Resources

It’s hurricane season in the Gulf of Mexico and Southeast Texas. While working offshore is dangerous under any conditions, it is especially dangerous when high winds and heavy rains rapidly approach jack-up rigs and vessels operating well out of sight of land. Unfortunately, many companies give their employees little choice but to go out in these conditions, putting their safety—and potentially their lives—in jeopardy.

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If you’ve suffered a back injury while working offshore, you need to be careful. You need to be careful to protect your health, and you also need to be careful to protect your legal rights. Back injuries can be incredibly costly, and while you may be entitled to financial compensation, you will need to avoid mistakes in order to collect the compensation you deserve.

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Suffering a back injury can turn your life upside down. All of a sudden, you are in pain, unable to work and wondering how you are going to pay your bills.

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Back injuries are extremely common offshore. From lifting accidents to falls, many types of accidents can cause serious back injuries, and the risks can be especially high when you’re offshore on a vessel in rough seas.

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Concussions are common work injuries, especially in the offshore environment. While slips and falls are among the leading causes of work-related concussions, these traumatic brain injuries (TBI) can result from many other types of offshore accidents as well.

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If you have been injured while working offshore, you must be careful to protect your legal rights. While the Jones Act entitles offshore workers to financial compensation when they get injured on the job, you can lose your rights under the Jones Act if you aren’t careful.

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Maintenance and cure benefits are available to injured maritime and offshore workers who qualify as “seamen” under the Jones Act. Are you eligible to file for maintenance and cure? Here is what you need to know.

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For many offshore and maritime employees, working in confined spaces is part of the job. Unfortunately, working in confined spaces can be dangerous—especially offshore, and especially when employers prioritize their profits over their employees’ safety. U.S. Coast Guard: Multiple Factors Contributed to Crewmembers’ Exposure to Dangerous Levels of Gas in Confined Fish Hold For example, the U.S. Coast Guard recently issued a Marine Safety Alert warning of the dangers of working in fish holds on commercial fishing vessels. As the U.S. Coast Guard explains, commercial fishing vessel operators must verify the atmospheric conditions in their fish holds because failure to do so can expose workers to potentially fatal hazards: “There are specific hazards associated with the use of brine dip solutions, a common substance used in the industry. Brine dip combined with standing water can produce dangerous levels of hydrogen sulfide (H2S). The U.S. Coast Guard is currently investigating a marine casualty where dangerous levels of H2S were present on a commercial fishing vessel, resulting in the hospitalization of crewmembers on board.” The U.S. Coast Guard issued its Marine Safety Alert after investigating a case in which a crewmember of a commercial fishing vessel fell into a fish hold where he was overcome by high levels of hydrogen sulfide. When another crewmember attempted to help them, this second crewmember “was immediately overcome by the gas and also fell into the hold.” The crewmembers had to be rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard and the local fire department’s certified confined space […]

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In many maritime and offshore occupations, workers perform the same repetitive movements day in and day out. Whether you are a welder, you operate a shrimp net, you clean barges, or you are an engineer or able seaman, there is a good chance that your job entails repeating the same motions on a daily basis. This type of repetitive stress frequently leads to injuries, and maritime workers who suffer these injuries often face expensive medical bills and missed time from work. If you have a repetitive stress injury, can you file a claim under the Jones Act? Alabama offshore injury attorney David Willis explains. The Jones Act Covers Repetitive Stress Injuries The Jones Act covers all types of job-related injuries. This includes injuries caused by repetitive stress.  While most people think of job-related injuries as those caused by accidents (i.e., slips, falls, collisions, and falls overboard), repetitive stress injuries are actually among the most common types of injuries resulting in days missed from work. A key aspect of the Jones Act is that it covers qualifying maritime workers’ injuries regardless of how they got injured (with only very limited exceptions). This means you do not need to prove your employer is responsible in order to file for Jones Act benefits. While employers are responsible for workers’ injuries in many cases, proof of fault isn’t necessary; and if you can prove that your employer is responsible, then you can seek additional compensation for Jones Act negligence. So, if you qualify as […]

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Under ordinary circumstances, a vessel should never capsize or sink—especially with crewmembers or other seamen on board. Yet, capsizing and sinking accidents don’t just happen, but they happen frequently. So, why is this the case? When a vessel capsizes or sinks, what company is responsible? Most importantly, what are injured workers’ and families’ legal rights?

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