Royal Mail has introduced special ‘Nile pan’ toilets for staff at the Manchester sorting depot.
Two of the traditional toilets at the Manchester Mail Centre have been replaced with ones which users do not sit on.
The depot on Oldham Road employs a significant number of Asian staff from a workforce of around a thousand.
The squatting pans, common in Pakistan and India, are preferred by some Asian families for cultural and hygiene reasons.
A Royal Mail spokesman said: “The washroom facilities we provide in Manchester are intended to meet the needs of all our employees.”
The toilets have been available at Manchester Airport for years and were installed at the mail depot after a shopping centre in Rochdale introduced them.
The Rochdale Exchange, which has about 140,000 visitors every week, introduced the new toilets after managers went on a cultural awareness course.
The town’s council leaders later slammed the decision and Coun Farooq Ahmed called the toilets ‘an embarrassment to Rochdale’ and expressed concern that they have stirred up racial tension.
Council leader Irene Davidson said: “If our views had been sought we would have been against the idea and this is still the case.
“The council has not contributed financially to this scheme, which has been privately funded by the centre.
“Rochdale is blessed with a diverse and friendly population. We get on well and respect one another.
“Doing things like this is divisive and does not help our borough. We call upon the shopping centre to review their decision.”
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