Complacency at work
The word ‘complacency’ has negative connotations, but it is not intended to be derogatory when used in this context; we are referring to the natural human response to a very familiar situation.
Until recently, accident investigators identified causal factors in many accidents as being such things as: ‘failure to maintain a proper watch’; ‘unsafe speed in reduced visibility’; ‘poor maintenance’; ‘no dedicated lookout’; ‘standing in a dangerous position during berthing operations’; ‘poor bridge teamwork’; and many more such factors. However, by now analysing all of these factors more deeply, we are able to identify complacency as being at the root of many of them.
The word ‘complacency’ has negative connotations, but it is not intended to be derogatory when used in this context; we are referring to the natural human response to a very familiar situation. When we do something for the first time, we are intent on what we are doing and we are painfully aware of the hazards; by the time we have done it without incident a thousand times, we have lost that stimulation; we have become confident that nothing will go wrong; and our guard is lowered. So complacency is not a criticism, but is an aspect of human nature – one that every experienced mariner will recognize.
How does this manifest itself at sea? As mariners, we work in an unforgiving environment. Things do go wrong; people do make mistakes; equipment does fail. But these should be allowed for by having safety barriers in place, so that one or even more failures do not result in a catastrophe.
Extra personnel on the bridge for harbour entry; planned maintenance; testing controls after moving conning positions; isolating equipment before maintenance; lookouts; using a check-off list; testing confined spaces before entry; using waypoint alarms; these are some examples of safety barriers that should be in place, but which often lapse through complacency. People subconsciously think that, because they have not needed these safety barriers in the past, they will not need them in the future. This is complacency at work.
Complacency must be addressed at every level:
- Professional pride and standards have an important part to play – professional bodies need to tackle this;
- Training colleges need to address complacency in their courses;
- Some masters and chief engineers nowadays feel disenfranchised - they must take responsibility for the setting and maintenance of standards onboard their ships;
And finally
- Companies must recognise this is a fundamental safety issue that they have to address.
These are only initial thoughts on how to tackle this major problem; it is up to each area to recognise the problem and consider how best to address it. In the UK, MAIB has asked the Chamber of Shipping to set up a working group with owners, managers, professional institutes, unions and training colleges to consider the subject.
I would urge everyone in the industry worldwide to think about complacency, and to implement measures to overcome it. This would be a significant step towards eradicating unnecessary accidents at sea.