Lone Worker Policy

According to the HSE, lone workers might work alone in a fixed location such as:

• a small workshop
• petrol station
• kiosk
• shop
• home office
• factory
• warehouse
• leisure centre or fairground
• out of hours staff – cleaners, security, maintenance staff

Other lone workers are mobile workers working away from a fixed base, such as:

• construction
• maintenance
• plant installation and cleaning
• agricultural and forestry workers
• service workers such as postal staff
• social and medical workers
• engineers
• estate agents
• sales or service representatives visiting domestic and commercial premises.

The Situation in the UK

Out of 31 million people in the UK working population, almost 7 million are considered lone workers.

This continues to rise, driven by advances in wireless communications technology and the rising cost of real estate forcing organisations to reduce their office space.

The world of work is changing, with traditional office-based workers increasingly spending more time working alone.

Work can be done alone from almost anywhere:

• home office
• on a train
• in a local coffee shop

It is worth noting that an employer’s Duty of Care still applies in all of these situations, and includes staff working from home during contracted hours.

Research suggests many lone workers are more productive and happier than their office-based counterparts. But employers face real challenges to ensure employees’ safety, especially given the stark threats.

STATS:

• Estimated 649,000 incidents of violence at work p.a.
• Comprising 332,000 assaults and 317,000 threats
• 148 people were killed in the course of their work

Of course, not all the incidents involved lone working, but isolation can increase the risks to workers’ safety and security.

Risks of Lone Working

It is generally accepted that lone workers face increased risks to their safety and security.

The three main risks are:

• violence and aggression (physical and verbal), often from the very people the workers are trying to help
• occupational risks (such as slips, trips, falls, electrocution)
• personal wellbeing risks, including health issues caused by a known medical condition or brought about by being in stressful situations

The risks are different for each group of workers:

Public sector staff, transport staff and retail workers face threats of abuse or violence from members of the public (more than one in three working alone in the community has been assaulted or harassed in the last two years, according to research from the Royal College of Nursing).

Shop workers, security staff and warehouse workers might in addition be at further danger from the risk of robbery.

Engineers, construction workers and maintenance staff are at risk of an incident occurring by an accident or an underlying medical condition while working alone.

People working from home might suffer the psychological effects of loneliness and isolation.

An injury or illness can be disastrous for the individual and for the organisation.

Employees can suffer serious physical and mental repercussions, while the employer can be impacted through staff retention and recruitment costs; increased absenteeism through sickness; low productivity; litigation against the organisation; and negative publicity.

Corporate Manslaughter & Homicide Act 2007

Here the greatest emphasis and liability is on employers to protect lone workers. Companies can now be found guilty of corporate manslaughter for deaths arising from management failures which constituted a gross breach of a duty of care. And notably, the employer is guilty until proven innocent, so negligent employers can much more easily be convicted.

Since the act came into force there have been four prosecutions, and a large rise in the number of corporate manslaughter cases opening.

The first prosecution, in February 2011, was against Cotswold Geotechnical Holdings. Alex Wright, a geologist. He was on his own investigating soil conditions in a deep trench when it collapsed and killed him on 5 September 2008. The company was fined £385,000 under the act and had its appeal against conviction turned down.

As the above highlights the financial cost to an organisation is high; but there is also the risk of further financial loss from negative publicity to an organisations brand.

Managing the Risks

The HSE advises employers that they have a legal duty to notify and consult with safety representatives about the jobs of employees who work alone. These responsibilities cannot be transferred to any other person, including those people who work alone. It is the employer’s duty to assess risks to lone workers and take steps to avoid or control risks where necessary.

Buddy System

A buddy system is the equivalent of telling your friend where you’re going to meet a new date.

Lone workers tell another colleague where they will be and agree to phone back within a set period of time.

They may forget though, and if they do call in an emergency, their colleague may not be trained or able to support them.

Lone Worker Training

The HSE advises that lone workers should be capable of responding correctly to emergencies.

This can be achieved through adequate training including training in established emergency procedures.

Information regarding a premises emergency procedures and danger areas should be given to lone workers.

They should have access to adequate first-aid facilities, and mobile workers should carry a first-aid kit suitable for treating minor injuries. First aid training should be given to lone workers as highlighted by a risk assessment

Industry Standards

The two relevant industry standards for lone worker protection in the UK are British Standards BS8484 and BS5979 CAT ll.

BS8484 covers the quality and suitability of key components used for the protection of lone workers, including devices, the service provider, the monitoring and the response are required for the delivery of a robust and effective lone worker solution. Police throughout England, Wales and NI require accreditation to BS8484 and monitoring via a BS5979 Cat ll ARC in order to guarantee a response.

Any communications technology is only as good as the centre monitoring and responding to calls. BS5979 covers the management and operation of Alarm Receiving Centres (ARC). It has two categories (CATI and CATII). An ARC operating to BS5979 CATII, such as that run by Orbis on the Wirral, provides more physical security to cater for high security monitoring applications and ensures that the appropriate level of response required is available

Case Studies

The benefit of lone working support was demonstrated when a female parking attendant in Bristol was subjected to a tirade of abuse and threats while issuing a parking notice to a driver who had parked illegally in a disabled bay near the city centre.

She pressed the dedicated panic button on her ruggedised mobile phone and within seconds she was discreetly connected via the Vodafone network to a response team operator at Orbis’s BS5979 Cat II Alarm Receiving Centre (ARC), with all audio being recorded. The operator remained on the line and began to initiate the pre-agreed emergency response procedure set by Bristol City Council. The man was later arrested and found to be in possession of several knives. The police commended the quality of the audio captured between the device and the digital recorders, and were confident of upgrading the severity of the offence and securing a conviction.

In Review

All employers have a duty of care to their staff. Supporting those who often work alone will not only protect them, it may just protect your reputation and business.

Organisations must have systems in place to assess the risk of certain activities and introduce a safety culture that operates organisation-wide. Businesses that fail to create a strong safety policy by not addressing the welfare of vulnerable staff, such as lone workers, face onerous fines and severe reputational damage if the worst happens.

Further Information

The BSIA’s Lone Worker Section consists of BSIA members who specialise in providing lone worker safety products and services to customers from a wide range of industry backgrounds.