LONGSHORE WORKERS' COMPENSATION

Knowing your rights is the first key to obtaining the benefits to which you are entitled, and which you deserve, when you are injured on the job. For those workers who perform their work on or near the navigable waters of the United States, and whose jobs relate in any way to the building or repair of ships and other marine vessels, or the loading or unloading of ships, barges or marine vessels of any kind, this statement could not be more true.

Specifically, depending on the type of work you perform and where you perform that work in relation to navigable waters, you may be covered not only under the workers' compensation law in the state where you are injured, but also by the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act ("LHWCA"), a federal law administered by the United States Department of Labor through its Office of Workers' Compensation Programs. That agency's Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Program includes a mission statement that reads as follows:

The Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act and its extensions, administered by the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment Standards Administration, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, provide medical benefits, compensation for lost wages, and rehabilitation services to employees who are injured during the course of employment or contract an occupational disease related to employment. Survivor benefits are also provided if the work-related injury causes the employee's death.

The employees referred to in this statement are those who work on the navigable waters of the United States, or in nearby areas and certain types of other workers. Some examples of those who might be covered include employees who work in the shipyard buildings, those involved in building structures over water, longshoremen and crane operators, to name a few. There are also extensions of the LHWCA that provide similar benefits for individuals working for private contractors on U.S. military bases, both in the United States and overseas, and other employees whose work is tied to the military and federal government, but who are not civil service employees, such as employees of various federal exchange facilities. The message in the end is that if you are injured on the job and your work is on or near a waterway, tied in any way to maritime related work, or you work for a private contractor whose job is tied to the military, you may be covered by the LHWCA, and that coverage is worth investigating further.

The attorneys of Rutter Mills, L.L.P. have a proven track record in handling claims under the LHWCA. We have handled countless cases before the Department of Labor, and related appeals before both the Benefits Review Board of the Department of Labor and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. We feel that it is important that the employees covered by the LHWCA are made aware of their rights, and pursue those rights so that they receive the compensation they deserve for their injuries. Our attorneys and large support staff are in the business of serving and helping injured workers. We know the law, and how that law applies to those injured on the job. Our goal is to obtain a result for each client that puts them in a better place, in spite of their injuries, so that they can move on with their life in a positive direction. If you have been seriously injured at your job and would like additional information about how we can help you, click here.