Jumping in at the deep end pays off for boatman Scott
Scott ARRoWSMItH has swapped the shop floor for a life at sea, helping to haul tankers into harbour.
Scott, 23, says: ‘I was in retail management, but bored. I saw an advertisement for training on workboats. It looked exciting, even though I had no sailing experience and didn’t know my port from my starboard.’
After a year-long apprenticeship, Scott, who is from Immingham, Lincolnshire, is now a crew member on tug boats belonging to SMS towage.
‘our tugs tow huge tankers up the Humber to dock at the oil terminals, or tow cargo boats carrying vehicles, and sometimes passenger ferries if the seas are high,’ says Scott.
Scott had never been to sea before, but says: ‘Fortunately I found I did not get seasick and now I love the life. the changing weather makes each job a different challenge.
‘When we are not towing, I am doing general maintenance, but I want to carry on doing courses to become a Master in charge of a vessel.’
Scott says that although he jumped in at the deep end knowing little about the career, he recommends doing some research about the job beforehand and getting a taster of a typical week if possible.
He took an apprenticeship with the National Workboat Association (NWA) which equips you to work as a deckhand.
NWA secretary Mark Ranson says: ‘We estimate the workboat sector looks for 250 to 300 new crew annually. traditionally, most came from the merchant navy and fishing fleets, but with their numbers reducing we have introduced the workboat apprenticeship.’
Qualified crew members earn £20,000 to £30,000. Masters earn £38,000 to £40,000 and the most experienced specialists earn £60,000-plus. SEE the training section of work boatassociation.org