Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Act (33 USC 901 et. seq.)
This Act, administered by the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP), U. S. Department of Labor, offers compensation and medical care to employees disabled from injuries that occur on the navigable waters of the United States, or in adjoining areas customarily used in loading, unloading, repairing, or building a vessel. The Act also offers benefits to dependents if the injury causes the employee's death. These benefits are paid by an insurance company or by an employer who is authorized by the OWCP to be self-insured. The term "injury" includes occupational disease.
The Longshore Act Covers WHO?
How do I know if I am covered by Federal Workers Comp under OWCP division on FECA:
Great question! There are 4 division of FECA / OWCP lets touch on each here….
There is Federal Employees' Compensation Act which compensates all federal employees and postal workers, or the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act which compensates current or former employees (or their survivors) of the Department of Energy, or Division of Coal Mine Workers' Compensation, or Federal Black Lung Program which compensates coal miners who are totally disabled or die by pneumoconiosis arising out of coal mine employment, or the 4th division called the Longshore Program which compensates employees of land based, maritime, and other employment injuries and deaths
OK, now back to Longshore and Maritime workers compensation…who is eligible for this division of workers comp’s work-related injuries/deaths compensation benefits?
The LHWCA covers employees in traditional maritime occupations such as longshore workers, ship-repairers, shipbuilders or ship-breakers, and harbor construction workers. The injuries must occur on the navigable waters of the United States or in the adjoining areas, including piers, docks, terminals, wharves, and those areas used in loading and unloading vessels. Non-maritime employees may also be covered if they perform their work on navigable water and their injuries occur there.
Other Employees are covered similarly through the Longshore Act Extensions!
Congress extended the LHWCA to include other types of employment. Employees covered by these extensions are entitled to the same benefits, and their claims are handled in the same way as Longshore Act claims. The following are the extensions of the LHWCA:
Defense Base Act , applying to employment by Federal government contractors outside the continental U.S., Alaska or Hawaii.
Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, applying to employees of private industry, conducting certain operations on the Outer Continental Shelf of the United States.
Non-appropriated Fund Instrumentalities Act, applying to civilian employees of nonappropriated fund instrumentalities (post exchanges, etc.) of the Armed Forces.
Excluded by the Longshore Act are the following individuals if covered by a state workers' compensation law:
Individuals employed exclusively to perform office clerical, secretarial, security, or data processing work;
Individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet;
Individuals employed by a marina and who are not engaged in construction, replacement, or expansion of such marina (except for routine maintenance);
Individuals who (A) are employed by suppliers, transporters, or vendors, (B) are temporarily doing business on the premises of a maritime employer, and (C) are not engaged in work normally performed by employees of that employer covered under this Act;
Aquaculture workers; Individuals employed to build, repair, or dismantle any recreational vessel under sixty-five feet in length;
Small vessel workers if exempt by certification of the Secretary of Labor under certain conditions.
Excluded also are:
The LHWCA specifically excludes the following individuals:
Seamen (masters or members of a crew of any vessel – which are covered by a different coverage created by The Jones Act that covers exclusive regimes providing compensation for work-related injuries suffered by different categories of maritime law…aka "master or member of a crew" is refinement of the term "seaman" in the Jones Act. As a result, the key requirement for Jones Act coverage appears in the LHWCA based solely on the employee's connection to a vessel in navigation. It is not necessary that an employee aid in navigation or contribute to the transportation of the vessel in order to be "seaman" under the Jones Act, but the employee must be doing the ship's work by contributing to the function of the vessel or the accomplishment of its mission. This is a little more difficult to cover topic here so if you think this Jones Act applies to you I would guide you to read the JONES ACT portion of the Longshore Act for further information …other employees that are excluded are …
Employees of the United States government or of any state or foreign government;
Employees whose injuries were caused solely by their intoxication; and
Employees whose injuries were due to their own willful intention to harm themselves or others.
The LHWCA also excludes individuals if they are covered by a state workers' compensation law:
Examples are employees performg office clerical, secretarial, security, or data processing work; Individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet; Individuals employed by a marina and who are not engaged in construction, replacement, or expansion of such marina (except for routine maintenance);
Individuals who (A) are employed by suppliers, transporters, or vendors, (
Ok, if you are one of the eligible people mentioned just now …
What To Do If You Are Injured
1. Notify your employer immediately. If you need medical treatment, ask your employer for a Form LS-1, which authorizes treatment by a doctor of your choice
2. Obtain medical treatment as soon as possible
3. Give written notice of your injury within 30 days to your employer on Form LS-201. Notice of death must also be given within 30 days. Additional time is provided for certain hearing loss and occupational disease claims. Contact your nearest OWCP district office for additional information regarding these types of claims
4. File a written claim for compensation on Form LS-203 within one year after the date of injury or last payment of compensation, whichever is later. A claim for survivor benefits must be filed within one year after the date of death. The time for filing claims in certain occupational disease cases has been extended to two years
If you need additional information about your rights under this law, access the link provided below (from the official Longshore website) and contact the appropriate Longshore District Office.
Claims forms and additional information may be obtained from the official Longshore website.
How to Complete a Longshore Form
Longshore forms can now be completed using any one of the two options. See below for detailed instructions:
OPTION 1 Print form
- Select form
- Print form using the "Print" button on or near the top of the form
- Write/type in the required information
- Authorize the form (if applicable) by providing a hand-written signature
- Mail to the Longshore Central Mail Receipt office.
OPTION 2 Form-fill
- Select form
- Complete the form using your computer keyboard and the <TAB> key or your mouse to navigate between form fields
- Print the form using the "Print" button on or near the top of the form
- Authorize the form (if applicable) by providing a hand-written signature
- Mail to the Longshore Central Mail Receipt office.
If you have questions about filling/submitting these forms or need other forms assistance, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions, or alternatively you can send Longshore a question via e-mail at DLHWC-Public@dol.gov. Longshore will respond to your question via e-mail.
Printable Forms
All of the Longshore Program's online forms (with the exception of Forms LS-241 and LS-242) are available to print and to manually fill and submit. Simply click on the appropriate form and print it using the [Print] button provided near the top of the form. Write or type the required information on the hardcopy and authorize the form, if applicable, with a hand-written signature. Then mail or fax the completed form to the Federal Employees Program office you normally send to for this process.
Fillable Forms
Forms (with the exception of Forms LS-241 and LS-242) may be electronically filled. Simply click on the appropriate form, fill out the form using your computer keyboard and the <TAB> key or your mouse to navigate between form fields. Print the form (use the Print button on or near the top of the form), authorize the form (if applicable provide hand-written signature) and mail or fax the completed form to the Federal Employees Program office you normally send to for this process.