StaySafe - Experts & Thought Leaders

The majority of companies (68%) have experienced an incident involving a lone worker in the past three years, with a fifth of these incidents described as severe or very severe, according to research from lone worker solution, StaySafe. In addition, nearly a quarter of staff feels unsafe at least once a year. StaySafe surveyed over 1,300 lone workers and health and safety executives in the ‘The Lone Worker Landscape Report 2021’. Levels of protection This research aims, for the first time, to uncover the disparities between the opinions of employers and the lone workers themselves with the hope that, through greater understanding, the levels of protection given to lone workers can be improved. The research finds that incidents relating to external factors including accidents, ill health, aggression, and violence make up 41% of recorded lone worker incidents, with the rest (59%) involving stress, mental health issues, and tiredness. Incidents rates Male-dominated industries have higher rates of incidents overall, with 76% of utilities, telco, and construction Manual, traditionally male-dominated industries have higher rates of incidents overall, with 76% of utilities, telco, and construction companies experiencing an incident with a lone worker in the last three years. 66% of FM, property, and estate agents had reported an incident in the last three years, closely followed by housing and local authorities at 65%. Charities, social services, and the NHS recorded the lowest number of incidents (59%), which may be linked to both the nature of the roles, the increased levels of training in these industries, and company culture. The research showed that this group conducted the most training with 60% holding briefings on regulatory requirements relating to lone working. There could also be an issue with under-reporting in these industries. Lone worker safety concerns  Only around a third (36%) of lone workers have expressed their safety concerns to their employer. However, companies seem unaware that lone workers are failing to report these concerns, with nearly all (92%) believing that their lone workers are speaking to them regularly about any incidents and concerns. Don Cameron, CEO of StaySafe, comments, “The considerable under-reporting of hazards is a major concern for health and safety executives, particularly as they seem unaware that their staff isn’t having these conversations. Under-reporting can lead to employers under-estimating the real level of risk faced by staff daily and failing to put in the necessary protective measures to prevent accidents or incidents.” Increasing safety measures following an incident 83% of companies took action following a lone worker incident through improved training or additional protective measures The majority of companies (83%) took action following a lone worker incident, usually through improved training or additional protective measures. However, a significant minority of companies (17%) took no action at all. In addition, the research indicates that companies are often overestimating how well they have dealt with hazards or incidents. 78% of executives say that they have addressed their employees’ concerns to a great or fair extent, with only 45% of lone workers agreeing. Understanding safety concerns Don Cameron adds, “We can see when it comes to reporting incidents, companies, on the whole, are doing the right thing. However, the research shows that health and safety executives can only take appropriate action when they are aware of safety concerns or potential risks and hazards that lone workers may face.” “It’s clear that there is a high rate of lone worker incidents, many of which are severe, and health and safety executives have to focus on preventing these before they happen by ensuring that they understand the safety concerns of their staff.”

Above the Line Security have improved the safety of their at-risk employees by switching from a manual call-in system to the user-friendly StaySafe lone worker solution. Employees at Above the Line Security are responsible for guarding individuals and high-value equipment on busy film sites. Ensuring employee safety StaySafe allows workers on site to send an alert in an emergency while providing the employee with an accurate location via a real-time map Prone to theft and coming into contact with potentially volatile paparazzi and members of the public, the company required a more reliable way of monitoring the safety of their guards. StaySafe allows workers on site to send an alert in an emergency while providing the employee with an accurate location via a real-time map. Monitors are alerted if an employee triggers an alert or fails to check-in on the app during their shift. StaySafe StaySafe also provides the ability for an alert to be raised even during difficult situations. If engaged in a confrontation, a panic can be sent discreetly, or a duress PIN entered if the app is discovered by the aggressor. Missed check-in alerts will also alert a monitor in cases where the lone worker may be unable to send a panic themselves. “Having used an app for the first time to protect our lone workers, we were incredibly impressed by the ease and agility of set up and usability. Our employees have adapted quickly to using the app whenever they work and as they do not always come to the office, it allows them to set up for the day quickly and independently.” Lone workers’ safety Security Personnel are often targets for verbal and physical abuse due to the nature of the work they carry out" Adele O’ Toole at Above the Line, continues; “Previously, we had to rely on night supervisors based in external locations to take check-in and emergency calls manually. This proved expensive and disconnected, particularly if our lone workers were situated in areas of low signal where making contact to ensure their safety was infrequent and unreliable. With StaySafe, we are able to instantly locate our workers on a map once they have checked-in, even in areas of low signal, saving us a lot of time and human resources.” Don Cameron, CEO at StaySafe adds; “Security Personnel are often targets for verbal and physical abuse due to the nature of the work they carry out. They often protect valuable assets which leads to the potential risk of theft and aggression. StaySafe provides peace of mind for the lone workers and the business by providing an effective and reliable solution for a range of volatile situations. Organisations can see exactly where their staff are in the case of an emergency and can send assistance directly to them – all with the added bonus of being user-friendly and cost-effective, only requiring a mobile phone.”

Safety app specialists StaySafe launches IncidentEye, an app that allows companies to quickly locate and monitor the safety of their staff in the event of a terror attack or other emergency. IncidentEye, which is compatible with both android and iOS devices, is a smartphone app and cloud-based hub which allows an employer to rapidly locate and protect employees during an emergency. The solution has been developed in response to the growing number of incidents, both man made and natural, that are affecting businesses around the world. These events are unpredictable and can cause considerable panic and disruption, both to staff and business operations" Effective way to instantly respond “Recent years have seen a rise in terror attacks and active shooter incidents, whilst climate change experts predict that warmer temperatures and high tides will continue to increase the number of natural disasters occurring” comments Don Cameron, CEO, StaySafe. “These events are unpredictable and can cause considerable panic and disruption, both to staff and business operations. IncidentEye provides organisations with an effective way to instantly respond in the event of an emergency and monitor the wellbeing of their staff.  The app provides real time information to instantly ascertain where employees are located, ringfence those in the area and communicate with them until everyone is accounted for, with minimal disruption to the rest of the workforce”. Sharing safety information The app, which lies dormant on staff phones until an incident is triggered by their employer, uses location data to establish if any employees are in the danger zone and prompt them to check in safely. The app can then be used to communicate with affected staff, sharing up to date safety information and warning any near-by employees to avoid the area until the incident is resolved. Status information and communications are also tracked throughout and are saved as a report and audit trail. We are therefore very pleased to have adopted IncidentEye as our emergency communication service" Owen Loeffellechner, Chief Safety & Security Officer at Bank of New Zealand is one of the first clients to go live with the new app.  “The safety and well-being of our people is paramount and so we are continuously looking at ways we can exercise our duty of care better” states Loeffellechner. Active mobile workforce “As a business we have a large national footprint consisting of many locations, including an active mobile workforce. The combination of these elements, industry related risks and a country that can be subjected to earthquakes means emergency communication is essential.” “We are therefore very pleased to have adopted IncidentEye as our emergency communication service. We believe in times of an emergency this will contribute significantly to our capability to confirm the welfare status of our people and provide a timely response, or to proactively communicate about serious threats.”