How to protect young, female employees out in the field?
March 11, 2016 10:29 AM Subscribe
(Opening a new business) how do I protect young employees that I will be sending into stranger's homes? How are real estate agents protecting themselves these days? My question is about screening clients and possibly live-streaming the actual meet-up.
My first thought would be to only allow payment by credit card and in that way I would have their identity. But then have them show their ID when my employee enters their home? And then require the employee to Skype the meeting so the client knows we have their identity on file?
The job would be providing a tech service inside the home. And this particular job is going to appeal to young women so I have really been stuck on this first part probably more than I would if I knew I were mainly going to be hiring young men.
What are real estate agents doing who may be female and may be meeting clients in out of the way or rural locations?
My first thought would be to only allow payment by credit card and in that way I would have their identity. But then have them show their ID when my employee enters their home? And then require the employee to Skype the meeting so the client knows we have their identity on file?
The job would be providing a tech service inside the home. And this particular job is going to appeal to young women so I have really been stuck on this first part probably more than I would if I knew I were mainly going to be hiring young men.
What are real estate agents doing who may be female and may be meeting clients in out of the way or rural locations?
I am familiar with Fleetistics for GPS tracking of employees' vehicles. Although I have never used their service, I believe it can be configured to alert you if the vehicle is idle for too long.
My question is about screening clients and possibly live-streaming the actual meet-up.
If I was had a vendor attempt to film me in my own house, they would never be let past the front door sill. Be realistic here. Your employees are not in any significant danger. Your insurance company will be a better indicator of your security needs here - they will not insure you if they view your business model as being potentially dangerous. If they aren't asking for a particular security measure, then you should probably use that as data. If they insist on a particular safety measure, then it doesn't really matter what you choose; you'll have to use what they want instead.
posted by saeculorum at 11:00 AM on March 11, 2016 [5 favorites]
My question is about screening clients and possibly live-streaming the actual meet-up.
If I was had a vendor attempt to film me in my own house, they would never be let past the front door sill. Be realistic here. Your employees are not in any significant danger. Your insurance company will be a better indicator of your security needs here - they will not insure you if they view your business model as being potentially dangerous. If they aren't asking for a particular security measure, then you should probably use that as data. If they insist on a particular safety measure, then it doesn't really matter what you choose; you'll have to use what they want instead.
posted by saeculorum at 11:00 AM on March 11, 2016 [5 favorites]
Another important aspect is making sure your employees understand their safety and well-being is more important to you than keeping a particular client and that you'll have their backs if they feel the need to leave a situation that seems unsafe or makes them uncomfortable.
posted by zachlipton at 11:05 AM on March 11, 2016 [55 favorites]
posted by zachlipton at 11:05 AM on March 11, 2016 [55 favorites]
There is safety in numbers. If two people went together, the odds of something bad happening would go down.
Yes, this involves extra expense. You would need to look at your business model, pricing, logistics, etc to see how to accommodate it. But if you plan this as the model from the get go, that may help get it accepted by customers. In other words, if you start with one person going, have too many incidents, rejigger your business model and up your prices to cover it, that might alienate customers. But if it is like this from the start, people may just accept it.
posted by Michele in California at 11:07 AM on March 11, 2016 [10 favorites]
Yes, this involves extra expense. You would need to look at your business model, pricing, logistics, etc to see how to accommodate it. But if you plan this as the model from the get go, that may help get it accepted by customers. In other words, if you start with one person going, have too many incidents, rejigger your business model and up your prices to cover it, that might alienate customers. But if it is like this from the start, people may just accept it.
posted by Michele in California at 11:07 AM on March 11, 2016 [10 favorites]
Empower your employees to protect themselves. Let them know that you have their back, and if they need to reschedule or have another person join them for a given job, you will support them. Tell them to listen to their instincts if something seems hinky. (The book The Gift of Fear is excellent in explaining why this is so important.)
I would shy away on making any of this training gender-based. Male employees can also be put into unsafe positions, and it is important for employees of all genders to know that their boss has their back and is willing to reschedule or cancel a job if they feel unsafe.
posted by pie ninja at 11:12 AM on March 11, 2016 [16 favorites]
I would shy away on making any of this training gender-based. Male employees can also be put into unsafe positions, and it is important for employees of all genders to know that their boss has their back and is willing to reschedule or cancel a job if they feel unsafe.
posted by pie ninja at 11:12 AM on March 11, 2016 [16 favorites]
I think it's great that you're being considerate of young women's safety, despite what people may say, it is a whole other ball game. I do have a bit of experience with this from working with animal rescue, we often have to drive 20-30 minutes out of town to pick up animals, and they're usually not in good situations. The way we handled safety was two fold; We would call a co-volunteer before entering a home, and give them an estimate on how long it would take, then after that amount of time we would get a call asking if we're done/if everything's okay(this was pretty much a necessity as we were a team of all women, and there were a few incidents of sexual harassment in the past). Second was having the freedom to bail out from a sketchy situation. Having that choice is huge, and telling your staff to trust their guts if need be is a good idea.
Being aware of where your staff is at any given time is really the biggest thing you can do, and having an open attitude to communication is big as well.
posted by InkDrinker at 11:21 AM on March 11, 2016 [6 favorites]
Being aware of where your staff is at any given time is really the biggest thing you can do, and having an open attitude to communication is big as well.
posted by InkDrinker at 11:21 AM on March 11, 2016 [6 favorites]
You train your employees that they can and should leave a situation if they feel at all threatened or unsafe, and that they will not be in any way punished for the decision. You provide training on how to excuse themselves.
This is the main thing. You can't control who is going to be at a location. Even if you have them on file, they might not be there, or might not be the only person there. But you can make sure your employees feel supported enough not to stay in a questionable situation.
posted by zennie at 11:23 AM on March 11, 2016 [9 favorites]
This is the main thing. You can't control who is going to be at a location. Even if you have them on file, they might not be there, or might not be the only person there. But you can make sure your employees feel supported enough not to stay in a questionable situation.
posted by zennie at 11:23 AM on March 11, 2016 [9 favorites]
Forgot to include this link to the Suzy Lamplugh Trust. It's a UK charity set up after the disappearance of an estate agent several years ago. There's a lot of information about safety and the link is to the section specifically for estate agents so some tips might be useful to you.
posted by billiebee at 11:33 AM on March 11, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by billiebee at 11:33 AM on March 11, 2016 [4 favorites]
Response by poster: Just happen to be asking about females but certainly would apply the protocols to protect all employees. Just to be clear on that.
And yes, I am concerned about setting things up that make me more vulnerable to lawsuits than if I didn't have any rules in effect at all. But, I can't open this business if it is going to make one person vulnerable to crime. I couldn't.
posted by cda at 11:46 AM on March 11, 2016 [4 favorites]
And yes, I am concerned about setting things up that make me more vulnerable to lawsuits than if I didn't have any rules in effect at all. But, I can't open this business if it is going to make one person vulnerable to crime. I couldn't.
posted by cda at 11:46 AM on March 11, 2016 [4 favorites]
I found some ideas at the Women's Council of Realtors
Private showings/open houses
1. Let at least one personal contact and your office know where you are at all times.
2. Don’t agree to a private showing unless you’ve already met a client in your office.
3. Have clients complete an information form (name, copy of driver’s license, vehicle information) during open houses and prior to scheduling private showings.
4. Bring a co-worker along.
5. Don’t leave a client in your blind spot. Let the client proceed in front of you during a private showing.
6. Drive through the neighborhood prior to a private showing or open house. Be on the lookout for safety concerns.
7. Identify each of a home’s exits prior to a showing or open house. Keep exit doors unlocked.
8. Take a self-defense class.
9. Don’t allow a client to ride in your car unless you know them well.
10. Don’t wear expensive jewelry.
11. Leave your purse in the trunk of your car.
12. Dress professionally.
13. Buy a personal security app for your cell phone, and always keep your cell phone in your hands.
14. Be ready to defend yourself. Travel with pepper-spray.
15. Trust your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, remove yourself from the situation. Don’t worry about offending a client. Your safety is paramount.
You might see if this group or another similar one has a local chapter and chat with them.
Really I feel like the best thing you can do for your employees is cement in their minds to trust their instincts. If something feels weird, it probably is. They don't have to have a concrete reason. They aren't being overly-cautious, or rude or any number of other insane ways people discount their sense of self-preservation. Teach them to erase the phrase "Oh, I didn't want to be rude!" from their minds. I really like zennie's idea of training them on how to leave the situation. (I've been in a mildly weird party situation and couldn't think in the moment how to politely excuse myself. The guy would have absolutely stopped had I said anything and what happened wasn't a huge deal but having a script ahead of time would have been really useful.)
It is so great that you are thinking of these issues when setting up your business. Teaching young people how to take care of themselves will help them their whole lives!
posted by Beti at 12:13 PM on March 11, 2016 [9 favorites]
Private showings/open houses
1. Let at least one personal contact and your office know where you are at all times.
2. Don’t agree to a private showing unless you’ve already met a client in your office.
3. Have clients complete an information form (name, copy of driver’s license, vehicle information) during open houses and prior to scheduling private showings.
4. Bring a co-worker along.
5. Don’t leave a client in your blind spot. Let the client proceed in front of you during a private showing.
6. Drive through the neighborhood prior to a private showing or open house. Be on the lookout for safety concerns.
7. Identify each of a home’s exits prior to a showing or open house. Keep exit doors unlocked.
8. Take a self-defense class.
9. Don’t allow a client to ride in your car unless you know them well.
10. Don’t wear expensive jewelry.
11. Leave your purse in the trunk of your car.
12. Dress professionally.
13. Buy a personal security app for your cell phone, and always keep your cell phone in your hands.
14. Be ready to defend yourself. Travel with pepper-spray.
15. Trust your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, remove yourself from the situation. Don’t worry about offending a client. Your safety is paramount.
You might see if this group or another similar one has a local chapter and chat with them.
Really I feel like the best thing you can do for your employees is cement in their minds to trust their instincts. If something feels weird, it probably is. They don't have to have a concrete reason. They aren't being overly-cautious, or rude or any number of other insane ways people discount their sense of self-preservation. Teach them to erase the phrase "Oh, I didn't want to be rude!" from their minds. I really like zennie's idea of training them on how to leave the situation. (I've been in a mildly weird party situation and couldn't think in the moment how to politely excuse myself. The guy would have absolutely stopped had I said anything and what happened wasn't a huge deal but having a script ahead of time would have been really useful.)
It is so great that you are thinking of these issues when setting up your business. Teaching young people how to take care of themselves will help them their whole lives!
posted by Beti at 12:13 PM on March 11, 2016 [9 favorites]
Assuming you may have a percentage of repeat customers, you may want to add a field in the customer database for "red flags", whether it is questionable clients, questionable pets or various other safety hazards on site. It is important to train your employees on how to deal with any of these issues as well as checking in and out of a work site via smartphone or tablet.
posted by JJ86 at 12:22 PM on March 11, 2016 [7 favorites]
posted by JJ86 at 12:22 PM on March 11, 2016 [7 favorites]
Teach them to erase the phrase "Oh, I didn't want to be rude!" from their minds.
^ This.
If you are going to do anything gender specific, make sure young women get the memo that looking out for their safety is not "rude." and anyone who implies that it is should not be trusted because they probably have an agenda -- an unhealthy agenda. That is the kind of thing predators do. Decent people will totally understand and support your desire to stay safe.
That doesn't mean you should frame it as "gender specific training." Just be aware that you may have more work to do with female employees than with male employees when trying to sell them on the idea that, no, really, you want them to have safe working conditions and you would rather they err on the side of safety than on the side of so-called "politeness."
Also, be prepared for the possibility that trying to teach young women this may well result in some blow back. You may be inadvertently teaching people who have been abused that what happened to them was wrong, which can cause emotional fall out. You may also find yourself dealing with outraged men who just think your expectations are completely ridiculous and how dare you! (Those are the men whose files should be filled with red flag notices.)
posted by Michele in California at 12:54 PM on March 11, 2016 [4 favorites]
^ This.
If you are going to do anything gender specific, make sure young women get the memo that looking out for their safety is not "rude." and anyone who implies that it is should not be trusted because they probably have an agenda -- an unhealthy agenda. That is the kind of thing predators do. Decent people will totally understand and support your desire to stay safe.
That doesn't mean you should frame it as "gender specific training." Just be aware that you may have more work to do with female employees than with male employees when trying to sell them on the idea that, no, really, you want them to have safe working conditions and you would rather they err on the side of safety than on the side of so-called "politeness."
Also, be prepared for the possibility that trying to teach young women this may well result in some blow back. You may be inadvertently teaching people who have been abused that what happened to them was wrong, which can cause emotional fall out. You may also find yourself dealing with outraged men who just think your expectations are completely ridiculous and how dare you! (Those are the men whose files should be filled with red flag notices.)
posted by Michele in California at 12:54 PM on March 11, 2016 [4 favorites]
I've done home visits social service wise for physically and mentally disabled adults who may be abusing substances and may have criminal histories (up to sex offendences and murder). Sometimes a combo of all three, by myself in the worst parts of chicago.
Some basic safety tips
1) If possible have all employees end the day at the office for a headcount.
2) have some sort of system to track comings and goings and location of employees when on the clock
3) repeat overt and over it is okay to leave. It is okay to look at a house and drive away. It's okay to say a situation just sounds creepy from over the phone without ever meeting the person.
4) try to go with more than one person if at all possible.
5) train your staff to Descalate situations using some sort of model, non profits here use non violent crisis intervention (CPI (without the restraining holds that are used in psychiatric settings)
6) regulations about appropriate restraint of pets when at an household/ number of guests at one time
7) identifying dangerous health and safety issues (hygienic. Smells like gas, looks like a method lab in the closet, whatever)
8) not working with individuals who appear to have used substances or drinking alcohol.
9) you can always check on line for information regarding sex offenses, however remember most offenders are never caught.
posted by AlexiaSky at 1:20 PM on March 11, 2016 [3 favorites]
Some basic safety tips
1) If possible have all employees end the day at the office for a headcount.
2) have some sort of system to track comings and goings and location of employees when on the clock
3) repeat overt and over it is okay to leave. It is okay to look at a house and drive away. It's okay to say a situation just sounds creepy from over the phone without ever meeting the person.
4) try to go with more than one person if at all possible.
5) train your staff to Descalate situations using some sort of model, non profits here use non violent crisis intervention (CPI (without the restraining holds that are used in psychiatric settings)
6) regulations about appropriate restraint of pets when at an household/ number of guests at one time
7) identifying dangerous health and safety issues (hygienic. Smells like gas, looks like a method lab in the closet, whatever)
8) not working with individuals who appear to have used substances or drinking alcohol.
9) you can always check on line for information regarding sex offenses, however remember most offenders are never caught.
posted by AlexiaSky at 1:20 PM on March 11, 2016 [3 favorites]
The first field I thought of is "insurance adjuster," and indeed, the safety of their field officers is a huge concern in the industry. Here's one long article with a list of tips for both environmental safety (maybe that's not relevant) and what to look out for when dealing with clients.
posted by muddgirl at 2:25 PM on March 11, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by muddgirl at 2:25 PM on March 11, 2016 [2 favorites]
Make sure none of your employees ever says this: "I know you're not supposed to do XYZ because it's not safe, but I was afraid that if I didn't do it this one time, I would get in trouble."
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 2:29 PM on March 11, 2016 [7 favorites]
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 2:29 PM on March 11, 2016 [7 favorites]
If cost is an issue, you could hire an assistant role to allow pairing, which is what we do for family visits in a high crime area so we aren't sending two high payroll hours out, just 1.3 hours. The assistants also ended up being helpful in other ways beyond security.
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 3:52 PM on March 11, 2016 [7 favorites]
posted by dorothyisunderwood at 3:52 PM on March 11, 2016 [7 favorites]
Make everyone who is doing field work read Gift of Fear.
Do not have people doing field work alone. If you can't afford 2 people or one person and their assistant going on calls together, then don't allow home visits by a lone worker until a number of contacts have been made with the client, and there is a sense of whether that person is trustworthy.
If you have clients paying with credit card and ask them to show ID, you can get a criminal record search using the information provided by those two parts. V useful to show if the persona has any history of violent crime, drug crime, sex offenses or if they are/ever were on parole or on probation for some reason.
lots of good advice in this thread.
I don't think the idea of skyping a meeting inside the person's home or filming them is very practical, and as a consumer that would make me very uncomfortable.
posted by zdravo at 4:37 PM on March 11, 2016 [2 favorites]
Do not have people doing field work alone. If you can't afford 2 people or one person and their assistant going on calls together, then don't allow home visits by a lone worker until a number of contacts have been made with the client, and there is a sense of whether that person is trustworthy.
If you have clients paying with credit card and ask them to show ID, you can get a criminal record search using the information provided by those two parts. V useful to show if the persona has any history of violent crime, drug crime, sex offenses or if they are/ever were on parole or on probation for some reason.
lots of good advice in this thread.
I don't think the idea of skyping a meeting inside the person's home or filming them is very practical, and as a consumer that would make me very uncomfortable.
posted by zdravo at 4:37 PM on March 11, 2016 [2 favorites]
Cleaning services also send mostly female employees into clients' homes. In that case there is also often a (perceived or actual) class differential, which can make things more dangerous. In my experience cleaners are almost always sent in teams of 2-3, and it's always explained as being for reasons of efficiency, which actually makes sense for the use case. Is this business something where two heads are clearly better than one? Or, as dorothyisunderwood suggests, can you pair more experienced people with lower-paid "trainees" or "assistants"?
posted by town of cats at 9:33 PM on March 11, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by town of cats at 9:33 PM on March 11, 2016 [2 favorites]
Lots of good advice here. I just want to restate that from a client perspective recording me in my own house would be a non-starter.
posted by werkzeuger at 6:07 AM on March 12, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by werkzeuger at 6:07 AM on March 12, 2016 [1 favorite]
This situation doesn't sound nearly as dangerous as the situation for real estate agents. Incidentally, men face many of the same dangers -- male agents have been murdered too.
One of the issues for real estate is that you are showing vacant homes to clients. It sounds like your employees will be meeting clients in their own homes, instead of in a vacant house that they have no connection to. Murder in out of the way locations where someone won't have to deal with a body in their own house is more of an issue. Personally I'd have fewer safety concerns with what you are describing than working as a Realtor.
Real estate agents will often first meet clients in a public place, preferably in their own office, instead of at a vacant house they have called up demanding to see. That doesn't sound like it's feasible for you, but you could verify that the person making the appointment does reside at the house.
I'd caution you against the idea that you need to worry more about what might happen to women -- this can lead to complacency about things that are dangers to everyone. Robbery, kidnapping, murder. Kidnapping people for a short time and forcing them to do ATM withdrawals is a thing.
You could set up that the employee must call after the service is completed, before leaving the home. You'll need to set up a code word or phrase that can be slipped into the conversation if the police need to be called, something innocuous that can be said even if they are being forced to call and claim everything is fine.
Never park where someone can block your car into a driveway, always be on the street. Always have your keys attached to yourself, not in a purse or briefcase, in case you need to run to your car. Employees should be encouraged to leave behind all laptops etc. if they have to leave in a hurry. Ban employees from carrying personal cash (some pizza delivery places do this), you don't want a robber to be successful and target your employees again.
Consider cell phone tracking and vehicle tracking.
Consider what your weapons policy will be.
My first thought would be to only allow payment by credit card and in that way I would have their identity.
This only works if you get the credit card info in advance. Cross check it with the address.
this particular job is going to appeal to young women
Are you sure about that? Many women avoid jobs going to strangers' houses in rural areas.
posted by yohko at 9:29 PM on March 15, 2016
One of the issues for real estate is that you are showing vacant homes to clients. It sounds like your employees will be meeting clients in their own homes, instead of in a vacant house that they have no connection to. Murder in out of the way locations where someone won't have to deal with a body in their own house is more of an issue. Personally I'd have fewer safety concerns with what you are describing than working as a Realtor.
Real estate agents will often first meet clients in a public place, preferably in their own office, instead of at a vacant house they have called up demanding to see. That doesn't sound like it's feasible for you, but you could verify that the person making the appointment does reside at the house.
I'd caution you against the idea that you need to worry more about what might happen to women -- this can lead to complacency about things that are dangers to everyone. Robbery, kidnapping, murder. Kidnapping people for a short time and forcing them to do ATM withdrawals is a thing.
You could set up that the employee must call after the service is completed, before leaving the home. You'll need to set up a code word or phrase that can be slipped into the conversation if the police need to be called, something innocuous that can be said even if they are being forced to call and claim everything is fine.
Never park where someone can block your car into a driveway, always be on the street. Always have your keys attached to yourself, not in a purse or briefcase, in case you need to run to your car. Employees should be encouraged to leave behind all laptops etc. if they have to leave in a hurry. Ban employees from carrying personal cash (some pizza delivery places do this), you don't want a robber to be successful and target your employees again.
Consider cell phone tracking and vehicle tracking.
Consider what your weapons policy will be.
My first thought would be to only allow payment by credit card and in that way I would have their identity.
This only works if you get the credit card info in advance. Cross check it with the address.
this particular job is going to appeal to young women
Are you sure about that? Many women avoid jobs going to strangers' houses in rural areas.
posted by yohko at 9:29 PM on March 15, 2016
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posted by billiebee at 10:38 AM on March 11, 2016 [7 favorites]