A landmark study into perceptions of personal safety at work found 6.8 million workers worry about their safety each week, while the majority of employers underestimate the level of concern.
The study, conducted on behalf of employee safety experts Peoplesafe, found that one in five of all employees worry about their safety at least once a week and that negative experiences involving safety issues can often contribute to decisions to leave their jobs.
Policy makers and businesses across the UK are facing a recruitment and retention challenge in frontline roles. Although the study found that many businesses want to do more to protect their employees, many struggle to know how they can help.
The new report, published today by Peoplesafe, explores this issue of workplace safety and presents solutions for how employers and government can work together to address these challenges.
The report recommends that in order to better protect employees, regulators must give clearer guidance and government should work with all parties to set out a standard of protection that employees can easily understand and access.
Lower cost security measures now exist and can be better tailored to a wider array of employees. The most effective are personal safety alarms that provide a strong level of protection, can support the prevention of incidents, and critically manage issues. Where CCTV systems may cost thousands of pounds, some personal safety alarms are now the price of a cup of coffee for near instant access to the police.
There is a clear, tangible benefit to recruitment and perceptions of roles if prospective employees are offered technology, and in particular, personal safety solutions.
Naz Dossa, Chief Executive of Peoplesafe, commented: “Britain’s workforce is our most valuable asset, and it has faced up to considerable challenges throughout the pandemic while continuing to deliver fantastic services.
“Despite this, we are facing a cross-industry problem that few have come to terms with. It’s clear that safety concerns are real for millions of employees in all types of roles, and that employers underestimate their concerns, and feel it is hard to know what they can do to protect their employees.
“We need to shift the dial on the importance of employee personal safety. By supporting businesses to act in the best way possible, and by giving employees greater peace of mind through recognised standards, we can make a genuine difference. We’re calling on employers and government to work together to achieve a step change in how workers are being protected.”
The survey was conducted with 2,081 non-vulnerable and potentially vulnerable workers. Download the study report here: https://peoplesafe.co.uk/whitepapers/overcoming-the-employee-safety-gap .
