SAFETY ISN’T EXPENSIVE, IT’S PRICELESSEight low-cost ways to improve lone worker safety in your business

WWW.LONEALERT.CO.UK 8

LONE WORKING:

Every UK employer has a legal and moral obligation to

“assess risks to lone workers and take steps to avoid or control them where necessary”.1

36% of businesses don’t adequately protect lone workers.2

1 in 6 lone workers expects up to a seven hour wait for help.3

There are more than 160 attacks on lone workers every day.4

The number of corporate manslaughter cases is up 40% in recent years.5

PROTECTION ISN’T EXPENSIVELone worker protection may have been expensive once upon a time, but today you don’t need a bottomless budget. Here are our easy, low-cost tips to keep lone workers safe without breaking the bank.

REALITYTHEORY

36%1 IN 616040%

VS.

References: 1. HSE, 2. & 3. Daisy Group, 4. Facilities Management Journal, 5. Sky News

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SEND A STRONG MESSAGE 1.Remind staff to keep colleagues updated on their whereabouts and to check-in regularly when working alone.

Kick start awareness of lone worker safety with a written statement of intent from senior management.

Emphasise your commitment to safety, explain the benefits and make clear it’s a business priority.

Encourage all employees to see safety as their responsibility, but ensure managers and team leaders understand their obligation to monitor lone workers and coach others on best practices.

ASK SOME HARD QUESTIONS

BREAK DOWN THE RISKS….• Which roles are most dangerous for lone workers?

• Are any staff more at risk, such as disabled workers or those with medical conditions?

• Are there any groups that should never work alone, like trainees?

• Are there any external risks not directly related to employee roles to consider, such as changeable weather conditions?

…TO FIND SIMPLE SOLUTIONS• Set clear limits on which tasks can and can’t

be done by lone workers.

• Provide extra supervision to protect high-risk groups.

• Set policies for regular communications and lone worker check-ins.

• Encourage employees to be aware of their surroundings at all times.

2.

Chemical over-exposure, biological agents, physical hazards, fires & explosions

Lab workersLifting injuries, abusive patients, drug

handling, robbery & violence

Nursing staffMeter readers, delivery

& postal workersAnimal attack, abuse, violence,

robbery & accidents

Abuse, violence, robbery, traffic hazards, accidents, biological hazards, falls, burns,

toxic exposures & lifting injuries

Emergency services& security workers

Falls, injury, lifting, injuries from waste handling, infections, chemicals,

violence, abuse & robbery

Home helps, care assistants & cleaners

Farm, forestry &horticultural workers

Animal attack, weather, machinery accidents & chemicals

Confined spaces, toxic gases, biohazards, slips and falls

Sewer & public workersShop & service sector workers

Robbery, violence, abuseand lifting injuries

Abuse, road-rage, violence, robbery, road accidents and falling asleep at the wheel

Transport & haulage workers

INVOLVE YOUR EMPLOYEES

• The best people to tell you about hazards are lone workers themselves.

• Launch questionnaires or start focus groups to uncover safety concerns.

• Encourage employees to schedule regular safety meetings to voice issues openly.

• Review employee concerns and take action, but be creative to make the most of your budget. For instance, you could switch telecoms operator for cheap or free calls inside your business, enabling employees to keep in touch more easily.

3.

IMPLEMENT TRAINING 4.• Education and training, such as personal safety, conflict

resolution or first aid classes, will better prepare your lone workers to cope with any emergencies or sudden dangers.

• If you can’t afford professional training, help employees share their knowledge and skills internally.

• Make safety-related KPIs part of employee career progression goals.

• Start a ‘buddy system’ for new trainees to make sure they have extra supervision in their first few weeks.

BE SMART WITH YOUR PHONES

• In today’s mobile age, dedicated lone worker devices aren’t the only option.

• Cost-effectively improve safety by using the mobile phones or smartphones employees already own.

• Lone worker apps can support scheduled check-ins, panic alarms and GPS location tracking.

• Other monitoring solutions let employees schedule check-ins from any mobile or landline via a simple call or text – great when there’s intermittent signal, or employees only occasionally work alone.

5.

MAKE IT EASY 6.Web or app-based management suites offer a fast and cost-effective way to let lone workers report accidents or near misses and preserve supervisor findings for future audit and review.

Staff are often more ready to adopt solutions on devices they already use, like their smartphones.

The easier you make lone working safety procedures, the more employees will use them.

DRIVE COMMUNICATION

• Communicating well inside your business dramatically improves lone worker safety.

• Ensure supervisors know where lone workers are going and when they should return.

• Encourage lone workers to seek help and advice if any safety concerns arise.

• Maximise on mobile to boost communication on-the-go. If there are signal black-spots, switching mobile operator can sometimes improve reception at little or no increased cost.

• Provide usage statistics to supervisors to help them educate and raise awareness amongst employees in a more targeted way.

7.

LIVE AND LEARN

• Constantly review your approach to drive improvements and catch new risks early.

• Review any incidents thoroughly for insights that can prevent them happening again.

• Set up a safety committee to review staff feedback on successes or failures.

• Schedule a test run: see whether your lone workers know what to do in a mock-incident.

• Examine your records: watch for a jump in illness rates or absenteeism – it could point to a problem.

8.

SAFETY IS PRICELESS

• Taking action to protect lone workers needn’t be expensive, but not doing so could be.

• The cost of inaction soon adds up:

• managing a serious incident: £19,000.1

• a single physical assault: £20,000.2

• supporting an injured employee for three months: £45,000.3

• Lost productivity, reputation damage, unhappy employees: Priceless.

THE REAL QUESTION IS: CAN YOU AFFORD NOT TO ACT?

£20,000 £19,000MANAGING A SERIOUS

INCIDENTA SINGLE PHYSICAL ASSAULT

LOST PRODUCTIVITY, REPUTATION DAMAGE, UNHAPPY

EMPLOYEES

SUPPORTING AN INJURED EMPLOYEE FOR THREE MONTHS

PRICELESS £45,000

References: 1. & 2. HSE 3. HR Zone

THANK YOUFor more information on how LoneALERT’s solutions can help protect both lone workers and your business, contact:

Advance IT Group LtdAdvance House 9 Waterfall Lane Trading Estate Old Hill, Birmingham, B64 6PUUnited Kingdom

w: www.lonealert.co.ukt: 0121 501 2288e: enquiries@lonealert.co.uk