The Act requires USL&H coverage to be in place when workers fall under its scope, and failing to do so is a legal violation punishable by fines, penalties, and imprisonment; this can include accountability if a contractor’s personnel are not insured.
What does USL&H stand for?
The United States Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Act (USL&H) is a federal law that covers maritime workers who labor on or near navigable waterways in or around the United States (excluding sailors, seamen, masters, and crews of any ship, vessel, or watercraft).
How much does USL&H insurance cost?
Contractors frequently think to themselves, “Great, another insurance term that crops up in the bid specification for an upcoming project I want to bid on.” After looking over the drawings, the job scope, and calculating man-hours, labor, and material expenses, it appears that your organization is up to the task. However, they’re requesting USL&H (United States Longshore and Harbor) coverage, but your company doesn’t unload barges, work on ships, or have a dive team, so what does that imply when you already have Workers’ Compensation?
This project is likely to be near, near, or even on a canal, necessitating federally mandatory coverage for workers known as USL&H. Because this type of job (around water) is excluded in your current workers’ compensation policy, USL&H coverage is required if the site is near an ocean, lake, river, or stream.
The coverage is required per the bid specification, and the general contractor’s project manager has agreed that you must include it in the bid, so what now?
It’s as simple as adding an endorsement to your current workers’ compensation policy to get this coverage.
Your present carrier, however, may opt not to underwrite the risk based on the state, location, and type of work performed. A customized carrier can be employed in this case. For an accurate price, as with any job, you’ll need to give some specific details, including but not limited to:
Payroll is frequently used to determine the cost of the endorsement. It’s a 30% boost over your existing net labor rate on average. For example, if your current net labor rate per 100 employees is $13.00, the project’s USL&H rate per 100 employees would be $16.90. This amount varies based on the job, so double-check with your insurance company before submitting your offer.
So what if you’re bidding on a task that requires USL&H but the bid specification doesn’t specify it? Working close or around water is the catalyst. Examine the parameters of the project with your insurance provider to see if they’d give coverage in the case of a loss, even if the bid requirements don’t clearly mandate USL&H. They probably won’t, so don’t put your firm at risk by taking on a project that could result in a loss just to find out there’s no coverage.
What is the difference between USL&H and Jones Act?
You now know that the Jones Act and the USL&H are both designed to safeguard maritime workers who operate on or near the water. What is the difference between USL&H and the Jones Act, though?
One of the most significant distinctions is that those covered by the Jones Act have the ability to sue their employer for negligence and have a jury trial to determine the outcome. It’s equivalent to filing a personal injury lawsuit. USL&H, on the other hand, is more like a standard workers’ compensation system in that you don’t have to prove fault to receive pay, but your claim is handled through an administrative system with no access to a jury trial.
The kind of injuries you could sustain are also diverse. You may be entitled to compensation for medical expenditures, pain and suffering, lost wages in the past and future, loss of quality of life, and more under the Jones Act. Meanwhile, USL&H coverage often only covers medical expenditures and a percentage of lost income, with no further benefits.
Another distinction is that the Jones Act only covers seamen, whereas the USL&H covers all maritime workers, even those who are not considered sailors.
What is the US Longshore and Harbor Workers Act?
What is the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, and what does it cover?
The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA) is a federal law that provides compensation, medical care, and vocational rehabilitation services to employees who are disabled as a result of on-the-job injuries that occur on navigable waters of the United States, or in adjacent areas commonly used in the loading, unloading, repairing, or building of a vessel. If a job injury causes or contributes to an employee’s death, the LHWCA provides for the provision of survivor benefits to dependents. Typically, the self-insured employer or a private insurance company on the employer’s behalf pays these benefits. Occupational diseases, hearing loss, and ailments stemming from job are all included in the phrase “injury.”
2. Is the LHWCA applicable to everyone?
Employees in traditional maritime industries such as longshoremen, shipwrights, shipbuilders or shipbreakers, and harbor construction workers are covered by the LHWCA. The injuries must have occurred in the United States’ navigable waterways or adjacent places, such as piers, docks, terminals, wharves, and other sites used in loading and unloading boats. Non-maritime personnel may also be covered if they work on navigable water and sustain an injury while doing so.
3. What are the Extensions to the Longshore Act?
The LHWCA was expanded by Congress to include various sorts of work. Employees covered by these extensions are entitled to the same benefits as Longshore Act claimants, and their claims are handled in the same manner. The LHWCA has been extended in the following ways:
The Defense Base Act (DBA) regulates the following types of employment: (1) Work for private employers on US military bases or on lands used by the US for military purposes outside of the US, including those in US Territories and possessions; (2) Work on public work contracts with any US government agency, including construction and service contracts in connection with national defense or war activities outside the US; (3) Work on contracts approved and funded by the US under the Foreign Assistance Act (USO). Please check the DBA FAQs to learn more about the DBA.
Employees operating on the United States’ Outer Continental Shelf in the discovery and production of natural resources, such as off-shore oil drilling rigs, are covered by the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA). Please read the OCSLA section of our website for more information.
The Non-Appropriated Fund Instrumentalities Act (NAFIA) protects civilian personnel of the Armed Forces’ non-appropriated fund instrumentalities (for example, military base exchanges and morale, welfare, and recreational facilities). Please read the NAFIA section of our website for more information.
4. Who is not covered by the LHWCA?
- Employees of the US government, as well as employees of any state or foreign government;
- Employees who were injured as a result of their own deliberate attempt to damage themselves or others.
If they are protected by a state workers’ compensation legislation, the LHWCA additionally excludes the following individuals:
- Individuals who are solely responsible for clerical, secretarial, security, or data processing duties in an office setting;
- Employees of a club, camp, leisure enterprise, restaurant, museum, or retail establishment;
- Individuals who work for a marina but are not involved in the marina’s construction, replacement, or extension (save for routine maintenance);
- Individuals who are (A) employed by suppliers, transporters, or vendors, (B) temporarily doing business on a marine employer’s premises, and (C) not performing work ordinarily undertaken by that employer’s covered workers;
- Individuals engaged to construct any recreational watercraft under 65 feet in length, or to repair any recreational vessel, or to destroy any portion of a recreational vessel in the course of such repair; and
- Workers aboard small vessels may be exempt if the Secretary of Labor certifies them to be exempt under specified conditions.
5. What is the difference between the Jones Act and the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act?
The Jones Act (46 USC 30104) and the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (33 USC 901-950) are mutually exclusive regimes that provide compensation for work-related injuries caused by certain types of marine workers. A “master or member of a crew of any vessel” is not covered by the LHWCA. Instead, the Jones Act protects crew workers. In the Jones Act, the term “master or member of a crew” is a refinement of the term “seaman.” As a result, the LHWCA contains the primary criteria for Jones Act coverage. The employee’s link to a vessel in navigation is the sole factor in the decision. To be considered a “seaman” under the Jones Act, an employee does not have to assist in navigation or contribute to the vessel’s transportation, but the person must be performing shipwork by contributing to the vessel’s function or mission achievement.
6. What does the OWCP (Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs) stand for?
The Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP) is responsible for the administration of four federal workers’ compensation laws, including the LHWCA and its extensions. The LHWCA is administered by the OWCP’s Division of Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation (DLHWC).
7. How does the OWCP/DLHWC help injured workers?
- The OWCP/DLHWC keeps track of injuries and deaths recorded under the LHWCA and its expansions, and examines claims to see if appropriate benefits are provided in a timely and correct manner in accordance with the Act’s requirements.
- Employers, insurance carriers, and injured employees can get information and technical support from the claims staff on their eligibility to compensation, medical benefits, and vocational rehabilitation benefits.
- If a claim disagreement arises, the OWCP/DLHWC aids the parties in resolving the conflict by holding informal sessions and providing written recommendations on benefit eligibility. The OWCP/DLHWC sends the matter for a formal hearing if the parties cannot resolve their differences and one of them asks a formal hearing before the Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ).
- In appropriate circumstances, vocational rehabilitation services are provided to permanently impaired personnel. For further information, see the Vocational Rehabilitation FAQs.
- In certain cases, the OWCP/DLHWC also administers the “Special Fund,” which grants disability compensation to wounded employees or their survivors. For further information on the Special Fund, see FAQ 41.
8. Where can I find the Longshore district offices?
What is Jones Act coverage?
The Jones Act is a federal legislation that allows seafarers who have been hurt while on the job to sue their employer for personal injury damages. Seamen, unlike practically other land-based laborers, are not eligible for workers’ compensation payments under state or federal law. Because wounded seafarers cannot file workers’ compensation claims against their employers, the Jones Act and general maritime law are the only avenues for them to seek compensation for their injuries. The focus of this paper will be on the special challenges that arise in Jones Act negligence trials.
Are longshoremen federal employees?
The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act is a federal workers’ compensation law that covers specific marine workers as well as civilians working on military sites across the world.
Longshoremen, harbor workers, and the majority of other persons who work on ports, shipping terminals, or shipyards are covered by the LHWCA. Workers’ compensation payments are granted to civilian employees on military bases under the Act, which is governed by a distinct federal statute known as the Defense Base Act. Continue reading to find out more about the LHWCA and how it protects injured employees.