Safety information and training for homeworkers

[ch 8: page 48]

Employers are legally required to provide information to all workers on the risks identified by the risk assessments and on the preventative and protective measures put in place to avoid these risks (Regulation 10, Management Regulations).

Employers must ensure workers are given adequate health and safety training when they are exposed to new risks due to changes in their system of work (Regulation 13, Management Regulations). This would include a move to more permanent home-working. Training can be online or face-to-face and should cover issues such as:

• arranging the workstation to capitalise on space, lighting and ventilation;

• taking regular breaks and ensuring work and rest hours are kept separate; and

• supporting diet and good mental health.

Employers should also be training managers, to ensure they understand:

• their legal obligations to their remote workforce under working time, data protection and privacy laws (see Chapter 9);

• their legal duties to foster equality of opportunity for homeworkers and to eliminate all forms of harassment or discrimination (see Chapter 11);

• how to organise work effectively, setting clear goals, fostering good work-life balance and avoiding work overload for homeworkers (see Work-life balance on page 55);

• how to recognise signs of stress in their homeworking team and how to act (see below); and

• how to recognise signs of domestic abuse and what steps to take (see below).