Extreme HR In The Bering Sea

I have to admit it, I am a fan of Deadliest Catch.  Deadliest Catch is a documentary on the Discovery channel that captures events aboard fishing boats in the Bering Sea during the Opilio crab season.  The Opilio crab season runs about one month or until each boat catches their quota of crab.  This show has all the elements I like – boating (OK – extreme boating), leadership and several elements of human resources.  The past several Saturday’s have run Deadliest Catch marathon’s leading up to the 2010 season premier on April 13.

Commercial fishing has the highest fatality rate according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, hence the name Deadliest Catch.  Since I am an HR professional, of course I look at everything from an HR perspective.  I could not believe how much the crew has to deal with in such an extreme environment – and how overall, they do it well.  I thought it would be fun to take a look at the extreme HR applied in the Bering Sea.

Recruiting employees for this type of adventure has always intrigued me.  Do you take the same approach Ernest Shackleton did in the early 1900′s?  He placed an ad in the newspaper to recruit men to go on his Antarctic exploration.  Here is the ad Shackleton placed in the newspaper in London:

MEN WANTED FOR HAZARDOUS JOURNEY. SMALL WAGES,  BITTER COLD, LONG MONTHS OF COMPLETE DARKNESS,
   CONSTANT DANGER, SAFE RETURN DOUBTFUL. HONOR AND RECOGNITION IN CASE OF SUCCESS

I bet the ad placed to attract crab fisherman was not this direct, but may be somewhat similar.  While watching over the weekend a boat captain (I believe from the boat The Wizard) needed to recruit for a new employee while in the middle of his trip. While driving the boat he actually reviewed resumes, called and screened candidates.  After he identified the candidate he then coordinated to have him flown in to the closest port then picked him up.

Bring on the Greenhorns.  Greenhorn is a slang term for new employees who are on the fishing trip for the first time.  They go through a quick on-boarding process to learn the basics and observe the role of each deckhand.  Although everyone has a role, there are back-ups for each key position.  Additionally, they are training others to be potential back-ups. 

While fishing on the Bering Sea, there are a few things not to expect.  First is work/life balance.  There is pretty much no balance and you can expect to go days without sleep.  The employees on the boats tend to be men only.  One episode over the weekend even mentioned that they say it is bad luck to have a woman on board.  HA!

There is an unlimited amount of leadership, both negative and positive and at all levels.   Captain Phil Harris of the CorneliaMarie was very ill but did not want to slow down the trip by notifying the crew (of which two are his sons).  This post by Trish McFarlane, Knock It Off!, captures another example.  Team work is also key to the success of each boat.  Whether you are the captain driving the boat or a deckhand working to pull in and unload each pot, the success of the mission depends on everyone.  Ongoing, direct and immediate feedback is always given.  You really need to have a tough skin in this environment.

The terminations I saw were handled very professionally and with respect.  The employees who comple the fishing season were rewarded at the end of the trip.  The salary they were awarded is directly related by the amount of crab they catch.

I could go on for days with examples and analogies. The way these crab fisherman work under pressure in extreme conditions is amazing.  I encourage you to watch Deadliest Catch to get a glimpse into the lives of these fisherman and how they work under such extreme conditions.

Tagged as: Deadliest Catch, Giving Feedback, HR, HR General, Human Resources, Just for Fun, Recruiting