Anxiety and Lifts - Advice

[claire_2910]

Hello

I have just started working in a communal office building with lots of other businesses. There is stair access to the first floor. However, floors 2 and 3 only have a lift.

When I have looked into this further, they do have stairs its just they can't be accessed or used as they are alarmed. If they were to allow the stairs to be used by the employees and businesses it would deactivate the fire alarm system - which isn't ideal if the lifts broke down and a fire started.

My concern is i hate lifts, worrying and thinking of worst case scenario.

I have asked the manager and she is seeing if the health and safety officers can do anything.

I have also just spoken to a man from HSE online about it and he said I need to contact the local council but "god knows how they are going to help you". I asked him for clarification and he said in not so many words that being an individual with anxiety isn't going to really change the situation.... so then I moved on to say what if someone was disabled that they couldn't use the lift - but then we are moving on to equality and discrimination....

Just because anxiety does have a physical look - people don't care.

Can anyone advice what I can do, because this isnt right.

[nomorepanic]

Sounds like the building is a complete nightmare to work in

How can they have stairs you can't use and deactivate the fire alarms that is mad!

I hate lifts so unless they let me use the stairs I would not be working there lol

[Tufty]

Loads of people have a fear of lifts - you know normal people :wacko:

I guess there are doors leading to the stairs that are alarmed and if these doors are used it deactivates the fire alarm system which sounds like a design fault to me. I've used to work in a large building with sets of stairs each end - one was for use as a fire escape only and the doors leading onto the stairs were alarmed for security reasons because the stairs came out in a part of the building where it was thought people could sneak in. However if the door alarm was broken all it did was sound at the desk and we'd go see who was on the stairs, it didn't affect the fire alarm system. Most fire escape stairs are open all the time and not alarmed, find out why these are alarmed. It would be worth pushing this issue for further information as it sounds bureaucratic red tape that someone with poor insight has enforced.
Good luck