Are your company’s lone workers well protected?

Both on the road and in the field, mobile professionals can find themselves isolated in potentially dangerous situations. How can their safety always be ensured, and appropriate assistance be rendered as quickly as possible?

Lone working is defined as “the performance of a task by someone who is alone, in a working environment in which he or she cannot be seen or heard directly by others and in which there is a low probability of being visited” (INRS – National Institute for Research and Safety). For the National Health Insurance Fund for Employees (CNAMTS), “a worker is deemed to be a lone worker when working alone, out of earshot or sight by any assistance, in a situation that may prove dangerous” (CNAMTS – Recommendation R416).

The risks faced by the lone mobile worker

There is no statutory definition of lone working. But, given the aforementioned texts, we can take it that all mobile professionals are likely to be occasionally faced with situations in which the fact of being on their own poses an additional risk for their physical safety and integrity. Whereas the labor code expressly prohibits certain activities from being performed by lone workers*, many situations in which mobile workers may find themselves – during their travels or their callouts – are not covered by any specific text. For example, there is: