide if the whole office will need to be inspected or treated).
all of that being said -- i wish that the friend who *may* have passed BB to us (a strong possibility, since he had them in his SF SRO and slept in our bed for two weeks while we were overseas on our honeymoon 6 months ago...but why play the blame game when we could have gotten them from a hostel in Paris, a movie theatre or an old dresser?) had disclosed to us as soon as he found out.
as you were saying, nobugs, many people are just unaware of how to avoid spreading BB, and are just unaware in general (like we all once were). i think my friend didn't know how easily they could be spread, and since he didn't have allergic reactions to the bites, they didn't bother him. he figured that the two sprayings (his whole building was being systematically treated) in his unit took care of the problem. he didn't think he needed to tell us. he had no idea about having and following a "protocol" in order to not spread them. he feels bad about not disclosing (since we confirmed we have them), but he knows more about how to check for them and how to avoid spreading them now.
(i think he still has them, frankly, but that's another thread for later...)
in any event, wish me luck, everyone.
and thank you, nobugs, for the oasis that is bedbugger.com.
-tinyvampire
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I do not believe that people should be fired cause they have BB I believe that if you KNOW you have them and do not disclose them and or at least take the measures to I am not sure of the wording in this!! Make an effort to try and let your co-workers and boss know!! "ARE those bug bites or did you switch you detergent and get a bad reaction!!"Bug bites will for most of the population will get them thinking!! Ant it really sucks that most of the population is not as pro active as I who thought my bites were from mosquitoes and decided to research it further!! cause every statement counted to me when the bites came up in a casual conversation!! I wanted to get to the bottom of it! I also thought that I had baby roaches which is probably the worst thing that could happen!!
It was killing tineyvsmpi inside not knowing if he/she was the source which is a whole new set of problems in itself!! Which I can say KUDOS for not just sitting there!! You did the right thing!!
HIV/AIDS I think is the best example I can come up with!! IF you knowingly have sex (Go to work)with A partner (Co worker)and transmit (Infest)the disease (BB) with out taking to proper precautions or maybe you should not do it at all!! There should be punishment!! I know this will be a huge burden on a lot of people I will be the first to stand up and say that i will have to struggle cause of this! I know first hand that It will and can put people out on the streets cause you missed a day or two at work!! I am one of the lucky ones who can spare a few week even months off work/school to fix this problem And believe you me I am truly Thankful for that BUT,I did not get in this situation sitting on my BUTT watching and waiting!! I worked my tail off to get where I am!! 60 70 hours a week!! right along with my husband!! Who came for nothing too!! If you need to sit down and wait than you really need to be thinking about what kinda damage you are doing not just to yourself but OTHERS!!I can say this cause I know BOTH sides of the situation!!! I would be more furious even willing to sue my best friend or co worker if they did not let me know Right away so I can protect myself my family AND ALL THE OTHERS in my life I have family friends coworkers ect.. come to my home or I go to there's So if some one like me who goes from the east coast to the west gets something like this then travels all over the country I will hurt a lot a people AND I MEAN A LOT!!that is why it is spreading so fast !! AND I will not by any means infest anyone else!! so yea People need to think about all the others they can hurt but just sitting there and waiting!! The man who is the sole provider who just got a new Job and left your business who has no idea you just infested him and sat there and watched and probably will never know!! now is this going to hurt him and now you could of just transferred it to his NEW place of business!! Whole new set people, business to infest!!
I was scheduled to go to central America this thanksgiving and lost a lot of money cause People just sat there!! So now I can not see my nieces and nephews an in-laws cause people just sat there!! I have not seen them in over two years!!!! So YEA YOU SHOULD NOT SIT THERE and PRAY that you did not bring them to work! That is funny coming from some one like me I am a firm believer in prayer and Believe it works!! Whole other topic!! I will not bring my religious beliefs in to this topic!!I can really go on an on with this But this IS ONE OF the ways to spread BB!!
I really don't want this Post to sound like I am being disrespectful or any thing!! Cause I really do RESPECT all of you who have taking time with me and this topic which I fell very strongly about!!
NO bugs I could not pull up the1 st full article!! -
parakeets
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Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 866
Posted 1 month ago
Thu Oct 22 2009 8:50:51
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I told a doctor at a sleep center where I was scheduled to have an overnight medical test done that I had bedbugs. Big mistake. Even though I explained the extensive precautions I would take, the sleep center REFUSED TO TREAT ME in the lab. If medical doctors can refuse to treat patients who have bedbugs, why should we even tell our doctors, let alone our workplaces? Why!
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because we as humans need to understand and find it with in our selves to except the simple fact that people are uneducated!! My daughters DR told me that pesticides don't work And I need to heat heat Then she took a few steps back!! I completely understand this!! they are just being cautious !! Just as you or I would be!!No it is not right if you do everything in you power to not infest that they deny you!! I there A reason you could not have put it off till you were BB free!!
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buggyinsocal
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Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,130
Posted 1 month ago
Thu Oct 22 2009 9:57:46
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I do not believe that people should be fired cause they have BB
I agree.
I also believe that teachers should be valued for the hard work that we do. I believe that GLBTQI folks deserve full equal rights under the law. I believe that poverty is unjust and that governments should institute policies that will help everyone get a fair shot at success.
But what I believe does not match reality.
I absolutely believe that no company should fire a person for bringing bed bugs to work if that exposure was unintentional. I am deeply offended by the idea that companies often discriminate against employees for a variety of reasons in ways that are completely unethical.
Just because I believe it's wrong doesn't mean that injustice stops happening.
And, yes, there's a very good reason that Parakeets couldn't put it off until she was bed bug free. Moreover, the sleep study center should have been much more worried about people who had bed bug infestations but didn't know or disclose it and didn't follow the protocols to avoid transporting a hitch hiker than they were. (Since you weren't around for the story, the sleep study center wanted Parakeets to take monitoring equipment into her home instead of treating her there which was really, really bad policy because the bed bugs could infest the monitoring equipment. So clearly their response was from a place of ignorance and also discriminatory.)
My point to anyone reasonable and willing to listen is this: anyone who has bed bugs has an ethical obligation to do what he or she can to prevent the spread of bed bugs to other people. However, that ethical obligation may take many forms depending on the circumstances of the individual situation. I don't think that the only ethical approach to protecting your workplace is to shout from the rooftops that you've have bed bugs and might have taken them to work.
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Ignorance lack of knowledge or education isn't that why we as BBers who have had or are going through it should be out there educating the ignorant like I was just 4 weeks ago!!
You are very right she should not have had to go through that!!in life we all have our hurdles and figuring out how we are going to get around those is going to be the hardest part!!! again we have to except that until people become aware of the situation with BB's WE ALL HERE need to be educating everyone around us to what fells like a horrible disease !! then we will be treated different!! Should we be Sometimes YES sometimes NO!! all depends on you and if you,me,the people who are lingering to hear the next response and people who will be here in the future are going to do our part to educate others and not infest at the same time !! NO offense with that one!! You are a very good teacher you have taught me a lot!! And the rules should be different in this day an age!! I don't think enough people are doing there part to help in educating the ignorant to the subject!!
I also think teachers should not only be valued in there work but should get paid more that the jocks come on we all know what you ant the rest go through!!!! BUT this is America an our prioritizes seem to be else where!!
I really don't know what this abbreviation ( GLBTQI) is but I can speculate!!and throw my 2 cents in
which would surprise you!!
you hit the nail on the head in the last paragraph !!
I also Know that the squeaky wheel get the oil!! So if we all hide the oil and make ourselves herd then more and more will be less ignorant on the subject!! so squeak squeak!! I through my EVOO away!! maybe the subject will get stuck in some ones head!!okay i need to sit now I have said enough some ones else's turn -
tinyvampire
newbite
Joined: Oct '09
Posts: 25
Posted 4 weeks ago
Fri Oct 23 2009 14:43:11
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hi, folks:
an update: my office suitemate had his apartment building manager bring their contracted PCO to inspect his unit with a UV blacklight wand, and they say he's in the clear. no BB evidence at all.
he's had talks with his LL about it at length, and the building might start including checks for BB in their semi-annual maintenance inspections.
now, if only i can stop getting welted by the stragglers in my loft and get on with *my* life, that would be fabulous. hopefully my *brand spanking new packtite* will offer some relief soon.
-tinyv
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~~~~~Awesome ~~~~~~ you did the right thing!!you probably helped more than you will ever know!!you should be proud!!
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watkinsnewan - 1 day ago »
NO bugs I could not pull up the1 st full article!!
You mean the article about bed bugs at Cadwalader?
http://bedbugger.com/2007/06/27/lawyerswithbedbugs/
I checked it and the links inside it which all work. Try again!
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buggyinsocal - 1 day ago »
I do not believe that people should be fired cause they have BB
I agree.
. . . .My point to anyone reasonable and willing to listen is this: anyone who has bed bugs has an ethical obligation to do what he or she can to prevent the spread of bed bugs to other people. However, that ethical obligation may take many forms depending on the circumstances of the individual situation. I don't think that the only ethical approach to protecting your workplace is to shout from the rooftops that you've have bed bugs and might have taken them to work.
I agree with buggyinsocal 100%.
I do think tinyvampire made the right choices for that particular situation, given there was evidence (possible bites) even though it was not conclusive evidence, and given the co-workers' and boss's mentality.
Now, watkins, you are saying people should disclose or take precautions to avoid spreading bed bugs -- I agree 100% about precautions. This site has FAQs about taking precautions not to spread bed bugs. I wish everyone would do that.
But I had read your previous comments as saying disclosure itself was the only ethical option in all cases, and I am glad that is not what you meant.
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[quote]But I had read your previous comments as saying disclosure itself was the only ethical option in all cases, and I am glad that is not what you meant.[quote]
You have to be patient with me righ now BB psychosis . I probably was wrong that in EVERY case you should disclose!! I guess you just need to go about it the right way!! like buggieinsocial says!! I am just furious that some one gave them to me and did not disclose to me or take the right precautions!!!! And now I have to do the right thing and not give them to others!! Being stuck in the house even tho I can take the kids out to play can REALLY DRIVE ME CRAZY I am a go getter!!I really am a level headed person for the most part!!!! Really I am!! Thank you for putting up with me right now!! I know I am probably driving others on this site crazy too!!Sorry the computer an phone is all I really have to the out side world!! -
cilecto
senior member
Joined: Aug '08
Posts: 522
Posted 4 weeks ago
Fri Oct 23 2009 18:27:34
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Great thread. One point I would like to object to is that (IMO) in the workplace, you don't reveal information to "co-workers" without telling "the boss" and/or expecting that s/he would not find out and be quite mad. Another is that disclosure (to the boss or the HR dept) may be necessary if you need to take off for treatment, as well as to get the office treated to break the cycle of infestation.
As an aside, word around my office is that some parts of our Manhattan complex are being treated. There has been no official announcement company-wide. So there's the other side of the coin.
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buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,130
Posted 4 weeks ago
Fri Oct 23 2009 19:06:29
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One point I would like to object to is that (IMO) in the workplace, you don't reveal information to "co-workers" without telling "the boss" and/or expecting that s/he would not find out and be quite mad.
That's a great point.
For example, where I work I don't exactly have a boss in the sense that most people think of. I have a "boss" who gives me my overall work schedule a few times a year and who addresses problems if they arise, but my "boss" isn't the person who, for example, actually evaluates my performance. That's done by a colleague. That's hardly a typical set up.
So telling my boss is only something I would do if I thought the building needed to be treated.
Telling the people who share my immediate work space, for example, seemed to be only fair.
But I also work someplace where each of us has an awful lot of autonomy, and my "boss" could care less what I tell my coworkers that isn't related to work.
On the other hand, I have worked in 9 to 5 office jobs before, and the level of gossip and office politics about what bosses do and don't know was a whole other kettle of fish.
It's for exactly those reasons that I don't think either a one size fits all, everyone must disclose or no one should ever disclose set of rules is a great idea.
The situation in any given workplace is going to be complicated and depend on a lot of factors that someone reading posts on an online board wouldn't necessarily have access to. What's right, ethical, and safe for me to do at work may be very different from what would work for someone else.
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bedbuggery
junior member
Joined: Dec '08
Posts: 49
Posted 3 weeks ago
Sun Oct 25 2009 2:46:35
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Hi tinyvampire, just so's you know, the "itchiness" at work may be a skin condition called urticaria (hives) which has developed from the bugs.
This is when your immune system attacks the skin, which is very similar to your immune system attacking bug saliva in your skin, I would imagine. Urticaria can indeed be brought on by heat from your heat pad and even from putting pressure on your skin (by scratching for instance- I know, it's a vicious cycle)Also, I think the AIDS analogy is interesting simply because people seem to use the stereotypes from the 90's about AIDs in regard to bedbugs. It's interesting to compare and see that Bedbugs are way more resilient than the aids virus (in terms of surviving w/ out a host) can be transmitted with little or no effort, and are an environmental parasite- not a disease.
The funny thing is that our sedentary lifestyles and overpopulation are the real culprit here. Think about it... the cure for bedbugs is to simply walk about 400 yards away from them. That's it! I think THAT's the part that is always nudging us to insanity w/ these critters. -
cilecto
senior member
Joined: Aug '08
Posts: 522
Posted 3 weeks ago
Sun Oct 25 2009 22:25:35
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I've raised the AIDS analogy in the past and find it apt.
No, BB and AIDS are not equivalent, but....
HIV "flew under the radar" for decades, perhaps, centuries before being noticed.
Early victims "did not know what hit them". Professionals used trial and error and the tools at hand to try to cope. Sham treatments were rampant.
Early interventions were very expensive and hard to tolerate and not fully effective.
Victims needed to be very wealthy or to go destitute to afford treatment
Victims were arbitrarily shunned, for no reason or for reasons that, at the time, seemed rational (see movie "Philadelphia")
High-profile victims needed to come forward
Solutions only came because people made a big stink.
There's still no absolute cure. -
I like that cilecto I never have the right words to say when I am mad!!
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tinyvampire
newbite
Joined: Oct '09
Posts: 25
Posted 3 weeks ago
Fri Oct 30 2009 8:38:37
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an update and a question:
my coworker had his apartment building's PCO do an inspection, but he says they used a uv light. that's it. they didn't slash the fabric under his boxspring and do a thorough examination of it with a flashlight, etc.
he is still getting bitten by something, but he doesn't want to take a closer look at his boxspring, either. he has boxspring and mattress encasings on the way, and that's good, but is he really as "in the clear" as his LL says he is? is a uv light inspection sufficient?
it doesn't seem to me that it would be.
advice is appreciated -- this has been bothering me for a while.
thank you,
-tinyv -
junior member
Joined: May '09
Posts: 40
Posted 3 weeks ago
Fri Oct 30 2009 11:50:01
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A UV Blacklight? lol. Get a Bed Bug Dog inspection and get proper treatment if needed!!
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sickofbugs
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 14
Posted 3 weeks ago
Fri Oct 30 2009 17:05:18
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yes, UV Blacklight, that is what PCO inspectors used to say that the entire building was bug free. Took him all of 1 min looking behind sofa bed to say my unit was bed bug free. This is what they did for all units. Of course, the building was not bed bug free. I was bitten 3 times 3 day after this inspection. Moved out next weekend, and when movers who were taking out my furniture to go to the dump, 2 bed bugs jumped out of wall unit when loading it into back of truck. They did not even cover my furniture, just hauled it out the side door 3 feet from my door. I had to pay for this ($300) even though LL admits that they knew there were bed bugs in my unit and still moved me in there. Wish there was a way to sue them. Then LL moved a new tenant into "this" suite the next day, no treatment at all. And of course, other tenants from some units are still experiencing bites and seeing bed bugs. But LL still say building is bed bug free.
I was very very cautious when moving and so far (3 weeks) have not had a bite. I also can't see up close, am having a serious eye problem now, and can't read normal print, so you can imagine how difficult it has been for me. What I see is blurred/double vision and when a bed bug is tiny, I can't see it at all.
sickofbugs
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And someone else claims she/he just got fired, having told coworkers about bed bugs, but without any apparent evidence bed bugs had been brought to work:
http://bedbugger.com/forum/topic/fired-because-theyre-afraid
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