Under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007, an organisation that has sent an employee to a dangerous area is responsible for that employee’s safety. The Act states that employers have a duty of care to their employees, and requires employers to notify employees of any risk they know about. It is good practice to offer clear travel safety advice to employees travelling to areas where there is a risk of kidnapping, and for high risk environments you might consider offering specialist training on how to cope with a kidnap.
If a kidnap occurs you need to act quickly to establish an incident management team to handle the case. However, you should also take time to review why the kidnap might have occurred and promptly put in place safeguards, such as additional training or security arrangements.
It is your responsibility to provide as much support as possible to the hostage’s family; you should offer specialist services, ensure they are central to all decisions and communications, and be available to help the family liaise with government agencies, private security companies, and law enforcement officials. You should also continue to pay the hostage’s salary.