Finding a Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Lawyer

According to The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, maritime workers who are injured on navigable waters are entitled to disability benefits. It affords these workers disability payments for lost wages, medical treatment and rehabilitation. These compensation benefits also offer the workers’ surviving family benefits if the worker dies from work injuries. If you are covered under the workers compensation laws and not receiving benefits due to you, you may need to consult with workers compensation lawyers in order to get legal assistance pursuing your claim.

Who is Covered?

Workers who work on loading and unloading ships, repairing them, and building them are all covered under this act. They can be injured while on a boat, as well as a pier, dock, or any other location where a boat could float or where land adjoins water. Here are a few examples of who is covered by this act:

Employees who check sailing vessels
Construction workers laboring on docks and piers
Ship mechanics and other repair workers
Those who load and unload cargo on ships
Those who operate cranes and other shipping devices
Those working on oil-rigs
Those who take apart ships

Approximately 500,000 workers are covered by the Longshore and Harbor Workers Act.

What to Do If You Have a Claim

If you are injured on the job, you have 30 days to give your employer notice. To file a claim for disability benefits under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, you must file with the Department of Labor no more than one year after the date of the injury.

Once you have filed, your employer can begin to make payments within 14 days of the accident that caused your injury. If your employer disputes the injury as work-related, or that it’s covered by the act, you can pursue a “conciliation procedure,” which helps you and your employer come to a mutual agreement. If this procedure does not bring about the desired result, an administrative law judge will hold a hearing and decide on the disability claim.

Regardless of the outcome of such a hearing, you may bring a lawsuit against other persons or organizations that you believe are at fault for your injuries. Such lawsuits do not apply to your employer or co-workers, but can involve a negligence claim against the vessel and its ownership.

Getting Help

If you need to bring such a lawsuit or if you need assistance through the disability claim process under the Longshore and Harbor Workers Act, you can locate an experienced attorney by contacting local bar associations, or by searching for admiralty and maritime attorneys.

Have a Work Injury Case?