Lone Worker Industry for Social Workers

The social work/social assistance sector faces both environmental and social risks with a clear need for a personal safety device.

The social work/social assistance (NAICS 624) sector presents a large opportunity for lone worker safety. In this sector, workplace violence has risen over the years and has become a legitimate concern and requiring further lone worker safety protection. Further dangers can arise because while the employee is working alone, they also are potentially working for more than one person at once, allowing an unfair advantage to any assailants, as the lone worker would be outnumbered.

Some common occupations requiring lone worker safety that fall under the social work/ social assistance category include parole officers, those who work in juvenile detention centers, child and family services, and community services.

Social care workers and parole officers who make home visits are often working in unstable conditions with individuals who have a lot on the line and a great deal to lose, and therefore are prone to unpredictable behavior. According to United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), within the social care industry, there were a total number of 119 workplace fatalities between 2010 and 2013. Employee monitoring for safety purposes is something that should be considered to prevent situations that can arise out of these social risks.

Social workers often interact with others who may not be in a clear state of mind creating a potential danger. Just recently, a social worker from Camden, NJ was taken to the hospital in critical condition after being attacked and stabbed with a steak knife by one of her mentally ill clients. Should this woman have been able to alert someone the moment she sensed danger? Further actions may have been able to ensure her lone worker safety and prevent the situation from escalating.

SoloProtect works on a GSA Schedule, providing those that work for the government, including those working in the government-funded social services sector, access to our commercial products at volume discount pricing, leaving the bidding and negotiating out for the government-owned company and guaranteeing a good deal.

According to a News Release by the BLS, fatal injuries among government workers were higher by 5 percent to 476 injuries in 2013 (compared with 453 in 2012). Given those statistics, are you confident your employees are equipped to handle the day-to-day risks of their job roles?