If you are one of the Employers in Marine and Ports, working at height is part of the job - and so is the legal duty that comes with it. Here is what Employers in Irish Marine and Ports need to know, and how a Working at Heights Course keeps you covered.
The responsibilities of Employers
You carry the legal duty under the SHWW Act 2005. A Working at Heights Certificate for every worker is your cleanest evidence of compliance. In day-to-day Marine and Ports work that means you should:
- Keep training and inspection records for HSA inspection
- Supply suitable, inspected access equipment
- Provide a safe place and system of work at height
- Carry out and record risk assessments
The Marine and Ports hazards Employers must control
In Marine and Ports, the falls that Employers most often have to prevent involve work at height on vessels and quay structures, access to cranes and gantries and exposed, weather-driven conditions. Port height work adds drowning risk to fall risk, so rescue planning must cover both.
The Working at Heights Course makes compliance simple
The practical fix is straightforward. Our Working at Heights Course is delivered fully online, takes about 45 minutes, and issues a downloadable certificate the same day. It is CPD certified, RoSPA approved and QQI aligned, and it is written specifically for Employers in Marine and Ports.
The Working at Heights Training covers the avoid-prevent-minimise hierarchy, ladder and stepladder safety, MEWPs and scaffolds, harnesses and anchor points, and how to carry out a proper risk assessment. Every learner finishes with a recognised Working at Heights Certificate that stands up to HSA inspection and supports your insurance position.
Training that goes beyond the tick-box
Falls from height remain one of the leading causes of serious and fatal workplace injury in Ireland, year after year. The pattern is depressingly consistent for Employers in Marine and Ports: a short task, a familiar setting, a ladder or platform that seemed fine, and a single moment of overreach. Proper training breaks that pattern by making the safe choice the automatic one.
The rescue plan is the part most teams forget. If a worker doing Employers in Marine and Ports falls and is left hanging in a harness, suspension trauma can become life-threatening within minutes. Calling the emergency services is not a rescue plan; having the equipment, the trained people and the method to recover them quickly is. Our Working at Heights Training makes that planning routine.
Frequently asked questions
Do Employers in Marine and Ports need their own height training?
Yes. Whatever your role, if you plan, supervise or carry out work at height you need a Working at Heights Certificate.
What course suits Employers best?
The Working at Heights Course covers the duties of Employers and all other roles in one accredited, online programme.
How long does it take?
About 45 minutes online, with a same-day certificate, so Employers in Marine and Ports stay compliant without losing a work day.
More on staying safe at height
Documentation is what turns good practice into proven compliance for employers in marine and ports. Keep your risk assessment, your method statement, your equipment inspection logs and your training records together, and an HSA visit becomes a short, calm conversation rather than a drawn-out investigation.
The most expensive mistake employers make with employers in marine and ports is treating training as a box-ticking exercise. The Health and Safety Authority does not just want a certificate on file; it wants evidence that the worker understood the avoid-prevent-minimise hierarchy and applied it on the day. A genuine Working at Heights Course builds that understanding, which is exactly why our online programme uses real scenarios rather than slides.
Get certified today
Do not wait for an HSA inspection or a near miss to act. Employers in Marine and Ports can complete the Working at Heights Course online in 45 minutes and download a certificate the same day. For 10 or more learners, see our team training rates, or contact our team for a tailored quote.
Start the online Working at Heights Training now and put a recognised certificate in every worker's file before the next job at height begins.
