The safety of lone workers is one of the main responsibilities of business owners and employers. In case you’re in charge of lone workers across your company, it is very likely you are well aware by now of all your responsibilities to safeguard that your lone workers are fully protected and also that health & safety regulations are being met.
Perhaps you don’t have full clarity on every little detail involved in lone working, from developing the necessary steps that ensure Health & Safety Executive compliance to tools that will help you safeguard the safety of your lone workers. There are a number of aspects of health and safety law that perhaps you are not aware of.
To understand your responsibilities towards lone workers, the following lines can help demystify some aspects of lone worker protection.
Protecting lone workers
The evolution of technology has increased the number of employees or freelancers who work alone either indoors or outdoors. It is, therefore, more necessary than ever to create a solid framework to guarantee maximum protection for all members of the staff, and particularly for those working alone. These lone workers are expected to work under heavy or extreme conditions and very often in remote areas.
You are surely familiar with the term lone worker if you have worked under heavy conditions or far away from being managed or supervised by others. Either way, you might care less if you aren’t an actual lone worker, but in case you’re running a business and employ people you should definitely focus particularly on a lone worker policy.
In recent times, mainly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have also seen a steady rise in the number of workers previously based in corporate or office environments working remotely from home instead. Remote working is legally recognised as one of the forms of lone working.
It is the company owner’s responsibility to manage and control the safety risks of anyone that is legally categorised as a lone worker, whether when working from home, volunteering, or in any other form of lone working. Measures like keeping in touch with other members of the staff, monitoring stress levels, and making sure that everyone has the right equipment must be observed across the board.
It is very well known that lone workers face infinitely more risks than other workers within a firm, due to the isolated nature in which they carry out their work. Any business that employs lone workers needs to provide those workers with sufficient knowledge and tools to carry out work safely. A lone worker policy, as we will discuss later, is a very effective way to make sure that your lone workers are sufficiently trained and well-educated on your firm’s work-alone rules and have proper knowledge of all workspace hazards that can be faced on the job. It’s a tool that can ensure both managers and workers know the risks involved when it comes to lone work. Your business’ lone workers need to be equally as safe as the rest of your personnel.
Technologies
it is truly important to go ahead and take proactive measures so that you’ll be prepared for the risks lone workers will come up with. Nowadays, technology has an impact on all aspects of businesses as well as personal life. Professionals work more efficiently and use the latest tools in order to accelerate and enhance working methodologies and processes, and they get to do this through fully automated solutions. Here is where terms such as “lone worker monitoring system” or “lone worker system” come into play.
Monitoring and creating first-class working methodologies and procedures doesn’t have to be necessarily complicated either, thanks to lone worker safety devices, automated alarm messaging systems and mobile apps now available for lone working.
Lone worker alarms, for instance, allow workers to access assistance whenever they require it, with features like an SOS button as well as a man-down sensor that can detect when they have taken a fall.
These are some of the benefits of a lone worker solution for your business:
- Better task management
- Automation
- Scheduling
- History Recording
- GPS Tracking
- Improved time management
- Timekeeping
- Faster interaction and communication
- Reporting
A clear policy for lone workers
A lone worker policy needs to clearly communicate the hazards and risks presented when a person works alone or in environments with dangerous materials. The policy will identify the responsibilities of each individual in this situation and must describe the necessary actions intended to reduce or minimise risk.
The safety of your employees is of the utmost importance. A lone worker policy is your firm’s most reliable strategy for protecting its lone workers’ health. Not only does it provide members of your staff with the resources required to work safely, but it also prepares, trains and educates your workers on emergency response situations and procedures. A lone worker policy can also enable your workers to make better and more informed decisions, and take ownership of their own safety at work.
