As the lockdown forced many businesses to operate from home, employees have had to adapt to remote working.
While remote working can benefit both the business and its employees, it can also generate a lot of challenges. Staff safety is a particular challenge that many businesses are struggling with. So, how exactly can you keep your employees safe while they are working from home?
Ensure working hours are defined
One of the first things you should do is ensure your employees understand their working hours. When you go into the office, you’re there for a specified amount of time. However, working from home, it can be difficult to switch off from the office.
Working from home can actually be a lot more stressful for workers. So, it’s important to make sure they are getting plenty of breaks and that you stay in touch. Naturally given the circumstances, it’s also a good idea to not expect too much from home workers. They may not be able to get the same level of work done from home as they can in the office, and they need to know that’s OK.
Carry out a risk assessment
It may be a little more difficult to carry out a risk assessment for remote workers. However, it’s a great way to address any potential safety risks you may not have been aware of.
While you obviously don’t have any control over physical risks in an employee’s home, there are some things you can help with. For example, being aware of the mental health risks is important. If you don’t accommodate for mental health issues, it could land you in serious trouble. Pressuring an employee when they are experiencing mental health issues could bring a claim against you. So, carry out a risk assessment to identify the factors you need to work on.
Focus on cyber security
One of the biggest safety risks with remote working is cyber security. At work, you likely have strict security measures installed. However, it is unlikely your workers will have the same level of protection at home. This can out your company data at risk.
Employees need to make sure they have several cyber security measures in place while they work from home. These include having firewalls installed, updated security software and a VPN to keep the network secure.
As you can see, there are a lot of safety risks you’ll need to address for remote workers. It is important to make sure employees are safe while they need to work from home.
