Lone working

What makes isolation a preventative problem

Working alone combines three dimensions: the physical (no one can see or hear the worker), the temporal (the time it takes for someone to notice an incident), and the organizational (the lack of supervision and support for decision-making in unforeseen circumstances). The severity of an accident, such as a fall, electrical shock, a health crisis, or poisoning, increases when help is delayed. Certain tasks, such as work in confined spaces, at heights with fall arrest systems, with electrical hazards, or with highly dangerous substances, should never be performed alone because they require a support person for rescue or supervision.

Added to this are the psychosocial risks of isolation: monotony, mental strain from having to solve everything without support, feelings of insecurity, and, in customer service activities during vulnerable hours and locations, the risk of external violence (robberies, assaults). INSST NTP 344 indicates that isolation should be considered a risk factor in the assessment, taking into account the nature of the task, the location, the schedule, the duration, and the individual’s characteristics.

From a legal standpoint, Law 31/1995 requires employers to guarantee the safety and health of workers in all aspects related to work, assess risks taking into account the conditions of the job, plan emergency and first aid measures, and adapt the work to the individual. Specific regulations prohibit working alone: ​​Royal Decree 1215/1997 and Royal Decree 2177/2004 require that work using rope access techniques be carried out with a support person, and regulations on confined spaces and electrical hazards require external supervision or the presence of another person for certain tasks.

Preventive measures

• Identification and evaluation. Inventory the positions, tasks and times when work is done alone, and evaluate the specific risks with special attention to the consequences in the absence of help.
• Tasks prohibited from being performed alone. Exclude from working alone the tasks that require a supervisor or support person (confined spaces, work at height with risk of suspension, live electrical work, handling of very dangerous substances, hot work in risk areas) and those whose assessment determines it.
• Communication and alarm systems. Telephone or radio with verified coverage, man-dead switch or immobility detection devices, location applications and panic button with defined response protocol, and scheduled periodic checks.
• Control protocols. Registration of task start and end, check calls at intervals, routes and schedules known to a responsible person, and procedure to follow when a check is not received.
• Emergencies and first aid. Emergency plan adapted to the isolated worker: accessible first aid supplies, training in self-protection and first aid, information on local emergency services and response times.
• Fitness and health surveillance. Consideration of working alone in health surveillance, assessing conditions that may aggravate an emergency without assistance, respecting confidentiality and voluntariness in accordance with Law 31/1995.
• Training and information. Training on task risks, communication and emergency procedures, decision-making in unforeseen circumstances, and prevention of external violence.
• Work organization. Limit the duration of isolation, avoid working alone at night or in vulnerable places when possible, plan for breaks and regular contact with the organization, and address mental and psychosocial workload.

Frequent situations and particularities

• Maintenance and nighttime surveillance. Patrols with checkpoints, regular communication, lighting and secure access, and prohibition of risky interventions without support.
• Mobile and remote work. Route planning, location, communications coverage, equipped vehicles, and verification protocols by headquarters.
• Home care and social services. Prior information about the environment, protocols for situations of violence, communication of arrivals and departures, and accompaniment when the risk requires it.
• Retail and customer service. Measures against robberies and assaults: store design, visibility, alarm systems, cash management and response training.
• Agriculture and forestry sector. Working with machinery in isolated areas, radio or satellite communication, paired planning for risky tasks, and emergency protocols with location tracking.
• Teleworking. Although the physical risk is lower, Law 10/2021 requires assessing the risks of remote work, including psychosocial risks and isolation, and guaranteeing the right to disconnect.

Organizational application: how to manage working alone

1. Identify in the risk assessment the positions, tasks, places and time slots with solitary work, and classify the tasks as admissible, admissible with conditions and prohibited without support.
2. Define in writing the procedure for working alone: ​​authorization, start and end communication, check intervals, means of communication and action in case of lack of response.
3. Provide communication and alarm devices appropriate to the environment (coverage, immobility detection, location) and check their operation regularly.
4. Adapt the emergency and first aid plan to isolation situations, with designated response managers and coordination with external services.
5. Train workers and those responsible for monitoring in procedures, first aid and the prevention of external violence.
6. Integrate solo work into health surveillance and psychosocial assessment.
7. Record incidents and alarm activations and review the procedure periodically.

Preventive management software allows you to record authorized solo tasks, integrate periodic checks and device alarms, document protocols and training, and analyze incidents to improve procedures.

Limits and common mistakes

1. Not identifying working alone in the risk assessment because it is considered a common and irrelevant situation.
2. Allowing solo work that requires a support person, such as confined spaces, work at height with risk of suspension, or electrical work.
3. Trusting the mobile phone without verifying coverage or defining who answers and how they act in response to a call or a lack of verification.
4. Implementing alarm devices without a response protocol or periodic testing.
5. Ignoring the psychosocial risks and external violence associated with isolation.
6. Not training those responsible for monitoring or recording incidents.

The general obligations are set out in Law 31/1995 and the specific ones in the regulations of each activity; this sheet is for informational purposes.

Regulatory and reference framework

• Law 31/1995, of November 8. Law on the Prevention of Occupational Risks; duty of protection, risk assessment, emergency measures and health surveillance.
• Royal Decree 486/1997, of April 14. Workplaces ; first aid equipment and premises and safety conditions.
• Royal Decree 1215/1997, of July 18. Use of work equipment; temporary work at height and requirement of a support person in rope access techniques.
• Law 10/2021, of July 9. Remote work; risk assessment, including psychosocial risks and isolation, and the right to disconnect.
• NTP 344: Work in isolation (INSST) . Preventive criteria for working alone.
• Protecting lone workers: how to manage the risks of working alone (HSE, UK) . International reference guide on managing working alone.

Regulations on confined spaces, electrical risk and chemical agents establish requirements for monitoring and the presence of other people in certain jobs; the assessment of psychosocial risks incorporates isolation as a factor.