Tilted toilets nudge employees back to work

Are you reading this on the toilet?

Many people find restroom stalls to be the perfect retreat for catching up on emails, social media or the day’s news on their phones.

The theory is that we spend more time in the privy than is necessary to do our biological business.

StandardToilet to the rescue.

The British Toilet Association, a group that thinks about these things, has approved a toilet with a 13-degree downward sloping seat to discourage lingering, reports Wired.

BREAKING NEWS: Say goodbye to comfort breaks! New downward-tilting toilets are designed to become unbearable to sit on after five minutes. They say the main benefit is to employees in improved employee productivity. pic.twitter.com/lfDbeXJdCX

— Dave Vescio (@DaveVescio) December 17, 2019

The angle is just enough to cause leg strain after about five minutes of sitting without inducing health issues, Mahabir Gill, founder of StandardToilet, told Wired.

“Anything higher than that would cause wider problems,” he said. “Thirteen degrees is not too inconvenient, but you’d soon want to get off the seat quite quickly.”

Gill told Wired that he expects the angled porcelain to increase the efficiency of lavatories at highway rest areas, train stations, pubs and shopping malls.

However, Gill’s target market is offices where, he contends, employees will benefit from improved posture and productivity. It follows that employers will see reduced losses to staff checking their phones in the loo.

“It’s main benefit is to the employers, not the employees,” Gill told Wired. “It saves the employer money.”

Naturally, creative types are already circumventing the system:

Patent Pending on my #StandardToilet WEDGE. For when you need your 13 degrees of freedom. #Copyright #news @BBCBreaking @BBCNews pic.twitter.com/uXbksGBM1o

— Felix Hemsley (@FelixHemsley) December 18, 2019