Keeping lone workers safe

It’s often the case that you’ll expect your staff to work in isolation from their colleagues – but is this really as risky as many would have you believe? Is it possible to work alone and in safety? Many employers ask this question.

In truth, there is no definitive answer. The scenarios in which employees might be expected to work vary greatly. In order to determine what you need to do to protect them, it’s necessary to conduct a risk assessment. In the vast majority of lone working situations it will be safe to work alone without the need for complicated or specialist control measures.

Lone working is commonplace and includes any situation where the individual works in isolation from others. Examples would include individuals who work alone within premises such as a petrol station, coffee kiosk or small craft workshop.

The definition of a lone worker extends to those isolated by their activities – maintenance engineers, electricians, lift engineers, contractors working in a loft area, etc. It also applies to those working in isolated areas of larger premises, such as a warehouse or away from a base location like a telecommunications engineer working on a phone mast.

As an employer, you have responsibility for your staff, contractors and anyone who may be affected by your activities. Clearly, the risks affecting an individual in a small retail outlet and those of an engineer climbing masts vary significantly. The answer to the question ‘Can individuals work alone in safety?’ is not definitive. It’s a matter of judgement. That judgement must be based on effective risk assessment.

The degree of control and resources that you need to adopt are determined by the risks that the individual is exposed to. For those individuals only

facing everyday risks, the probability is that you will do sufficient simply by controlling the routine risks. Where an individual is exposed to more significant risk, it may be necessary to do more. Communication is the key. Individuals must be able to raise the alarm when they get into difficulty.

Raising the Alarm

The means for raising the alarm can be defined as active and passive systems. Passive systems are generally acceptable where there is a low level of risk. Active systems vary in complexity and can be deployed in more complicated circumstances, such as mobile engineers working on higher risk activities.

The system should provide three phases or functions:

  • Monitoring of the situation I Alerting
  • Response

Passive Systems

Managers can be tasked with monitoring those individuals in isolated locations. Routine checks at suitable intervals will usually be sufficient to meet the requirements for low-risk activities. Where physical checks are not possible, i.e. during off- site working, this will simply require the means to make a telephone call. Where the location is static and the network coverage is good, a simple mobile phone or landline can be used to call a designated number. However, you must ensure that there will be a response to that call.

This approach assumes that the individual will be in a position to monitor their own situation and make the initial call. Obviously, the approach is therefore limited and should not be used where there is a risk of incapacity to the individual.

Some passive systems use alarm technology to communicate an alert simply by pressing a button similar to a panic button on a house intruder alarm. The technology is such that it can be worn on the wrist like a watch and uses an auto-dialer to raise the alarm. The auto-dialer can be programmed to connect to any phone, or a series of phones as a cascade system. Many commercial organisations operate monitoring centres which guarantee a response and will alert the emergency or other services on your behalf.

Active Systems

Generally, active systems incorporate similar technology to the auto-dialer systems described above. These are supplemented by motion sensors, often with two-stage alarm systems, worn by the individual at risk. When the sensor recognises that the wearer is motionless, the equipment adopts a ‘stage one’ alarm state. This sounds an alarm locally which the individual can cancel by pressing a button on the device. This allows for situations where the individual is safe but simply not moving. If the stage one alarm is not cancelled, the equipment goes to a stage two alarm and can dial a pre- programmed number or set of numbers.

Recognising hazards and managing the risks with which they are associated is the essence of safety management. It’s essential to understand that lone working means you must go the extra mile to protect staff – by effective procedures, communication and risk control. This should ensure that you are able to protect both the individual and your general business assets.

Download a Lone Working Checklist