What to Do If You Suffer an Injury in a Shipyard

If you’re a worker in the shipyard, ship breaking or ship repair industries and have suffered an injury, it is important that you notify your employer of the injury as quickly as is possible in order to be eligible for LHWCA benefits.

If your injury required medical treatment, ask your employer to provide you with a Form LS-1. This gives you the right to be treated by a physician of your choice.Ensure that you get the right medical treatment for your injuries. If the injury required diagnostic tests, make sure that these are conducted.

Give the employer written notice of your injury with 30 days after the injury has occurred. The documentation of the injury must be done on Form LS-201.

If the injury is related to an occupational illness, you may have additional time to document your injuries. Also, you may get additional time to provide written notice if it is a hearing-related injury.

A worker who’s covered under the Longshoreman and Harbor Workers Compensation Act is eligible for benefits under the Act, which include medical costs, rehabilitation and vocational training. You must file a claim for compensation in writing, and the claim must be filed within one year after the date of injury. The time period for filing a compensation claim can be extended the case of occupational diseases.

If you are a longshoreman, dockworker, stevedore, crane operator, shipyard worker or any other worker in the shipyard and ship building industries and have been injured in an accident, you are eligible for benefits under the LHWCA. Consult a maritime lawyer at our firm.