Risks Of Working Alone

Looking into effective lone worker security training, policies, systems, and devices has become a real challenge.

Risks of working alone: David Foster of property and people protection specialist Sitex Orbis explains the risks facing those who work alone, the responsibilities of employers and how they can support and protect their staff.

In a world where everyone seems to be connected 24/7, it’s easy to forget many people work alone. Not isolated behind a computer screen and wearing headphones but actually on their own. They may have a mobile phone but if they need help it could be minutes or hours away.

Contracting trends and technological innovation have made it more cost-effective for one person to do what two or more used to. Increased outsourcing means that many people are part of a peripatetic workforce. They may be working at a client site, there may be other people around some of the time but they are not necessarily seen as part of the same community.

Multiskilling, particularly the end of the divide between mechanical and electrical skills, has also driven the trend towards 'one-man' maintenance and repair. Mobile communications, sat nav, hand-held devices with access to technical information and job scheduling make it easier do a job solo.

So who are these lone workers?  Many are public sector workers dealing with the public. From nurses to environmental health inspectors, from traffic wardens to postal workers. They are often in riskier situations than their office-based counterparts.

Lone working is very common in the support services sector. Maintenance workers, security guards, pest control experts and of course cleaners - they all spend part of their working lives alone.

Cleaners work alone

Although cleaners often work in teams many also work alone. Most cleaning is done outside normal working hours, adding to the isolation. A cleaner may enter a building while it is still busy, but may be left alone at the end of their shift. Cleaners tend to start early or finish late at night and are therefore at risk on their journey to and from work.

In many cases cleaners have the same access to buildings as staff, in fact they may have more knowledge of the premises security systems including keys and alarm codes. This makes them vulnerable to criminals planning theft or vandalism.

Cleaners will often be working in environments, such as hospitals, where they may come into contact with members of the public who could pose a risk through disorientation or simply aggressive behaviour. In hospitals and laboratories, as well as some industrial sites, they may also be working in proximity to potentially hazardous chemicals or substances.

Housekeeping staff in hotels can also find themselves alone in a room with a guest – a situation that can have serious consequences for both parties.

There is no common definition of a lone worker across Europe. In the UK, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) says "lone workers are those who work by themselves without close or direct supervision". Croner’s Health and Safety offers a wider definition. A lone worker is one "whose activities involve a large percentage of their working time operating in situations without the
benefit of interaction with other workers or without supervision".

What’s clear is that the numbers are increasing every year. According to the British Security Industry Association, more than six million people in the UK work either in isolation or without direct supervision, often in places or circumstances that put them at potential risk.

There were an estimated 654,000 incidents of violence at work according to the 2010/11 British Crime Survey, comprising 341,000 assaults and 313,000 threats. In 2010/11 171 people were killed in the course of their work. Of course not all the incidents involved lone working but isolation can increase the risk.

The three main risks are: violence and aggression, usually from members of the public; occupational risks (such as slips, trips, falls, electrocution); and personal wellbeing risks, including health issues caused by being in stressful situations.

The risks are different for each group of workers. Public sector staff, transport staff and retail workers face threats of abuse or violence from members of the public (more than one in three working alone in the community have been assaulted or harassed in the last two years, according to research from the Royal College of Nursing).

Other employees such as shop workers, security staff or warehouse workers might be at risk of robbery; an engineer, construction worker or maintenance staff are at risk of an accident while working alone.

The law requires employers and others to think about and deal with any health and safety risks before people should be allowed to work alone. The general duty of employers to maintain safe working arrangements under the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act applies. Additionally, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require employers to assess and counter health and safety risks before allowing staff to work alone.

The HSE advises employers that they have a legal duty to notify and consult with safety representatives about the jobs of employees who work alone. These responsibilities cannot be transferred to any other person, including those people who work alone. It is the employer’s duty to assess risks to lone workers and take steps to avoid or control risks where necessary.

Many organisations simply ignore the problem and risks completely – often with disastrous consequences. A major lift company had no lone worker support in place when a lift engineer working alone in a lift shaft, fell, and later died. He wasn’t found for eight hours.

A new offence of corporate manslaughter was created by the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007, which came into force in April 2008. For the first time, companies and organisations can be found guilty of corporate manslaughter as a result of serious management failures resulting in a gross breach of a duty of care.

The first prosecution was brought against a surveying company after a geologist, working alone, was killed when a deep trench collapsed. The company was fined almost 500,000 euros. Since then a storage product manufacturer has been fined almost 600,000 euros for the corporate manslaughter of one of its employees who died when he fell through a roof at one of the company’s factories. There are 50 corporate manslaughter cases currently under review.

Support and protection

How can organisations meet their obligations and protect their workers? Perhaps the first option is to review working patterns. It may be possible to avoid situations where staff work alone. For example, rather than allocate cleaners to different rooms or floors of a building, they could work as a team across the facility.

Some firms have introduced daytime cleaning, which as well as ensuring cleaning staff are not working in isolation, encourages the building’s occupants to appreciate the service and those who provide it.

Manage safety

Traditionally organisations employing lone workers have managed their safety in two ways: white board or buddy systems. A white board placed in a prominent position in the office records the names, locations, schedule and mobile numbers of all lone workers. The lone worker checks back into the office and has their whereabouts updated on the board so that should an incident occur, the organisation knows their whereabouts.

The downside is that the white board may only be monitored in office hours (whereas the lone worker may work unsocial hours) and if the person responsible for managing the board is off sick, on holiday or just snowed under, it may get forgotten about.

A buddy system is the equivalent of telling your friend where you’re going to meet a new date. Lone workers tell another colleague where they will be and agree to phone back within a set period of time. Again they may forget to phone back, and if they do call in an emergency situation, their colleague may not be trained to, or have the equipment or technology, to support them.

Communications technology offers new options. For low to medium risk lone workers, a dedicated speed dial set up on a standard mobile phone linking through to an alarm response centre will provide an increased level of safety. For lone workers who routinely face higher levels of risk, enhanced services can be combined with dedicated devices or a smart phone app that can include the ability to set up automatic welfare checks giving the user greater flexibility and protection.

Specialist devices have dedicated emergency keys, or specialist safety sensors, which detect falls, impacts, extended lack of movement or loss of vertical position, and raise the red alarm even if the worker can’t press any buttons. They may also be ruggedised and so work in all sorts of challenging environments and under the harshest elements.

The two relevant industry standards for lone worker protection in the UK are British Standards BS8484 and  BS5979. BS8484 covers  the quality and suitability of key components used for the protection of lone workers, including devices, the service provider, the monitoring and the response are required for the delivery of a robust and effective lone worker solution. Police throughout England, Wales and NI currently require BS8484 in order to guarantee a response.

Any communications technology is only as good as the centre monitoring and responding to calls. BS5979 covers the management and operation of Alarm Receiving Centres (ARC). BS5979 has two categories (CATI and CATII). An ARC operating to BS5979 CATII, such as that run by SitexOrbis, provides more physical security to cater for high security monitoring applications.

The importance of effective lone working support was demonstrated last year when a female traffic warden for Bristol City Council was subjected to a tirade of abuse and threats while issuing a parking notice to a driver who had parked illegally in a disabled bay near the city centre.

She pressed the dedicated panic button on her ruggedised mobile phone, all audio was recorded and she was discreetly connected through to the SitexOrbis alarm receiving centre (BS5979 Cat II) which is staffed 24/7 by fully trained operatives.

Employees trained

As is the standard procedure, the operator remained on the line and began to initiate the pre-agreed emergency response procedure set by Bristol City Council. The man was later arrested and found to be in possession of several knives. The quality of the audio captured between the phone and the digital recorders was commended by the police who took steps to secure a conviction. The council was also able to track the incident in real time using self-service web portal, which also provides a full audit trail.

The HSE advises that lone workers should be capable of responding correctly to emergencies. Risk assessment should identify foreseeable events. Emergency procedures should be established and employees trained in them.

Information regarding a premises’ emergency procedures and danger areas should be given to lone workers. They should have access to adequate first-aid facilities, and mobile workers should carry a first-aid kit suitable for treating minor injuries. Occasionally risk assessment may indicate that lone workers need first aid-training.

All employers have a duty of care to their staff. Supporting those who often work alone will not only protect them, it may just protect your reputation and business.

Further information: the Health and Safety Executive has produced a guide for those working alone and those employing or managing lone workers. Access it here.

Window Cleaner Turf War

Fined, window cleaner Andrew Bond.

Padiham window cleaners in turf war: ‘Turf wars’ led to a window cleaner attacking a rival and threatening to ‘rip off his head’, a court heard. Burnley magistrates were told how Andrew Bond, 39, set upon Paul Bailey in front of customers, after Bond was said to have flouted ‘window cleaning etiquette’ and poached the victim’s patch on a Padiham housing estate. Bond nudged Mr Bailey so hard he knocked him off balance.

The victim, who had thought he was going to be headbutted as he fell to the floor, was then hit in the face by the defendant who used a ‘martial arts-type manoeuvre’. Bond, who had a record for violence, was fined and has now been banned from approaching or communicating with Mr Bailey or his colleague Lee Rushton, under a six month restraining order. The defendant, of Oat Street, Padiham, admitted assault by beating on January 24.

Claire Grant, prosecuting, said Mr Bailey, who is in his forties, and Mr Rushton were working in Wordsworth Avenue, Padiham. Mr Bailey had been cleaning windows for more than 11 years. Last November, he and Bond had words about each having their own patch, the court heard. The defendant said he would fight Mr Bailey at the gym over it. He told the victim he did martial arts and they should sort things out that way.

Ms Grant said: “Mr Bailey wanted to let matters lie. It would seem they did lie until January 24. He just wants to be able to get on with his job and his business, upon which his family rely.” She said Bond had been jailed for grievous bodily harm in 2003 and had convictions for other assaults. Bond, who was not legally represented, said: “There is no window cleaning etiquette. The original owner didn’t sell the round. When I knocked on those doors, I was told: ‘Oh, good, we haven’t had a window cleaner on here for years’.”

The defendant said he was 12 per cent disabled, after a nine and a half ton JCB drove over his leg in 2007 and he went up his ladders ‘very slowly and very carefully’. He said: “Martial arts? No thanks. I am not a violent person, believe it or not. The case where I got sent to prison was a crime of passion. My heart got the better. “Did I do this? No. Am I willing to take it on the chin just to get it out of the way, forget the whole thing? Yes."

Bond was fined £30, with a £15 victim surcharge and must pay Mr Bailey £75 compensation. The bench, who said they did not feel the assault was pre-meditated, added there had been ‘a long history of antagonistic behaviour between both parties’. They added, in imposing the restraining order, that they were keen not to stop the defendant earning a living.

Also see violence case studies here.

Wordsworth Avenue, Padiham, Burnley.

Thanks Walter Jowers of the Nashville Scene + Other News

Pinch pennies wherever you can, except on home repair by Walter Jowers: Here's what's bugging me - It seems to me that a fair number of folks who want some work done around their house want it done cheap—too cheap. Every day, I read or hear a request for a "reasonable" gutter cleaner, an "affordable" window washer, an "economical" chimney sweep or some such. It pains me to say that a fair number of people who are looking to hire cheap help have adequate cash. You'd think that money-minded folks would know that scraping the bottom of the hired-help barrel is the quickest way to screw up a house to the point where it might never get unscrewed.

Somebody tell me: Where are the unreasonable gutter cleaners? The ones charging neurosurgeon money for what used to be routine chores? How many such overpriced gutter cleaners could there be? You rich-as-the-sheik-of-Dubai gutter cleaners, let me hear from you. I might buy myself a bucket truck and join up.

Now, as for you tight-fisted homeowners: If your roof is way up amongst the tree canopy, and your gutters aren't so much drains as they are mini-moats, why wouldn't you pay the going rate—and even a pretty strong gratuity—for a guy to haul his 32-foot extension ladder to your house, wrestle it up against the edge of your roof and start scooping up your wet leaves? Keep in mind that all the while, he'll likely be fighting angry squirrels, head-pecking mockingbirds and killer wasps. He'll be working hard for the money, and he'll be lucky to get back on the ground with his skeleton intact. How much more "reasonable" could he be?

On the other hand, if you hire a gutter man who drives up to your house in a shiny new Escalade, or who puts your job on hold for a few weeks while he's off skiing in Aspen, you might want to consider hiring somebody with lower overhead. Most of the time, though, contractor overhead is just this simple: The gutter man has to pay his accountant to tell him how much tax he owes. Then he has to pay the tax. Once that's done, he'll be lucky to have a little money left over to buy tools and gasoline so he can stay in business. He won't be toting a duffel bag full of cash down to the strip club so he can make it rain.

Of course, a super-stingy homeowner might decide to avoid a worker who earns enough honest dollars to buy gas and groceries and keep the lights on at his house. That super-stingy homeowner might just decide to hire an unskilled and undereducated part-timer, somebody who just got fired from greasing the Tilt-A-Whirl at the carnival. The problem with that is, when you hire an off-the-books underground economy guy, you're likely hiring a tax-dodger who doesn't keep himself educated, doesn't have the right tools for the job, and can't offer any more than, "Golly, I'm sorry," if he screws up the job and wrecks your house.

And that's not the worst of it. If you hire a dirt-cheap worker, you might just be encouraging a backsliding, ne'er-do-well reprobate. It's the cheap-ass homeowner equivalent of helping Ted Bundy with his jumper cables. You satisfy his immediate needs and enable him to move on and harm others.

Here's an example: Some years back, I inspected a house that had the mark of the dimwit all over it. The house had just about every electrical problem that I'd ever seen, read about, or imagined. The cherry on this sundae was that the owners had just had the house inspected by one of my part-time cut-rate competitors, who told the new homeowners that their new house was just fine. I'll never know if that home inspector spoke out of ignorance, or was trying his best to flimflam his client so he could get more referrals from his benefactor, the saleslady.

So, you stingy well-to-do homeowners stop hiring from the bottom of the labor barrel, OK? Let me suggest that before you start hiring help, check with companies that have been around at least 10 years. Find the smart and honest souls who'll give you good leads. Finally, this: Don't take your neighbors' recommendations for laborers as gospel. The neurosurgeon next door might know how to fix a broken back, but that doesn't mean he knows how to clean gutters.

A Tunisian scientist working in the US is greatly contributing to the robotic revolution which is sweeping the industrial world and especially Japan, Europe and the US. A Professor of mechanical engineering at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Rice University in the US, Fathi Ghorbal, initially studied in Tunisia before receiving a B.S from Pennsylvania State University, an M.S from Carnegie Mellon University and a PhD from the University of Illinois at Urbana –Champaign. Recently, he was appointed as the Schlumberger Visiting Chair in Mechatronics and Robotics, in Paris. As the holder of the prestigious Chair, he will enjoy joint appointments at five of France’s ‘Grandes Ecoles’, including the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Mines, and the Ecole Polytechnique.
The Tunisian scientist has designed several robots destined to the aeronautical industry, pipelines as well as miniature robots for biomedical purposes. One of his major achievements is a robot dubbed “Inspector Bot”, equipped with its own source of energy, magnetic and electric sensors, video surveillance cameras and infrared lasers which is capable of achieving minute diagnostics not only of coastal erosions, abut also of underground and underwater pipelines.
Another of his inventions which has earned him considerable attention, is a robot which is capable of cleaning the window panes of skyscrapers. He is currently involved in the manufacturing of miniature robots based on nanotechnology. He is also the manager of a company dubbed “IT Robotics” which he has founded in Houston, Texas.

Sir Jackie Stewart: If I hadn't been F1 world champion I would have been.. a window cleaner. Formula 1 legend Sir Jackie Stewart revealed yesterday that he's also a whizz at cleaning windows. Sir Jackie, 70, even claimed if he had not been a racing driver he would have been a world champ with a squeegee and chamois instead.The Scot, who won three world titles in 1969, 71 and 73, says he hates streaky glass and prides himself on doing a good job. He said: "If I hadn't won the world championship driving a racing car, I would have won it cleaning windows. I am very good at cleaning windows. I have good attention to detail and I don't like to see streaks.
"If I could not have done what I did, I would have bought a pail and a sponge or a squeegee and I would have built a business."
Sir Jackie says he was attracted to menial tasks after being branded "thick" at school in Dumbarton because he was dyslexic, though the problem was not identified until he was 41.He added: "I see myself as the President of the Menial Task Division because I can't do the clever things - I couldn't be a lawyer, a banker or a doctor." He said it would have been his dream to have a window cleaning empire, staffed by fellow dyslexics.

H.W. Foote & Co. celebrates 100 years of business: The company was started in 1909; so we are celebrating our 100th year in business. The original owner was my great-grandfather, Harvey Wallace. The first site was in downtown Boston. It was originally a commercial window cleaning company. Later, the company expanded to include a painting contracting business. In the mid-1950s, his son, my grandfather, had this building constructed and moved the painting contracting business here. Then, in the early 1960s, the retail paint store was added. My grandfather and I had a close relationship.

CORDIA, the company set up to manage Glasgow City Council's direct and care services, has been praised in a UK-wide technology award scheme for its development of Blackberry and its use in home care. The limited liablilty partnership, which has a staff of almost 9,000, was commended as a runner-up in the Mobile Product Of The Year category at the UK IT Industry Awards in London. Cordia's in-house software staff created eRouter, which is now used by home carers. The application provides them with all the information they need about the people they care for - which saves time and could save lives. Cordia is based in the centre of Glasgow and says it can provide services to organisations across the UK. It has an annual turnover of about £154million. Among the services it provides in Glasgow are meals at home to more than 900 elderly people. It also does building and window cleaning, janitorial services, and school crossing patrols.

Mr Jobling suffered an epileptic fit two days before his death. His partner Valerie Rendal spoke to him on the phone the following day and he was saying illogical things. She said the confusion could have been an aftermath effect of the seizure. The next morning, window cleaner Martin Boddy saw him jump out of the window. He said: “I was cleaning one of the panes. He came and said ‘hello’. Then he walked back about six paces and said ‘move out of the way’. He headbutted the window and went straight through. It was just a shock.” Mr Boddy climbed down his ladder and, along with another window cleaner and a neighbour, helped to cover Mr Jobling with a towel and called an ambulance.
John Paul Jobling died after he leapt through a second-floor window at flats in Steward Crescent, South Shields, on June 3 this year. The 49-year-old, known as Paul, was seen “headbutting” the glass and falling through the broken window. An inquest heard yesterday that a similar incident happened in February last year when Mr Jobling jumped out of a window and injured his collar bone. Mr Jobling’s family members told the hearing he had been having problems with neighbours who were allegedly causing trouble in the area.

Service Charges: Do you think the service charge imposed by your landlord is justified? The pressure is growing on the companies that own and manage more than 100,000 leasehold flats and houses which are designed for older residents. The companies that run them charge significant annual fees for maintenance, services, management, and repairs. And when the leaseholders sell their home there is an exit fee to pay. They start at 1% of the sale price, but other charges are added on top and they can be considerably more. The Office of Fair Trading is investigating these exit fees which it says could be unfair. One site, on which there are a further six similar properties, is owned and managed (external property maintenance, gardening, window cleaning, buildings insurance, emergency call facility) by a Housing Association.

Roberts struck when window cleaner Mr Bates pulled up in Perrymans Farm Road to collect a payment from Roberts' neighbour. The grandmother brandished a large black-handled bread knife and raced towards the hatchback which was also carrying Miss Cartey, of Dagenham. 'Miss Roberts lunged at Mr Bates through the open side window of the Vauxhall Corsa in which he was sitting, shouting abuse and threats at both of the vehicle's occupants,' said Mr Requena. Lynda Roberts, 54, lunged a bread knife at Paul Bates through the window of his Vauxhall Corsa as her daughter Natasha Cartey sat cowering inside. Roberts then tossed blade away before rearming herself with a carving knife. A jury at Snaresbrook Crown Court took less than two hours to convict Roberts of affray following a three-day trial.