Lone working

This talk is about people working alone on this job. HSE's definition is plain. You are a lone worker if you work by yourself without close or direct supervision. That includes the person who is the only one of us in a customer's house, the one who has gone back to the van, and the one who is on the tools while the rest of us are on another floor and cannot see them. It is not only night security. If nobody is close enough to help, they are working alone.

HSE says an employer must manage any health and safety risks before people can work alone. That applies to anyone contracted to work for you, including self-employed people. The worker page says the same duty covers a contractor, a freelancer, or someone who is self-employed. There will always be greater risks for lone workers without direct supervision, or without anyone to help if things go wrong. HSE also says many lone workers are exposed to work-related road risks. The driving talk is that part. This talk is the person on the job.

The leaflet INDG73 says lone workers face the same hazards as anyone else, but there is a greater risk of those hazards causing harm, because they may not have anyone to help or support them if things go wrong. The employer should provide training, supervision, monitoring and support. The hazard does not change because they are alone. The consequence does. A fall, a cut, or a customer who turns, is a different event when nobody else is in the building.

Under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations, HSE says you must manage the risk to lone workers. Think about who will be involved, and which hazards could harm those working alone. You must train, supervise and monitor them, keep in touch, and respond to any incident. When a lone worker will be at someone else's workplace, you must ask that employer about any risks and control measures, so they are protected. On a domestic job there may be no other employer. We still ask what the house is, who is in it, and how we will know the person has finished and left.

HSE's list of risks that particularly affect lone workers is violence, stress and mental health or wellbeing, a person's medical suitability to work alone, and the workplace itself, for example if it is rural or isolated. Certain high-risk work requires at least one other person. HSE's list is work in a confined space, where a supervisor may need to be there along with someone in a rescue role, work near exposed live electricity conductors, diving operations, vehicles carrying explosives, and fumigation. If today's job is on that list, it is not a lone job. We do not talk ourselves into it because the second person is on another site.

Violence does not always mean a higher risk because someone is alone, but HSE says it does make workers more vulnerable. The lack of nearby support makes it harder to prevent an incident. HSE defines violence as any incident in which a person is abused, threatened or assaulted in circumstances relating to their work. That includes verbal threats. The key risks on that page include late evening or early morning work, when fewer people are around, workers who have authority and are enforcing rules, people affected by alcohol or drugs, and carrying money or valuable equipment. A van full of kit on a dark drive is part of this. Training should help people recognise when they feel at risk, and use conflict resolution or leave. If someone has already had an incident, HSE says put measures in place to support them, and workers identify and report incidents.

Lone working can cause work-related stress and affect mental health. HSE says its stress standards include relationships with, and support from, other workers, and that being away from managers and colleagues can make it difficult to get proper support. Put procedures in place so a manager can have direct contact and recognise signs of stress early. If contact is poor, people may feel disconnected, isolated or abandoned, which can affect performance and stress. The mental health talk is the longer version. This talk is the check-in. If you are unsure whether someone's health condition means they are safe to work alone, HSE says get medical advice. Think about routine work and about emergencies that put extra physical and mental burden on them.

Emergencies have to be planned, not improvised. HSE says put emergency procedures in place and train lone workers in how to use them. The risk assessment may indicate they should carry first aid equipment, receive first aid training including how to use first aid on themselves, and have access to adequate first aid facilities. The procedures should include how and when they contact their employer, including any emergency numbers. You must monitor lone workers and keep in touch. They have to understand the system. HSE's examples are supervisors visiting and observing, knowing where people are with pre-agreed intervals of contact by phone, radio or email, other devices for raising the alarm that work manually or automatically, and a reliable way to know the person has returned to base when the task is done. Test the system, and the emergency procedure, so it works when you need it. Set limits on what can be done while working alone. A new person, a new situation, or a job with specific risks needs more supervision, not less.

If you are the person working alone, HSE says you must take care of your own health and safety and that of others who may be harmed by what you do, and you must cooperate so everyone can meet their duties. If you are concerned, talk to your employer, a manager or supervisor, or a health and safety representative. On this job the practical version is short. Who is alone today, for which part of the day? What is the check-in, and who answers if it is missed? What are they not allowed to do alone? Where is the first aid kit they can actually reach? If the answer is that we will see them when they get back, that is not a system.