Working in a public toilet is far more challenging than her previous job as a school janitor.

She spends about 10 hours a day in a public toilet, and says users with bowel problems sometimes soil the floor or even handrails in cubicles. “I need to wipe down every nook and cranny with bleach.”

Despite Mei’s valiant efforts, public toilets are usually the last resort for many Hongkongers because of the appalling reputation of such facilities for being damp, mucky, faulty and foul-smelling.

In an attempt to address these problems, Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po promised funding for the department to refurbish about 240 public toilets to improve their ventilation, and enhance cleanliness and hygiene. The plan will be executed in phases over five years, and is expected to cost more than HK$600 million (US$76.4 million).

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But users and experts say that if Hong Kong is serious about raising the standard of its toilets, renovation is not enough. The city needs to hire and retain suitable cleaners, conduct more public education on keeping the facilities clean and re-examine how public toilets are managed.

“The government can’t just fork out a sum of money and call it a day. It should also think of how to maintain the facilities afterwards,” says Dr Henry Hung Chi-kuen, vice-president of the Hong Kong Toilet Association, a group of academics, doctors and engineers who hope to improve the quality of public loos.

Andrew Stone, a member of Britain’s House of Lords visiting Hong Kong on holiday, says while he is very impressed with the general cleanliness of the city, his experience in a public toilet in Happy Valley left something to be desired.

“It wasn’t filthy, but it wasn’t clean enough,” he says, recalling how thankful he was to have noticed there was no toilet paper before entering the cubicle, not after.

When it came to washing his hands, one of the two automatic taps did not work, while the flow from the other was excessively strong.

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Other toilet users have their own stories and wish lists for improvements.

Happy Valley clinic assistant Ma Ka-sin, 24, says she has no choice but to use a public toilet daily because her workplace has no bathroom.

Although generally satisfied with the facilities in Happy Valley, she says: “It would be nice if every cubicle had disinfectant for cleaning the toilet seat.”

In Aberdeen, Shum, a retiree in his 80s, uses public toilets along the promenade during his morning walks.

“There have been times when I’ve had to leave because it was so filthy, it was unbearable,” he says, adding that faulty loos often go ignored for days.

Renovating public toilets will not help much, he says, unless there is proper maintenance.

A woman in her 50s, who only wants to be known as Wong, agrees. The self-employed worker points to a changing table in a recently renovated Sham Shui Po public toilet, stressing that public bathrooms should be cleaned thoroughly and regularly, especially those with facilities for infants.

“Making toilets look nice won’t do anything if nobody is keeping them clean,” Wong says.

Public toilet attendant Mei takes pride in keeping her Happy Valley facility as spotless, dry and odourless as possible. She works six days a week for about HK$10,000 a month.

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“When I first started working here, another cleaner told me there was no need to mop inside the cubicles,” she says. “But the way I see it is, I get paid to do my job, so I should do it well.”

After cleaning the floor with diluted bleach and a squeegee, Mei mops up, saying: “If I don’t dry it, people will get their footprints all over the place – I just can’t stand it!”

Not all attendants are as conscientious. When the Post visited a public toilet at Aberdeen Promenade, a cleaner was using a squeegee that she had sloppily cleaned the jet-washed floor with to wipe the walls.

How low can they go?

One issue that deserves attention is the elderly, lowly paid workforce in charge of keeping toilets clean.

Denny To Chun-ho, organising secretary of the Cleaning Industry Service Workers Union, believes more than half of the department’s contract cleaners are aged 65 or older and says the low wages reflect the way cleaning contracts are awarded.

Contracts go to the lowest bidder, so cleaning companies pay workers less. This is a practice that depresses wages.

“I’ve never seen a public toilet cleaner earn more than HK$2 above minimum wage,” To says.

The current minimum wage is HK$34.50 per hour, with a HK$3 increase due in May. According to To, cleaners typically earn about HK$9,000 to HK$10,000 a month. Attendants employed by the government earn about HK$13,000 a month.

“The low pay makes it very difficult for cleaning companies to hire sufficient and adequate manpower, so they often end up hiring retirees who have fewer job options,” he says. “If the government abolished the contract system and hired its own cleaners, this could help solve the problem.”

To says Mei is one of the lucky few who can enjoy a day off every week.

“Most are either forced to work on their rest days because their supervisors can’t find a substitute, or because they need the overtime pay to make ends meet.”

Mei lives with her husband, 70, a security guard, in a public housing estate in Chai Wan. They have two children and three grandchildren. Their son has tried persuading her to quit her job, but she says: “I don’t want to sit around doing nothing. I’ve got to work!”

A petite woman with a slight stoop, Mei says: “I’m old. I can’t afford to be picky about the work I do.”

She brings lunch from home and eats in the cleaners’ room at the toilet, which doubles as a storeroom filled with toilet paper, rags, buckets and cleaning supplies.

Despite the clutter, Mei says: “There’s more privacy, and at least I can close the door when someone is taking a poo. When that happens, it really stinks.”

Cleaners working the night shift, which typically lasts six hours, are not allowed time off for meals.

“Six hours doesn’t sound like a long time, but cleaners may still need to take a break,” To says. “But if they step out of their toilets for a rest, their company could get fined.”

The department’s contract states that workers on duty should not prepare meals, eat, or wander from their workplaces. If caught, their companies may be fined HK$1,015.

To suggests giving toilet attendants access to shower facilities at clock-in stations found at refuse collection points or municipal services buildings.

“After spending a whole day in the toilet, you’re probably going to smell. It would be nice to have a change of clothes and a shower before you head home.”

Ratings down the toilet

Mei is visibly offended when she recalls how last month, her workplace was listed among Hong Kong’s foulest loos in news reports on a political party’s findings.

“Is this what you would call dirty?” she asks. “What a waste of my effort. I was baffled when I saw those reports.”

According to the Hong Kong Toilet Association, how dirty the facilities are is only one consideration when assessing a washroom. A “Quality Toilet” should be comfortable, with sufficient lighting and space, and convenient, with features such as wall hooks, as well as safe and hygienic.

Association vice-president Hung, a plumbing expert, says most of Hong Kong’s public toilets fail to make the cut, which is why he is surprised that only about a third of the department’s public toilets have been slated for renovation.

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Each of the 240 toilets will cost an average of HK$2.5 million to refurbish – a sum Hung says is unrealistic. Renovating a basic restroom with two toilets, two urinals, two washbasins and ventilation facilities would cost at least HK$3 million to HK$4 million, he estimates.

“You have to remove the old fixtures, redo the pipes, electricity and ventilation. And you also have to consider inflation because the project is going to take five years.”

Having automatic taps and flushing systems will make a big difference too, he adds.

Infectious diseases specialist Professor Ivan Hung Fan-ngai says such automation can help reduce the spread of bacteria and viruses that cause illnesses such as hand, foot and mouth disease.

A department spokesman tells the Post several features will be added in the public toilet makeover.

“The toilets will be provided with good ventilation, making the best use of natural light in addition to artificial lighting, as well as adopting advanced facilities such as sensor-activated taps, soap dispensers and flushing facilities,” he says.

Authorities have set up a working group with the Architectural Services Department (ASD) on the design of the refurbished toilets.

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If Hung had his way, he says, the maintenance of all public toilets should be overseen by a “commissioner of public toilets” rather than the department.

“The ASD has a lot on its hands, which delays maintenance procedures,” he says. “Ideally, faulty fixtures should be fixed within a week, but they often aren’t.”

Denny To from the cleaners’ union adds: “I always hear union members complain that nobody fixes malfunctioning facilities even after they’ve told their supervisors repeatedly about the problems.”

Ultimately, toilet users also have a role to play, and more education is needed to discourage a long list of undesirable habits. It is common to find toilets that have not been flushed, users smoking in cubicles, and people stealing toilet rolls.

The department spokesman says it intends to set up promotional booths in various locations to emphasise the importance of good hygiene and the proper use of toilets.

In the spirit of a spiffy toilet culture, Hung says: “If you give someone a clean toilet, it’s likely they will want to keep it clean. If it’s dirty to begin with, people tend to be less careful.”