New research shows two-thirds of people qualify as lone workers

Orangeand the personal safety charitySuzy Lamplugh Trusttoday launched a guide to advise people working alone on how to stay safe and feel confident.  According to new research commissioned by Orangeⁱ, while nearly half (46%) of people in full time employment identify themselves as lone workers, the term actually applies to over two-thirds (71%)ⁱⁱ, including those who work alone in situations such as being late in the office (30%) or travelling to meetings on public transport (25%).  The Orange Guide to Working Safely Alone can help advise businesses in the UK on how to support their lone workers and what they could do to help meet their legal responsibility to keep employees as safe as possible when working aloneⁱⁱⁱ.  

As advances in smartphones and communications technology enable remote connection to business networks, nearly one in five (18%) people now spends over 50% of their time as a lone worker. The research revealed that half of those questioned (49%) admitted they’ve felt uncomfortable while working alone, yet 45% did not take action as they were nervous about the consequences (42%), or felt threatened by a person’s behaviour and didn’t want to make it worse (37%). 

The Orange Guide to Working Safely Alone addresses these findings and aims to empower employees to be more confident in worrying situations, offering tips on how to act to avoid situations escalating.  With additional expert tips and guidance from Suzy Lamplugh Trust, this guide will be available for employers and employees to download for free from the Orange Businesswebsite.

Martin Stiven, Vice President of Business at Orange, part of Everything Everywheresaid: “No matter what size your business, keeping employees safe has to be a priority.  We worked with Suzy Lamplugh Trust to gain their expertise for developing the Orange guide to working safely alone. This follows on from two strategic partnerships we announced last year^iv, which allowed us to offerspecialised solutionsto public and private sector organisations with lone workers.  These help provide 24/7 peace of mind for employers and employees alike when off-site through tailored support options, including a discreet panic button and GPS tracking.”

“Orange recognises the growing need to provide businesses with easy to use, reliable tools that can help them take care of their employees’ wellbeing in the way that suits them best, and the launch of this guide supports that aim.”

Catherine Skinner, Director, Suzy Lamplugh Trustsaid: “This guide is a great starting point for people to understand how to respond to threatening or uncomfortable situations.  It can also direct businesses to further courses and information if they want more detail for any reason. Access to Orange’s network of business customers will help us raise awareness amongst employers of personal safety for those members of staff who work alone, even if that’s only for 30 minutes a week.”

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About Orange UK

Orange is the key brand of the France Telecom Group, one of the world's leading telecommunications operators. With almost 131 million customers, the Orange brand now covers Internet, television and mobile services in the majority of countries where the Group operates.

In the UK, Orange provides high quality GSM coverage to 99% of the UK population, and 3G coverage to more than 93%.

Orange and any other Orange product or service names included in this material are trade marks of Orange Brand Services Limited.

On July 1 2010, the company became part of Everything Everywhere, one company that runs two of Britain's most famous brands - Orange UK and T-Mobile UK - with plans to transform the industry by giving customers instant access to everything, everywhere, offering them the best value, best choice and best network coverage in the country. Everything Everywhere Limited is the UK’s biggest communications company, with a combined customer base of almost 28 million people and more than 720 retail stores across the country. Everything Everywhere Limited is registered at Hatfield Business Park, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, AL10 9BW under the registered company number 02382161.

For more information please call the Orange Press Office 0870 3731500, or visitwww.orange.co.uk/newsroom

About Suzy Lamplugh Trust

Suzy Lamplugh Trust works to raise awareness of the importance of personal safety in order to help people to avoid violence and aggression and live safer, more confident lives.

The Trust works alongside government, the police, the educational establishment, public bodies and the business sector to encourage safety wherever people may be at risk - in the home, at work, in public and in schools and colleges, on public transport and when travelling at home or abroad.

ⁱResearch carried out by RedShift Research in January 2011, questioned 1000 people in full time employment in the UK

ⁱⁱThe definition of a lone worker according to the Government Agency ‘Business Link’ is “anybody who works alone”, including:
* Self-employed people
* Employees who work away from their business' base. This occurs in a wide range of business activities such as transport, painting and decorating and electrical and other repair work
* People working outside normal hours - such as factory security staff or a night cleaner in an office block.
* Mobile workers - such as salespeople - who may be on their own for long periods of their working day
* People who work from home

ⁱⁱⁱIn compliance with The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974; The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and The Corporate Manslaughter Act 2008

^ivJune 15th 2010 – Orange UK announced two new strategic partnerships to support itslone worker solutionand help organisations support their employees when off site, with public sector specialistsGuardian24, and private sector expertsPeoplesafe.