Health and social sector may have to deal with unpredictable client

behaviour or situations

Violence & abuseLone workers need to be protected

from slips, trips and falls, as wellas accidents and injury caused by machinery or working at height

Accidents & injuries Those working in remote areasor visiting domestic properties

(i.e. postmen) may be susceptible to attack from animals

Injuries from animals Resulting from musculoskeletal

disorders due to lack of supervision, knowledge of training

Long-term health issues

The risks of lone working

The cost of not protecting your business Wages for injured worker over period £10,000

Loss of production £8,000Overtime wages to cover lost production £3,000Wages for replacement worker £7,000Loss of time of manager / MD £4,000Legal expenses £3,000Fines and court costs £4,000Increase in employers liability insurance £6,000

Total cost to business £45,000

Example costs for an injured worker who was hospitalized and off work for 12 weeks:

Employer responsibilities

Identify staff who work alone and the risks they face

Develop and implement a Lone Working Policy

The direct investment in health and safety is not always visible, but the cost of not protecting your employees can be significant to a business.

There are

6 millionlone workers in the UK

Charity Transport Factory work Hi-tech

Lab work Office work Outdoors Security

ARE YOUR LONE WORKERS SAFE?

That’s around one fifth of the UK’s working population

Working across many industries

Control any risks faced by lone workers

How to keep your workers safe

Involve workers. They are often the best people to tell you about any hazards and risks they face.

Put control measures in place. Use appropriate work equipment and ensure your employees carry a lone worker device to use in the event of an accident or emergency.

Training. Provide training to ensure employees are familiar with operating machinery, Training is also crucial to enable employees to cope in unexpected circumstances and with potential exposure to threats or danger.

Carry out and regularly review a risk assessment. This should help employers decide on the right level of supervision.

Record significant findings. Businesses with 5 or more employees must record significant findings of all risk assessments.

Who is responsible for

lone workers within your organisation?

Lone working is pretty much common sense, but we all know that common sense can be easily forgotten in threatening or dangerous situations – so here’s a quick reminder of some common lone worker safety principles:

Tips for working alone

Communication:Let your supervisor

know where you are and what time you will be

expected back

Lone worker alarm: Consider implementing a lone worker monitoring system so your employees can raise an alert in the event of an emergency

Mobile phone: Always carry a mobile phone with you when working alone

Use good judgement:

Assess and re-assess situations to help yourself become

aware of risks as early as possible

lonealert.co.uk | 0121 501 2288 | enquiries@lonealert.co.uk

sources: hse.go.uk/violence/conclusions.html, Office of National StatisticsLone Worker Study within the NHS, Local Government and Housing Associations, Cambridge Resolution, 2005

LoneALERT is the global provider of lone worker protection solutions. We provide a range of lone worker devices and solutions to protect staff who work remotely, alone or are vulnerable.

It’s a two-way street: the employer must put protection measures in place...

and employees must take reasonable care of themselves and co-operate with you.

Health & Safety Manager

Are the products safe to use in certain areas?

Is the lone worker protection in place fit for purpose?

Employees

I work in hazardous areas on my own – how can I feel

more protected?

What happens if I fall whilst working alone?

I work late in the office on my own and feel vulnerable.

Supervisors

How do I know if my staff are in trouble?

How can I quickly produce reports to show the whereabouts of

employees?

How can I monitor the safety of staff if they’re working out

of office?

THINKSAFETY CAUTIONCAUTION

Company Director

How do I make sure I’m looking after all my employees?

Can I monitor when my employees are checking in and out?

Can I remotely monitor the safety of my employees?

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