The British workforce is woefully under-equipped for the modern workplace. That’s the finding of research undertaken by innovative two-way radio manufacturer Hytera in conjunction with Health and Safety at Work magazine to understand how businesses protect employees at work, and their use of technology to achieve this objective.

Indeed, the results of Hytera’s survey depict a perilous picture of employees being sent to work in hazardous conditions, often on their own, in remote conditions or both, without the appropriate communications equipment for their needs:

• Nearly 82% of survey participants stated that their organisation uses mobile phones as a primary communication system in the field, with just half of that figure using two-way radios.
• Under one-third (31.4%) of organisations offered workers Lone Worker technology – either within a two-way radio or a separate device.
• 1-in-5 businesses admit to not having safety-critical communications at all. Of those, 95% work in potentially hazardous conditions.

Survey respondents admit to giving workers mobile phones due to a lack of confidence in other communication technologies. However, many acknowledged this wasn’t a solution best suited to ensuring worker safety; alongside citing unreliable mobile coverage as an issue, respondents voiced concerns that mobile phones acted as a potential distraction for workers and represented an unnecessary additional cost burden to the business.

Taking a deeper look at the findings from those private sector organisations operating in hazardous environments,  such as the Oil and Gas, Construction and Manufacturing Industries, a much darker picture unfolds.

Here the survey findings show a significantly smaller percentage of businesses providing workers with ‘Lone Worker’ or ‘Man Down’ technologies. Similarly, overall confidence in existing communication systems was much lower in these industry sectors.

This White Paper evaluates the research findings in the context of today’s modern workplaces that typically features disparate workforces operating in challenging or hazardous working conditions. It also sets out a migration roadmap for organisations looking to make the journey to next-generation DMR (Digital Mobile Radio) systems that guarantee instant communication and provide greater worker safety.

But getting there will require a change of mindset. Because, when used to its full capability, a radio is more than just a radio – it’s a complete Health and Safety Toolkit. Indeed, organisations should not view migration to a next-generation digital radio system as a pipe dream or an expensive luxury – but a necessity. Because without a comprehensive communication network in place, the potential risk of an injury or fatality for workers is significantly increased…