Are you safeguarding the health and safety of your home workers?

Home working is becoming more and more popular, as technology makes it more feasible and more employers become convinced of the benefits of flexible working. Many employers find that allowing home working can increase employee retention, widen the pool of potential applicants (particularly among those with physical disabilities), and provide financial benefits by allowing companies to operate from small or remote premises.

Many employers report improved performance from home workers. Not only are they free from a commute and the distractions of an office, they are often motivated to improve their productivity. According to a study conducted by the University of Illinois, “telecommuters want to be seen as ‘good citizens’ of the company in order to justify their flexible work arrangements.”

However, it is essential to keep in mind that you are responsible for the health, safety and welfare of your home workers, even though they are not working from your premises. You have an obligation to carry out a Health & Safety Risk Assessment on the home worker’s premises, and to ensure that any requirements of your Employers’ Liability Insurance are met.

Employers must also:

ensure that the equipment the home worker uses is fit for purpose
test, certify and maintain any electrical equipment you provide (such as a company laptop)
ensure that lighting levels and computer glare are at appropriate levels – and don’t forget that home workers are also entitled to an eye test paid for by their employer
reduce the risk of trips and falls by ensuring home workers tidy away loose cables
provide adequate training to allow the employee to work safely
create an emergency plan so that the alarm can be raised and medical attention sought without delay
maintain appropriate records of serious accidents, illness or injuries.

It is also important to properly assess potential home workers to ensure that they don’t have a medical condition that would make it unsafe for them to work alone, and that they aren’t assigned tasks that should not be undertaken unaccompanied.

You can find more information on your health and safety obligations for homeworkers at the Health and Safety Executive (Homeworkers).

How are you managing your GDPR compliance requirements?

GDPR added a significant compliance burden on DPOs and data processors. Data breaches must be reported to the authorities within 72 hours, each new data processing activity needs to be documented and Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIA) must be carried out for processing that is likely to result in a high risk to individuals. Penalties for breaching GDPR can reach into the tens of millions of Euros.

“In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear.”