Hello to all. I am new today, and would like to say thank you for letting me join.
I am an assistant manager (or should I say "key carrier" since I'm just someone the manager and his senior assistant "use" to work many closing shifts and other various duties no one else wants)
My question is for my valued employees, not for myself. They are the reason I've stayed there this long, hoping only to give them at least one person with a professional attitude, who is approachable, rational, etc.
Is an employer in the state of Va, required to at least provide drinking water, free of charge. The water fountains are not in working order, at the store where I am employed, and we have always just provided gallons of refrigerated drinking water, from our store shelves, for the employees to drink.
They are paid barely above minimum wage, with NO benefits at all, so they can barely afford to exist. A few bottled drinks a day, at $1.25 each, takes a chunk out of their bill money.
I have just been infomed that water can no longer be charged to store expense, and anything that employees have to drink must be paid for by them.
This store is one of a few in Va, but we are owned by a company in North Carolina, that owns many other store chains, all in the south.
I am new to the south, but it seems that I have heard that its required of employers to provide clean drinking water. Let me add that the A.C. rarely works.


Thanks for any replies, and sorry I am so long
winded. :confused:

I am not aware of any law in any state that requires an employer to provide drinking water free of charge. I think it is petty and cheap of an employer not to do so, but unless there is an OSHA regulation of which I am not aware (bears?) it is not required by law.

Is there any reason the employees could not bring their own bottled water from home? I've been know to refill a Dasari or Aquafina or Poland Spring bottle with tap water.

Thanks for the reply. The only reason I thought there was a requirement, is that I was working as a fitness instructor at my previous job, and helped with opening the studio. My boss told me that even though we all came to work with water bottles in hand, since she had 2 or more employees, she was required to furnish a water cooler in the break room, for employees only. That may have been a requirement of fitness center owners only.
Thanks again. I guess I need to just move back up North, where people are treated like human beings by their employers. I am still in "culture shock", even after 2 years of living in the south.