High-risk environment boundaries are increasingly blurred. Those in humanitarian aid or journalism in politically divisive countries expect safety risks; repeated tragic events in traditionally lower-risk countries show threats occur anywhere, anytime. Organisations' commitment to employee security and duty of care should extend to entire workforces, regardless of location.
"All employers have duty of care towards workforce. In narrow legal sense, employers must take reasonable necessary steps protecting employee health, safety and wellbeing. This doesn't end at borders; multinationals assigning expatriates globally aren't exempt from this duty." - People Management
High-Risk Mobile Workforce Management
High-risk areas expect significant risk; organisations have extensive plans incorporating strategies and technologies for worst-case scenarios including ambushes, attacks, abductions or injuries.
Total (oil/gas giant) experienced reality recently when Mozambique's Palma port—near Total's gas operations—became Islamist attack target. "The town was attacked in three-pronged rebel assault launched hours after Total announced resuming multibillion-dollar LNG project nearby." Residents fled toward beaches.
Ensuing chaos indicates effective crisis communication and global security management providing greater clarity, lessening panic and uncertainty. Organisations must expect the unexpected and provide informed responses starting with understanding people locations and safety.
The incident emphasises terror can happen anytime. Mobile workforces in vulnerable locations face constant high-risk, requiring crisis communications and accessible, adaptable emergency response plans for all employees.
BBC correspondent Frank Gardner's ambush and injury story (17 years ago) illustrates scenarios broadcasters and media organisations must protect staff within—including war zones or political/civil unrest. Gardner was shot six times and paralyzed; his cameraman, killed. Gardner survived against odds, though life-changing injuries remain. Such scenarios show reporter dedication and high-risk workplace nature, demonstrating immense duty of care organisations must provide mobile workforces.
NGOs Overwhelmed by Incident Influx
NGO heroes always faced high-risk due to their work nature; 2020 incident extent shockingly illustrated dangerous working environments. "Humanitarian action necessarily occurs in unpredictable, unstable situations where people face profound disaster, armed conflict, political violence and human rights abuse risks."
"NGO staff in world's most dangerous countries faced 1,500 incidents—including kidnappings and killings—last year [2020]."
"Central African Republic had 361 incident types for NGOs—the world's most. These include theft, burglaries and threats plus severe incidents causing injuries or deaths."
NGOs providing aid in crisis, conflict and disaster areas inherently face high-risk. Therefore, NGO organisations have tremendous duty of care obligations fulfilling, requiring meticulous emergency response and crisis management plans. For NGOs, lives genuinely stake during everyday operations.
Terror and High-Risk Hitting Home
Although certain industries accept significant professional activity risks, safety, security and operational efficiency threats pose to organisations anywhere, anytime. In the UK, organisations' high-risk environment perceptions inverted following terror attacks over the past 15 years.
High-risk now applies to any city. From 7 July 2005 transport attacks through London Bridge and Manchester Arena attacks, terror is a global concern. Pre-attack security expectations were seemingly low, though measures remained: "Deputy Met commissioner Brian Paddick said London security was high. Emergency services rehearsed scenarios; plans worked as they should."
Shortly after July 7 bombings, the UK terror threat scale was introduced. "The international terror threat scale first became public in UK August 2006, just over a year after London bombings killing 52 people." The country contemplated new risk perception.
London Bridge April 2017, Manchester Arena bombing May 22 2017 and November 2019 London Bridge attack saw UK terror threat level rise to 'critical,' then 'severe,' indicating home increasingly becoming high-risk.
Salman Abedi killed 22 men, women and children, detonating suicide bomb after Ariana Grande Manchester Arena concert (2017). January 2021 enquiry into emergency response occurred.
We asked a Security and Risk Manager at leading broadcaster what kept them awake: Not protecting journalists in war zones, but protecting everyday London workers from unexpected events compromising their safety.
Duty of care and crisis management plans have become urgent organisational necessities. For global organisations, this means protecting entire workforces, not just perceived high-risk areas. 'White-collar' workers once seeming less at-risk arguably experience high-risk daily, commuting into city offices. Staff commuting post-pandemic restrictions pose daily high-risk as they travel and work.
How has our high-risk perception in traditionally lower-risk locations adapted to terror risk? Crisis management and emergency response plans are woven into organisational duty of care obligations due to terror attack regularity. Though February 2021 UK terror threat lowered to 'substantial,' the country isn't out of danger: "Terrorism remains one of the most direct and immediate national security risks." "Substantial continues indicating high threat levels."
In the UK, we're still living and working in high-risk environments, particularly in our capital. Terrorism isn't the only employee threat. Pandemic-driven delivery service proliferation (Deliveroo, Amazon) across cities has seen mobile working landscape growth where duty of care is increasingly urgent. Consider Deliveroo driver violence risks in Dublin: "Several violent incidents occurred; some began as robberies of Deliveroo staff." "January 22 Dublin Deliveroo drivers staged unofficial strikes over pay and conditions. Organisers highlighted 'lack of security' and violence levels riders experience; three couriers were attacked the previous week alone."
High-risk now applies to lone workers anywhere, as this example demonstrates. High-risk environments for lone workers can genuinely be anywhere.
High-volume mobile workers expecting safety provisions in public or during unexpected events (disruptions, weather or unrest) can legitimately expect duty of care from employers—not just protecting them, but ensuring informed status on events impacting their operational ability.
Takeaways
Due to terror incidents and violence scenarios facing lone workers globally, high-risk environment definition boundaries are entirely blurred. Organisations' duty of care obligations to dispersed, mobile workforces must stretch from exceedingly turbulent political environments (aid workers, journalists) to everyday 'white-collar' workers in traditionally lower-risk countries. Organisations must prepare for the 'unpreparable' and constantly expect the unexpected. This phenomenal task is enforced by our shifting high-risk society nature. High-risk landscape definition has changed forever, meaning organisations must provide entire workforce duty of care solutions more vitally now than ever.
