Section 3:
Awareness of lone working regulations and policies
46% of lone workers said they understood regulatory requirements for lone working either 'Quite well' or 'Very well', in comparison to 91% of Execs.
When we conducted the first lone worker landscape report in 2021, we found the vast majority of UK executives believed they understood lone working regulations either ‘Quite Well’ or ‘Very Well’.
This was in stark contrast to the lone workers, 61% of which reported ‘Not very well’ or ‘Not at all well’.
So, has anything changed in 2024?
As you will see from the results, executives continue to claim that their knowledge is high, but not as high as in 2021. Conversely, lone workers' knowledge has increased from a much lower base in the UK.
What legislation or regulations pertain to lone working in the UK and US?
While few pieces of legislation focus specifically on lone working rules, the duty of care remains the same as with other employees.
There are several laws in the UK which hold the employer responsible for protecting the safety of everyone in their employment:
- The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
- The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999
- The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007
Similarly in the US, there is no federal regulation specifically relating to lone working. OSHAs General Duties Clause requires employers to provide a workplace that is ‘free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees’.
Working alone is mentioned in Part 1915.84 (Occupational Safety and Health Standards for Shipyard Employment), in which employers must account for lone workers during and at the end of their shift.
We also asked both groups who they believed was legally responsible if there was an accident involving a lone worker. Over half of both groups (Executives: 85%, Lone Workers: 58%) believed that the company was responsible, though the data show the executives are much clearer on this.
Perhaps this difference can in part be explained by the results of the next questions.
When we asked about whether they had any training, just 39% of lone workers said ‘Yes’, in comparison to 58% of executives.
Finally, we asked about how adequate both groups believed the training to be. You can see the results opposite, and scroll between the Executives and Lone Workers responses.
In the US
In an interesting contrast in workplace culture differences, 58.33% of US executives said that BOTH the company and the lone worker were legally responsible if there was an incident involving a lone worker.
What can we learn from these results?
It might not be surprising that executives rate the quality and frequency of the training as higher than lone workers. While the lone workers' rating of the training they receive has improved since 2021, it could indicate that there still are gaps.
For example, it might be beneficial to survey employees on their understanding of these regulations following training sessions, in addition to making sure that the training is frequently updated.
It’s also important that the provided training is truly relevant and accessible to the employees. As with any training, choice of format is vital – treating it like a university lecture may not get the best reception from your workforce.
Bonus Question: ISO 45001
What is ISO 45001?
ISO 45001 is the first internationally recognised standard for occupational health and safety management systems.
An occupational health and safety management system provides a framework for organisations to manage risk and provide a safe workplace for employees.
It is structured around a set of 10 ‘clauses’, designed to be applicable to all organisations, regardless of size or industry.
Want to learn more about ISO 45001? Check out our complete guide here.
Since it was published in 2018, ISO 45001 has become the international benchmark for organizations showing their commitment to workplace safety. One of the claimed benefits of the standard (if implemented correctly) is helping to minimize occupational risk to employees, including lone workers.
We asked our executives whether their organization had achieved ISO 45001 certification:
