Do you need a lone worker policy?
A lone worker is an employee who works in isolation, without close or direct supervision. If your company employs lone workers then its important to remember that out of sight shouldn’t mean out of mind – you need to make sure that their needs are considered just as much as employees you see every day.
Understanding working alone
Working alone is in no way against the law, and it can be perfectly safe to do so. However, it’s important to understand that working alone carries its own set of risks. Lone workers have no one to assist or oversee them, which means that they can be exposed to extra risks that need to be taken into account. This means that further risk assessment procedures usually need to occur.
This is where a lone worker policy can help. A lone worker policy can minimise the risks that lone workers face, putting you as an employer in a better place to prioritise their safety. Lone worker policies work by outlining the risks and responsibilities that arise from a role, alerting all those involved and describing procedures to hopefully minimise any such risks, providing a framework to work within.
Who are lone workers?
Lone workers are those who work by themselves, away from the direct supervision of a company. This could include:
- Workers involved in construction, maintenance or cleaning work
- Service workers e.g postal staff, medical workers, engineers, estate agents etc
- People working alone in a kiosk, shop or petrol station
- People working alone outside of standard working hours e.g. cleaners, security, repair staff
Creating your policy
When it comes to creating your own lone worker policy it’s important to involve the worker, and get their input on what they feel is a risk during their day-to-day work. Some things that you need to consider when it comes to creating your lone worker policy are:
The levels of danger – assess areas of risk that could arise, including use of equipment, whether the workplace itself presents a risk, or risk of violence
Training requirements – taking into consideration the level of experience, how you will monitor on-going progress and supervise staff
On-going contact – think about how you’re going to stay on top of what is happening, and what systems or methods you’ll use to keep in touch with the lone worker
As part of your role in managing health and safety in the workplace, you may also want to implement a structure for reviewing your risk assessment, to make sure than any changes are accounted for over time. If any new jobs or tasks are added to a lone workers responsibilities then these must be assessed, with consideration taken for jobs that may be too difficult for one person working alone. This could mean you need to have provisions in place to provide back up.
Helpful guidelines
The important thing to remember when it comes to lone workers is that maintaining a safe working environment for them may not be the same as your usual health and safety policy. Just because they’re out of sight doesn’t mean they should be more at risk. SAMS can help you create a lone worker policy in order to keep your employees safe. Contact us for more information.