NEW RISK ASSESSMENT: Home Working

The COVID-19 crisis has profoundly affected how we live and work – including creating an army of remote workers.

Our new risk assessment tool on Home Working, accessible through our Astute eLearning platform, is designed to make the transition from office to home easier. Focusing on the three core areas of your home workspace (environmental factors such as DSE set up, electrical safety and lighting/temperature), working design (equipment, policies and performance expectations) and taking care of yourself (workload, working hours and connections), the risk assessment provides an overview of the home working experience. It includes a section for workers with people management responsibilities.

The home working risk assessment flags up any difficulties with the home working situation. These can then be discussed with managers to make sure the process runs smoothly for everybody.

In this new reality that we’re all facing, adaptability is key. Asking employees to complete this risk assessment enables them to raise any issues they may have with the new working arrangements and makes sure nobody is facing health and safety risks.

Designed specifically with the COVID-19 situation in mind, the risk assessment can be used at any time for home workers and will still provide a useful resource once the crisis has subsided.

Get in touch with us at [email protected] and visit this page to find out more.

Millennials, COVID-19 and Technology

Millennials, COVID-19 and Technology

The effects of the COVID-19 outbreak are unprecedented in living memory. Almost unique in peacetime, the changes to society, work and leisure are far-reaching, with major measures to prevent the spread of the virus in place in every country touched by it.

The crisis has shone a light on the central role of technology in our society. If our reliance on modern tech was something to be concerned about beforehand, it has become nothing short of vital now. Perhaps the Millennial generation – long mocked for their supposed obsession with technology over real-world interactions – are specially placed to adjust to these changes.

The Role of Technology

With many people confined to their homes for the foreseeable future, our internet connections have to stand in for many of the building blocks of normal life:

  • Work: Those who are able to work from home have been told to do so. This has created an army of remote workers, many of them working from home for extended periods for the first time in their careers.
  • Education: Since schools closed, many parents and family members are finding themselves in the role of temporary teachers. The internet provides endless content for activities to keep children happy, engaged and learning during the closure period, as well as providing a handy way for teachers to put work online for their students.
  • Social Lives: With gatherings forbidden, technology allows us to remember that “social distancing” only refers to physical distance. Keeping in contact with our friends and family remotely is more important than ever. When phone calls and social media posts just aren’t enough, video calls can give us that much-needed dose of human interaction.
  • Shopping: People have been advised to shop online for essentials where they’re able to. It’s not always possible – due to the greater demand, delivery slots are harder to come by – but where it can be done, it avoids unnecessary interaction with others and helps to stop the spread of the virus.

While for many people this is a revolution in how they live their lives, for many millennials, it is an intensifying of habits they already had.

Coming of age in the early 2000s, millennials were the first generation to fully embrace social media and go through the latter stages of school and university with broadband internet access close at hand. Keeping in touch with friends in far-flung places, ordering items online and doing work – or school work – at home is second nature to many. Though it is of course a generalisation, it may be the older generation who are feeling the most strain from the coronavirus lockdown.

Every generation expresses a preference for some flexibility in where they work from, but this has been particularly strong for millennials. For years before the crisis began, this age group were showing a strong desire to work from home where possible. It’s hard to predict what long-term effects the coronavirus lockdown will have on working practices, but with widespread home-working becoming the new (temporary) norm, it could be that more employers follow this line in the future, adapting their business demands to the needs of millennial workers.

Pulling Together

Now more than ever, society needs to pull together – and that needs effort from people in all age groups.

This period has been full of examples of the best social media has to offer the world. For example, within a few days of the shutdown there were hundreds of Mutual Aid groups on Facebook, where local people who were vulnerable, self-isolating or running low on essential supplies could ask for help. There have also been successful fundraising efforts to help those most at risk of the virus, such as the Robin Hood Fund in Nottingham.

Video calling technology has also been useful for connecting older people who cannot leave their homes or receive visitors to their families – proving that far from pushing people apart as opponents of such technology have suggested, it can actually bring people separated by circumstances closer together.

Helpful Resources

Here are some more helpful tips and resources to help you while remote working:

Remote Working awareness course

Try our Remote Working awareness course to stay safe and healthy away from the office.

Information Security awareness training

With the flexibility to work from home in the current climate, it’s a great time to refresh your knowledge of keeping business information secure and working safely online. Try our awareness training courses on key information security topics to working safely and securely away from the office.

Business Contingency Plan (BCP) for Infection Outbreaks

A blog post with helpful tips for businesses on drawing up a business contingency plan and ensuring business continuity.

Mental Health While Working Remotely

A blog post with helpful tips on how to care for your mental health while working from home for longer periods.

Creating a Business Contingency Plan (BCP) for Infection Outbreaks

It’s difficult to think of an area of everyday life that isn’t affected by the worldwide coronavirus outbreak, and business is no exception.

It’s natural for employees and corporate leaders alike to feel anxious about the future. However, by keeping the issues in perspective and working calmly to draw up a plan, businesses will be best placed to weather the approaching storm.

If you have an existing business contingency plan, now is the time to review it to make sure it’s still fit for purpose and tailor it to the specific case of Covid-19. Here are some tips to make sure you’re as prepared as possible:

Communication

Clear communication is always important in business. In a time of crisis, it’s crucial. Employees may be anxious about their health, their families, and the financial implications if they are unable to work in the usual way.

Communication should be as clear as possible, with little room for interpretation or confusion. Strike a balance between providing much-needed information and avoiding unnecessary panic. When discussing Covid-19 specifically, base any advice on official guidance from expert organisations such as the World Health Organisation (WHO).

If you’re transitioning to a home working model, ensure all employees know who to contact for technical help and updates on their workload. If possible, this should be worked out before any changes occur; the first days of the new routine are more susceptible to disruption, so minimising this is the key to a smoother transition.

Updates should be timely, clear and regular. Have a plan for how each individual will be contacted for work matters whilst at home.

Areas of Strength and Areas of Difficulty

It stands to reason that some departments and business functions will be able to adjust to a remote working model more easily than others. Identifying these as early as possible means you have more time to work out a plan for the trickier job roles.

Remember to take workplace stress into account. Change on this scale, even of a temporary nature, and living through a pandemic can aggravate existing mental ill-health conditions. Employers have a responsibility to protect the health and safety of all staff. Make a plan to keep lines of communication open and make sure nobody feels isolated. If you are able to offer significant flexibility in terms of working hours, this can help anybody feeling burdened by unexpected extra childcare duties or looking after older relatives.

Remote Working

People who work remotely have some advantages under normal circumstances, but during times of crisis there can be extra challenges too. Acknowledge this may be a big transition for some workers and draw up plans to support them through it.

As people become used to remote working, it can be a benefit: people might find they are more productive and refreshed without commuting and more comfortable in their home environment. Some short-term teething difficulties are worth pressing through to keep your business up and running throughout the coronavirus outbreak.

Since it is a big change for people who are usually workplace-based, it is worth considering extra training on remote working to get people through the transition.

Plan for the Long Term

Unfortunately, nobody knows for sure how long contingency measures will need to be in place. It’s entirely possible they could last for several months. Likewise, in a fast-moving situation such as a pandemic, everything can shift from day to day – so normality could return earlier than expected, too.

It’s possible that a review of your company’s sick pay and compassionate leave will be needed to get your staff through this difficult period. Should schools close in your area, people may need extra flexibility in working hours for childcare reasons. As far as possible, employers should try to meet these requests and have back up plans in place for cover if needed.

Business Continuity Plans

Writing a business continuity plan (BCP) that incorporates all of these elements will go a long way to ensuring you’re as prepared as possible for the effects of Covid-19.

It also has the purpose of making sure everyone knows what to expect should social distancing measures like widespread working from home be introduced. In a time of uncertainty, this can have a reassuring effect on staff.

5 Steps to Safe Lone Working

5 Steps to Safe Lone Working

Many roles involve working alone, from estate agents showing people around houses, to lorry drivers, to content writers working from home. Any job that requires someone to be on their own without supervision falls into this category.

Unfortunately, lone workers are at particularly high risk. They can be vulnerable to attack or aggression, and if they fall victim to a workplace accident such as a fall, they will find it harder to get prompt help – especially if they’re in an isolated location or travelling alone.

Their employers are responsible for ensuring their safety at all times, and there are steps employees can take to protect themselves whilst lone working.

1 – Check in regularly

It’s not always possible to ask someone to accompany you on every work trip. The next best thing is making sure a colleague has your back when you’re away.

Schedule regular check ins and let them know when you’re planning to be at a few key points. They will know to raise the alarm if you don’t check in as expected. Remote working can be extremely useful for employees and their employers, but it can bring its own set of challenges and it’s important to be aware of them.

2 – Always have a way to communicate

It’s important to always have a way to contact people for assistance if you need it. When meeting clients or having people visit you at your home, consider having a colleague or friend call you at a pre-arranged time – and have a code word to let them know if you need help.

Some lone workers carry a personal alarm. The Suzy Lamplugh Trust’s website includes lots of useful information on protecting your personal safety in different situations.

3 – Risk assessments

Any tasks that involves lone working should be risk assessed. Identifying potential hazards in advance is an important step in making sure they never harm anyone.

4 – Leave if unsure

When meeting a client, travelling or otherwise working alone, if you feel threatened or unsure – you must leave. Making an excuse and re-arranging an event or meeting is far preferable to putting your own safety at risk. Your personal safety must be your top priority, and your employer’s.

Likewise, if you’re working alone in an environment you think may pose a physical threat to you, it’s important to stop the work task immediately. Employers have a duty of care towards all their staff and should fully support them if they don’t feel safe.

5 – Get proper training

Learning as much as you can about health and safety, your rights and responsibilities is an important way of protecting yourself. Whether you’re working at height, on the road for your job, or dealing with aggression or violence at work, knowing what to do to keep yourself safe is vital.

Are you Protecting your Volunteers?

St Albans City Football and Athletic Club were recently fined for the July 2017 death of a volunteer working at their stadium. They were fined £1000 (plus £1000 in costs) after breaching Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. The 71-year-old volunteer fell through a fragile part of the roof, tragically dying from his injuries.

Most employers are well aware of their duty of care towards their employees. But are the rules different when it comes to voluntary workers?

The Law on Health and Safety for Volunteers

Volunteers play a vital role in the running of all kinds of organisations. Smaller not-for-profit operations often rely on their voluntary workers to function. Charities, sporting facilities, political parties and heritage sites are just some of the things that usually owe their existence to people who give up their own time to help.

“Health and safety” is sometimes wrongly blamed for preventing charitable events from taking place or putting up a barrier to voluntary work. This is inaccurate because many of the health and safety protections that are so important for workers’ rights don’t apply in the case of volunteers. However, it’s true that all organisations have a common law duty of care towards them (and anyone else likely to be affected by their activities).

When the charity or organisation has employees, they should be empowered to ensure the safety of all volunteers. Key legislation like the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 applies to any organisation that has at least one employee.

In short, all organisations should take all the necessary steps to make sure their volunteers go home safely at the end of their work.

Protecting your Voluntary Workers

Even when budgets are tight, there are ways to protect volunteers. If possible, make sure volunteers work in pairs or groups, or that somebody checks on them regularly. By minimising lone working, you’re making sure voluntary workers can get medical assistance if they need it.

Conducting a risk assessment before any project that volunteers will work on can be a useful way of keeping track of the issues involved – and suitable control measures can deal with issues before they harm anyone. In some circumstances, it would be sensible to have a first aider on hand when volunteers are working.

The key is making sure everyone is properly trained for the tasks they’re doing. If they’re operating machinery, acting as a tour guide or making repairs to a site, this is especially important – but any job carries risk.

It’s important to consider the personal safety of volunteers as well, especially if they’re in direct contact with the public or meet people alone. If they’re required to travel as part of their voluntary role, every step should be taken to make sure this is done in the safest way possible.

Health and Safety eLearning from DeltaNet International

We provide eLearning solutions to organisations of all sizes to meet their health and safety needs. Our Health and Safety suites of courses cover all of the major topics, from Fire Safety to Driving at Work.

How To Stay Connected When You Work Remotely

Increasing numbers of UK employees work remotely. The number working away from the office at least some of their week is growing fast, with up to half of the British workforce expected to enjoy some sort of remote working arrangement in the next few years.

Like all working arrangements, remote working has its upsides and downsides. It can allow for greater flexibility, which employees really value, and can lead to higher productivity and lower staff turnover. However, for the employee themselves, there can sometimes be a tendency to feel isolated, left out or cut off from the company’s wider aims. It’s important for both the individual and their company to take steps to minimise this.

Communication

The key to any good working relationship is good communication. This is especially true if workers aren’t all physically present in the same place throughout the day.

Scheduling regular check-ins with your manager can help to stay connected to your colleagues and the company’s direction, as well as providing space for you to raise any concerns about your work. If you live close enough to head into the office weekly or monthly to conduct these face to face, it’s beneficial to do so. If not, video conferencing technology such as Skype is improving all the time, and provides a good alternative. The important thing is to make sure these one to ones are regular.

It’s worth considering options like Slack, Trello or a similar solution to keep project work on track and discuss your work with your team.

Work/Life Balance

Set boundaries around “work time” and “home time” and enforce them. This can be challenging when your work space is so close to where you spend your down time – or even the same space – but it’s vital to maintain a healthy balance and stop work bleeding through into your own time constantly.

Some people prefer to work in coffee shops or co-working offices to keep a dividing line between their work and family lives. If this isn’t possible or doesn’t appeal to you, keeping work things (including your office mobile if you have one) in a single room can be a good idea. Try to put limits on how much extra time you work outside of your standard hours; if you wouldn’t stay late at the office to complete a project, don’t work on it in your own time at home either.

Keep a Close Eye on Goals and Projects

Without daily check-ins with colleagues about the progress of work, it’s important to stay on top of things as projects move along. Perhaps consider sending a weekly update to let everyone know what you’ve been working on, and where you are with certain key jobs.

Your manager may be able to give you a better understanding of how your projects fit into the wider mission of the company, which may help motivation.

Stay Safe

Remember that if you’re working alone, it’s best to keep people informed of your whereabouts so they can check everything has gone to plan (and raise the alarm if something goes wrong). This is important for employees who are travelling as well as those who work outside the office. It isn’t about telling people where you’re spending every minute of every day; it’s simply a matter of making sure your team has your safety in mind, even when you’re not physically together.

Remote Working eLearning from DeltaNet International

We’ve developed our Remote Working eLearning course to meet the needs of the growing remote workforce and their managers.

It joins our suite of Personal Safety courses.

Workplace Emergency: NHS Violence and Harassment Still Far Too High

Violence and bullying have no place in any workplace. Unfortunately, they remain the reality for thousands of workers in the UK. 326,000 adults experienced work-related violence in 2016/17.

High-pressure environments can be particularly vulnerable. Shocking statistics released at the beginning of March show that one in five NHS employees have experienced harassment, with less than a third reporting their organisation is proactively addressing employee wellbeing. The amount who had suffered physical violence from the public, patients and their relatives had thankfully dropped slightly from the year before, but was still surprisingly high at 14.5%.

Stress in the NHS has been flagged as an issue for several years, with a culture of long, unpredictable hours leading to high employee turnover.

In the high-pressure environment of a medical setting, with increasing demands and the threat of abuse from the public all too strong, it’s vital that managers ensure their staff are supported. Nobody should suffer workplace violence or have to withstand aggression, but where it occurs, they should know it’s unacceptable and their managers support them.

Managing Violence and Aggression eLearning from VinciWorks

Our anti-violence and aggression eLearning course is designed to help employees protect themselves and promote a safe and harmonious workplace for everybody to enjoy.

The course looks at the trigger factors and signs to look out for. It also covers how to deal with violence and aggression in the workplace, and when and how to report incidents.

15-hour Working Day Ads Criticised

Industry newspaper Construction News recently uncovered adverts for 15-hour a day jobs on the Aberdeen Bypass. The roles are for people to operate heavy machinery, including wheeled excavators for up to 80 hours a week. The adverts were withdrawn after Construction News made enquiries with Transport Scotland and the project’s joint venture partners, Galliford Try and Balfour Beatty.

The primary contractors have denied posting the adverts and are investigating where they originated.

This is not the first time Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route project has made headlines for what appear to be unsafe working practices. Another Construction News report revealed that several workers had quit due to stress and exhaustion related to long working hours. Former staff produced evidence that they regularly worked for more than 70 hours a week, with some managing sites for 13 hours at a time.

When told about the recent job ads, one worker who quit due to overwork expressed his dismay: “I’m shocked. After everything that’s appeared in the press about the safety conditions on that project, how can such long working hours be shamelessly advertised? “I got so tired I didn’t feel I could do my job properly anymore and I was worried that, with everyone else as tired as I was, we would be unable to prevent a serious accident taking place. I quit the project because I was working the type of hours that these adverts openly ask for.”

MSP Lewis Macdonald has asked for a public probe into safety issues on the project, saying: “This is supposed to be a flagship infrastructure project – and so should be the gold standard in terms of health and safety as well as the conditions for workers on the project. But testimony from workers on the project tell an entirely different story – and these adverts will only reinforce those reports.”

Numerous studies have shown links between working hours and health issues. Overwork can lead to both stress and fatigue, which in turn have damaging effects on health and performance. The concern at a major building site such as the Aberdeen road works is that workers will be too fatigued to function – leading to a major incident. The project also reported a flipped bulldozer recently, which could be another sign that workers’ fatigue is affecting performance.

Health and safety eLearning from VinciWorks

Our online courses are a cost-effective solution for all of your safety, compliance and performance learning requirements. We offer off-the-shelf courses for a range of health and safety topics, including personal safety, stress management and risk assessments. As well as our prepared training programmes, we can develop bespoke courses that are customised to your business requirements and circumstances.