Over the past 16 months since the dirty deed was done, I've had numerous discussions about the expansion of London's Ultra Low Emission Zone. I know so many people whose lives and livelihoods have been adversely impacted by it... As they couldn't afford to upgrade their vehicles to alternatives which would meet the ULEZ criteria, they can no longer drive into London or across its borders as the daily charges for their non-compliant vehicles are simply too prohibitive. As a one-off it may not break the bank, but over the course of a working week can almost equate to a day's pay for the lowest earners – such as our cleaners. And of course it's not just Greater London that operates such a system, but other cities and their surrounds too. For those needing to travel into or through the zones for work, public transport has become the norm, which generally means a walk to/from the nearest bus stop or train/tram station. And if you're a cleaner, this will likely be at a time when much of the country will be tucked up in bed. Deserted streets have a different vibe from busy ones and when it's dark they can feel quite ominous and particularly so with the rising crime rates across many countries of the world. Understandably, we're feeling less safe than we used to. 

  

Further down the page you can see the results of research undertaken by Mitie together with personal safety App supplier Walksafe, which refers to an 'epidemic scale' of violence against women and girls, thanks to an increase of crimes against them of 37% in five years. These are UK figures but it's worse in some other countries and it's not just females who are feeling more threatened these days. The research discusses measures people are taking to make themselves as safe as possible under the circumstances. 

  

With the Workers' Protection Act introduced in October, UK employers have a responsibility to consider the risks (and how they might reasonably mitigate them) for employees involved in lone or out of hours working, customer-facing duties, secondment to provide cover where needed, travel to and from different work locations and attendance at events outside of the usual working environment - such as for training or conferences. Many of us will already be familiar with journey-sharing Apps which enable others to keep tabs on our whereabouts but Mitie and WalkSafe have added a crucial layer of protection that could go a long way to improving the safety of any vulnerable employees. It’s sad that we live in an environment that requires it, but thank goodness such technology’s becoming available, so please take time to read the article and consider its contents. After all, someone's life could depend upon it.