There are a variety of ways a longshoreman can get injured while on the job and there are a variety of different ways he or she can recover for his or her injuries. Federal legislation like the Jones, the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation, and the Death on the High Seas acts all protect workers injured in maritime workplace accidents, but determining which law applies and how to go about filing a lawsuit to hold an employer responsible for creating an unsafe workplace is extremely complex. A maritime law attorney can provide valuable advice about what to do following an accident and how to preserve a worker’s rights under maritime law.
In this story, a Louisiana longshoreman was injured after his boat collided with another boat in Bayou LaFourche. The impact caused the longshoreman to fly across the deck of the 30-foot aluminum boat. The worker suffered serious injuries that have left him with a permanent disability, according to The Louisiana Record. The longshoreman filed his lawsuit against both his employer and the owner and operator of the other vessel.
It seems the deckhand had been working on cleaning up contamination from the BP oil spill when the other boat hit his, running his boat onto shore. Because of his extensive and serious injuries, he has requested over $1.5 million in damages. The longshoreman says that the injuries have prevented him and will prevent him the future from earning his full wages and, thus, part of the damage award will go toward lost wages and the loss of earning capacity.
Employers must provide a safe workplace for all of their employees and when they fail to do so, it is only reasonable for an employee to hold his or her employers financially liable for any accidents that result from the unsafe conditions.
Source: The Louisiana Record, “Longshoreman sues after boat collision forces workboat to run aground,” Michelle Keahey, Nov. 21, 2011
