User Experience and Interface Design of Lone Worker Panic Buttons

User Experience and Interface Design of Lone Worker Panic Buttons

With the rise in workplace violence, many employers are wondering whether to provide their employees with panic buttons. Although OSHA guidance and opinions suggest that panic buttons are an effective tool to help prevent a workplace assault, there’s no legal requirement that employers must provide their employees with a panic button app or other personal safety device.

Marisa is a lone retail worker on shift at her boutique clothing store. While assisting a customer, she notices another individual acting suspiciously and exhibiting aggressive behaviour. She feels unsafe and activates her computer-based lone worker app’s panic button to discreetly alert her monitors and store management to the situation.

The app sends an alarm signal to the monitoring center and the employee’s GPS location is automatically transmitted to emergency responders, allowing them to locate the lone worker in a matter of seconds. Marisa’s employer receives the alert and immediately dispatches police to the store to ensure the employee’s safety.





In the past, employees used to have to unlock their mobile phone and dial for help when they needed assistance. This approach could be extremely difficult in an emergency and was also open to human error, such as forgetting to switch lone worker mode on or accidentally pressing the panic button when they didn’t mean to. Fortunately, the Ok Alone lone worker app allows users to quickly send a Help alert simply by clicking a large red button labelled ‘help’ on their home screen - even while their mobile phone is locked and outside of shift hours.