There are many businesses and sectors in the world where you might need to employ lone workers or have people out and about working on their own without the physical support and backup of a team. These could include retail chains, delivery services, utility companies, and security firms. Whether it’s retail workers, delivery drivers, service engineers, or security detail, there are numerous roles and occupations that call for lone workers.
A 2021 survey by Stay Safe revealed a concerning trend: of 478 companies surveyed, a staggering 68% reported incidents involving lone workers. Solus Guard’s data further underscores the severity of the issue, with thousands of lone workers in North America alone being injured or killed. These statistics should serve as a wake-up call, emphasizing the critical need to protect lone workers and ensure they have the necessary support and safety measures in place.
This post is a call to action, empowering you to take proactive steps to enhance the safety and well-being of your lone workers.
Photo by Eclipse
Risk Assessments
Risk assessment is vital in uncovering different factors that can pose threats to your employees. Be it from external elements, e.g., weather or other threats, such as theft or assault, or from operational risks, you need to assess how your lone workers might come under threat. Be aware of the risks and plan and protect against them all, not just what you perceive to be the most obvious.
Protocols
Lone workers need to know the exact action when they encounter threats. For example, suppose you have a lone photographer shooting at different locations, and they experience harassment. In that case, they need to know the company policy to protect themselves and how the company will support them. If you have lone gas station workers, what happens in the event of a robbery? How will you protect them? What is the recommended course of action, and what is the chain of command or follow-up? These protocols can help people protect themselves and know their rights within the company for any action that needs to be taken.
Protection Devices
You can use different types of protective devices and technology to help you care for your lone workers. GPS devices can track field workers, so if there are any incidents, you can locate them immediately and provide direct help to where they are. Panic buttons in fixed locations allow an easy point of raising help more discreetly, and lone worker alarms allow the user to call for help swiftly with a dedicated channel designed for this purpose.
You might find man-down alarms a better investment, check-in timers, or even personal recording devices they can wear for video evidence should an incident occur.
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko
Training
All lone workers need appropriate training on how to handle themselves and different situations to the best of their ability. These scenarios will, of course, differ from industry to industry depending on the risks of the job. However, the more training each employee has, the more prepared they are to use this training if required, the easier it will be for them to handle themselves in this situation if it arises, even if this training is on how to escape or hide until help arrives.
There are many businesses and sectors in the world where you might need to employ lone workers or have people out and about working on their own without the physical support and backup of a team. These could include retail chains, delivery services, utility companies, and security firms. Whether it’s retail workers, delivery drivers, service engineers, or security detail, there are numerous roles and occupations that call for lone workers.
A 2021 survey by Stay Safe revealed a concerning trend: of 478 companies surveyed, a staggering 68% reported incidents involving lone workers. Solus Guard’s data further underscores the severity of the issue, with thousands of lone workers in North America alone being injured or killed. These statistics should serve as a wake-up call, emphasizing the critical need to protect lone workers and ensure they have the necessary support and safety measures in place.
This post is a call to action, empowering you to take proactive steps to enhance the safety and well-being of your lone workers.
Risk Assessments
Risk assessment is vital in uncovering different factors that can pose threats to your employees. Be it from external elements, e.g., weather or other threats, such as theft or assault, or from operational risks, you need to assess how your lone workers might come under threat. Be aware of the risks and plan and protect against them all, not just what you perceive to be the most obvious.
Protocols
Lone workers need to know the exact action when they encounter threats. For example, suppose you have a lone photographer shooting at different locations, and they experience harassment. In that case, they need to know the company policy to protect themselves and how the company will support them. If you have lone gas station workers, what happens in the event of a robbery? How will you protect them? What is the recommended course of action, and what is the chain of command or follow-up? These protocols can help people protect themselves and know their rights within the company for any action that needs to be taken.
Protection Devices
You can use different types of protective devices and technology to help you care for your lone workers. GPS devices can track field workers, so if there are any incidents, you can locate them immediately and provide direct help to where they are. Panic buttons in fixed locations allow an easy point of raising help more discreetly, and lone worker alarms allow the user to call for help swiftly with a dedicated channel designed for this purpose.
You might find man-down alarms a better investment, check-in timers, or even personal recording devices they can wear for video evidence should an incident occur.
Training
All lone workers need appropriate training on how to handle themselves and different situations to the best of their ability. These scenarios will, of course, differ from industry to industry depending on the risks of the job. However, the more training each employee has, the more prepared they are to use this training if required, the easier it will be for them to handle themselves in this situation if it arises, even if this training is on how to escape or hide until help arrives.
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