That was the stark message from Nicole Vazquez, a consultant with the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, which campaigns to raise awareness of the issues around lone workers.
Ms Vazquez, addressing an audience of business delegates at a Reliance Security Services Conference in London, cited the example of the Hatfield train crash in which four people died. Network Rail was fined around GB pound 3 million for the accident, but recent changes to legislation have come with a recommendation that a firm be fined up to 10% of its turnover if found guilty under the Corporate Manslaughter Act.
In the case of the Hatfield incident, that translates to a potential GB pound 600 million fine for the rail company had it been charged and found guilty under the new Act.
However, Ms Vazquez cautioned that while the new legislation has made organisations revisit their safety provisions for workers, businesses were concerned at the additional costs this may entail. In addition, many lone workers take to their style of work through personal choice, and are often loathe to make changes to their work patterns despite the demands of any new policies or procedures.
Lone workers: what about the definition?
Defining lone working is a difficult task in itself, ranging from the first and last person to enter and leave an office to the salesperson on the road. Public services involve a high proportion of lone workers, whose roles may entail visiting vulnerable people, or making inspection or enforcement calls.
That said, there are certain issues that are apparent among lone workers which, according to Ms Vazquez, include:
– people acting differently towards lone workers as opposed to more than one member of staff
– lone workers performing differently than when with colleagues
– the likelihood of both verbal and physical aggression being higher
– the impact of any incident that occurs may be greater to the individual and the business
Although the diversity of lone working makes policies and procedures difficult to establish, Ms Vazquez outlined certain criteria that could be applied to the situation. Chief among these was planning – the more practical controls adopted in lone working situations, such as security issues and contact times, the safer the situation becomes.
Estate agent Suzy Lamplugh left no contact and time details when she went to meet an unknown client in 1986. Her body was never found.
Preparation is the key to success
“The more preparation the lone worker makes prior to their appointment, the greater choice he or she has to affect the outcome,” said Ms Vazquez.
Vazquez also made a distinction between “tracking” lone workers and “tracing”. The former might have negative implications for some workers, and be seen as in some way compromising their autonomy. However, with modern communications technology and robust reporting procedures, keeping a trace on lone workers is an effective policy for the safety of any company’s members of staff.
The issue of staff safety was also raised by Bill Fox, managing director of Maybo, the specialist conflict resolution consultancy. Underlining the importance of education and training of staff in dealing with conflict situations, Fox said that there had been at least three restraint-related deaths involving Security Industry Authority (SIA) licensed staff within the past two years.
These were obviously extreme situations but, on a broader level, preventing violence in the workplace makes for a better, safer and more welcoming working environment, enhances a business’ reputation, helps avoid criminal action and reinforces a company’s position in any civil action.
Be proactive in assessing the risks
The best policy for preventing violence is to be proactive in assessing the risks, and then put measures in place to reduce their occurrence. The secondary level is to minimise the opportunity for potentially violent situations to escalate, for example through the use of good communication skills.
Should physical intervention be required, Fox explained that staff training in safe methods and knowledge of their responsibilities is absolutely essential, safeguarding all parties physically and legally.
Turning towards London 2012
The quality of security was also on the agenda in a briefing by Fraser Halliday, Reliance Security’s director of specialist services, who outlined the London 2012 Olympics. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime event and the resources required – including security – have to match that,” explained Halliday.
The huge scale of the requirements for the Games is demonstrated by some fascinating statistics:
– accommodation is required for more than 50,000 athletes, members of staff and the media
– 4,500 chauffeured cars are going to be needed
– 1,500 buses are required
– almost 10 million spectators are expected to attend
– the largest number of private jets ever assembled in the UK
– 160 Olympic-related events take place outside the Stratford site
For the security requirements:
– 10% of the UK’s policing capability will be deployed
– An estimated 5,500 security officers and stewards are going to be on duty
– there’ll be around 100 search lanes
– the Games are covered by the largest CCTV contract ever awarded
The addition of so many approved security personnel has meant that the Olympic Games’ organisers and educational establishments are planning a fast-track scheme in order to meet their targets.
