Tow Boat Operations Safety Training: 5 Key Elements You Should Know

Having a safe operation not only helps with claims but helps with your peace of mind. The last thing you want is to have an employee hurt when it could have been prevented by safety training, checks and procedures.

Assign a team member as a safety person--whether it is you as the owner or a senior employee--this person should be doing the following:

Safety Checks

• Check all the vessel's equipment and dock areas for a possible safety issue to either fix or report to the owner.  
• Observe Trip and Fall hazards.
• Observe Electrical Hazards.
• Ensure all items on the vessel are in safe working order.
• Ensure all required equipment is on the vessel.
• Observe any elements that could cause an injury or claim.
• Document and give a report to the owner with your name, signature and date.

Safety Briefings

Once a week or once a month, you should be having a safety briefing with your employees to cover any changes made to the vessel--both physical and operational--and to ask all staff for any recommendations on how to make their jobs safer. 

It is also imperative to conduct safety briefings before a large project or during a storm. This allows you to go over what is expected of your employees and how to complete these responsibilities safely. 

Make sure you document each meeting to refer back to in the future!

Training of Current Employees

Similar to safety briefings, you should conduct monthly or quarterly trainings with all employees and captains.

The main points of these trainings are to:

• Review any changes in operation.
• Review new equipment.
• Go over rules and regulations.
• Discuss and develop an operational guideline.

Training of New Employees

Training your new employees to avoid injury is especially important in their first weeks on the job.

When prepping to train your new employees, consider the following tips:

• Create training guidelines for all new hires.
• Develop a training schedule.
• Ensure they've had no prior injuries that may prevent them from doing Tow Boat Work.
• Implement a sign off procedure on vessels and equipment for allowed use.

Remember to keep documentation of every training and require all employees to sign off on attendance.

Don't Forget to Document!

Documentation of the above procedures will help if and when a claim occurs-- especially if you have to present information in a court or to and insurance investigator.  

Examples of when documentation can save you from claims:

• If an employee makes a claim saying they were never trained, having their signature from a safety training or briefing would be clear documentation that they were educated on proper procedures.
• In the event a captain claims an injury but had a preexisting injury they did not disclose, their claim could be thrown out due to signing off under "no previous injuries." 

Safety documentation shows that you make safety a top priority in your operation.

For more information on Tow Boat Operation risk management, reach out to Marshall and Sterling or CPORT.