The Jones Act, 46 U.S.C. 688 (1970) allows seamen injured doing their jobs, or their families when they are killed, to collect benefits from their marine industry employers. A Jones Act claim is based on the employer’s negligence, or a co-worker’s careless act that causes the injuries. Claims can also be made against the owner of an unseaworthy vessel. When nobody is to blame for an accident, seamen can collect maintenance and cure under the Jones Act.
Other federal laws similarly protect harbor workers. To qualify for Jones Act coverage, you must be classified as a seaman as the act defines, which an experienced maritime injury attorney could help determine. When you are injured while working on a ship, and your employer refuses to pay your medical bills, a Louisiana Jones Act lawyer at Scott Vicknair could seek justice for you.
Defining a Seaman Under the Jones Act
According to the Jones Act, a seaman spends significant time performing maritime work in support of a navigating vessel, which must be:
- Afloat
- Capable of moving
- Operational
- On navigable waterways
Jones Act claims are usually considered acceptable when a seaman spends at least 30 percent of their time engaged in maritime work on an operating vessel. Movable jack-up platforms or rigs are also considered vessels that support the Jones Act definition, but permanently fixed drilling platforms are not. Maritime workers who do not qualify as seamen may have protections under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) or the Longshore Harbor & Workers Compensation Act (LHWCA).
Damages Available Under a Jones Act Negligence Claim
Injured workers who prove their employer or co-worker committed a negligent act or failed to act responsibly can collect money to pay for their losses. The award covers damages like a civil action for negligence does in court. It reimburses seamen for wages lost while recovering from injuries, future lost income, current and future medical expenses incurred because of the injuries, and subjective losses like emotional distress, disfigurement, and loss of the enjoyment of life. A Louisiana Jones Act attorney could help a seaman get financial compensation for their losses and justice for their injuries.
Maintenance and Cure
Another remedy under the Jones Act is available to seamen injured on the job when negligence is not a factor. Employees owe them maintenance, which is a modest amount of money for food and shelter that replaces what seamen receive when they are aboard their vessel.
Cure refers to an employer’s obligation to provide comprehensive medical care for injured workers. This includes hospital and rehabilitative care, nursing services, and prescription drugs. When a seaman’s condition stops improving, called maximum medical improvement, maintenance and cure ends, and the seaman must return to work or seek other disability benefits.
Injuries Caused by Unseaworthiness
Vessel owners owe their crew a seaworthy ship that is safe, in reasonable shape for its intended use, and has the necessary safety equipment. Claims for unseaworthiness include maintaining a crew too small to navigate properly, lack of training, unrepaired equipment, and unsafe conditions such as gas and oil spills.
Seamen injured because of an unseaworthy vessel can recover damages like those available in negligence cases with assistance from a Louisiana Jones Act lawyer.
Ask Louisiana Jones Act Attorney About Potential Compensation
When you are a maritime worker whose job entails working on ships in navigable waterways, you want to know you will be taken care of when you are injured in a work-related accident. Under the Jones Act, you are owed compensation when your boss or co-worker was negligent and caused you harm, or nobody was at fault but you are still injured.
Call us to schedule a free consultation when your employer refuses to pay for your medical treatment and other losses. Maritime attorneys have special knowledge about the laws that govern the seas. The Louisiana Jones Act lawyers at Scott Vicknair believe that when you are wronged, we could make it right. You don’t pay if we don’t win your case.
