I don't see a problem with a basket as trash receptacle. Why would a basket be any more or less germy than any other type of bin? I never wash out my trash bins. I don't go rummaging around in them for no good reason, or eat out of them, or keep my tooth brush in them- they collect trash, I empty them and go on. If someone has something in their office they collect trash in - why would I worry about it? It is their office and if it works for them then it is fine with me. How does hygiene even enter into the picture?