According to iPointlive director, Steve Cole, now is the perfect time of the year for companies to re-examine their duty of care responsibilities: ‘Dark winter nights and mornings, along with poor weather conditions, can bring added complications for employees, from increased road traffic accidents to personal safety issues.
‘Robust policies not only protect the safety and wellbeing of employees and give piece of mind to workers, but can also ensure that firms can help reduce the risk of prosecution under the 2007 Corporate Manslaughter Act,’ he said.
The act, which came into force for work-related fatalities from April 2008, means large and medium-sized companies can be found guilty of corporate manslaughter for deaths arising from management failures which constitute a gross breach of their duty of care.
One way in which firms are able to comply with their duty of care is by implementing an intelligent employee monitoring system such as iPointlive’s Mobile Monitoring app.
The software, launched in August, delivers end-to-end real-time tracking and monitoring solutions via an employee’s existing GPS-enabled smartphone, turning the device into a highly accurate monitoring tool that works whether employees are travelling via company or private vehicle, public transport or on foot.
‘Knowing where all of your lone workers are and offering them real-time welfare checks at any point during the day not only provides reassurance to regulators – but most importantly gives piece of mind to you and your employees.
‘Our software also carries out one simple check to show that all lone workers have returned safely to their designated base or home, no matter what time of the day or night’, Cole added.