Sunday, December 7, 2014

THE IMPORTANCE OF ADHERING TO SAFETY REGULATIONS TO MINIMIZE OFFSHORE OIL DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LIABILITY



The Importance of Adhering to Safety Regulations to Minimize OFFSHORE OIL Company Liability

Oil rig workers face a variety of hazardous conditions on a daily basis, which is evident in the amount of related accidents that have taken place in the last several years.  There are more than 4,000 oil rig platforms in the Gulf of Mexico alone—25% of which are physically manned by workers—so there are a great number of people along the southern coast that are employed in this field.  Because of the constant work that needs to be done to maintain these rigs, however, there is a very good chance that a worker may be faced with an injury at some point or another.  One simple misstep could have catastrophic results, so it is crucial that the proper safety regulations are implemented and followed at all times.

Although human error cannot be blamed for the countless accidents that have taken place on offshore rigs, it can be attributed to an astounding number of the 3,300 accidents that took place between 2001 and 2014.  All offshore workers maintain rights under the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, which is more commonly referred to as the Jones Act.  This is a "United States federal statute that regulates maritime commerce in U.S. waters and between U.S. ports," and allows for all offshore seaman to make claims and collect from their employers for the negligence of a supervising authority or a fellow worker.

This means that if an employer fails to adhere to the safety regulations that have been put into place and a worker is subsequently injured, they may be subjected to a civil lawsuit.  Often times, an oil rig worker will be unable to return to their job in the wake of a serious injury, so they may have no other choice but to pursue an appropriate amount of compensation from the responsible party.  Whether they were burned in an explosion or they were hit or crushed by an unsecured object, a victim may be able to pursue damages that workers' compensation benefits won't provide.

Under the Jones Act, passed by Congress in 1920 as part of a broader maritime law, goods transported between U.S. ports must be carried by ships built in the U.S. and operated by U.S. crews.  The Jones Act protects American’s national and economic security. In part, it does so by helping maintain a pool of well-trained, loyal, U.S.-citizen mariners who sail aboard all types of American-flag ships, including military support vessels.

Foreign maritime workers injured in American ports or on American flagged ships have the same rights as American workers.  If you are a foreign worker injured on an American port, you may be eligible for compensation under the Longshoreman Compensation Act.  The LCA is a workers' compensation policy enforced by the federal government.

Types of Oil Rig Safety Regulations
Because of the enormous risks that an oil rig worker faces on a day-to-day basis, it is important for everyone in the field to understand what safety regulations must be implemented and followed.  Although most employees across the country are subjected to the regulations of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), it is a little different when working offshore.  Seamen that are working on oil rigs must instead abide by the regulations that have been set out by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement.  These standards were developed to protect workers that are susceptible to a whole new set of hazards when working out on the water, including regulations like:

·         Maintenance must be done regularly on all equipment to ensure proper working condition
·         Workers must receive training on how to implement proper safety techniques
·         Oil rig owners must provide free medical care to all employees
·         Equipment should be stored in a secure area that does not pose a risk of falling
·         Weekly "musters," or emergency exercises, should be carried out to prepare workers for real life accidents
·         Workers must have access to the General Platform Alarm (GPA) and/or emergency contact numbers

Qualifying as a “Seaman”
Not everyone who works on or near the water will meet the criteria of the Jones Act. The law expressly states that it only applies to “seamen,” but unfortunately, it does not provide a functional definition of the term. Thus, maritime attorneys look to the text of court decisions to figure out if a particular crew member will qualify. 

Federal courts have interpreted the term seaman to mean an individual who is assigned to a vessel or fleet that operates in navigable waters, meaning waterways capable of being used for interstate or foreign commerce. The individual must perform work that is related to the vessel’s purpose. As long as it furthers the mission of the vessel, the relative importance of the individual’s job description is not important. 

Seaman status under the Jones Act also requires that an employee spend a significant amount of time upon the vessel. One federal court has stated that an employee must spend no less than 30% of his or her time onboard to qualify. While this 30% figure is useful as a rule of thumb, it is by no means determinative. Employees who are unsure if they qualify as seamen should consult a maritime attorney for advice on their particular circumstances. 

Claims for Negligence
The most important benefit for those who qualify under the Jones Act is the ability to bring a negligence lawsuit against their employer.  By contrast, most land-based employment is covered by workers compensation, which allows injured employees to recover a limited amount of damages, without examining the issue of fault.  This may provide a degree of certainty, but without the chance to prove negligence, seamen would be unable to hold their employers fully accountable. 

Negligence occurs when an employer or coworker takes unreasonable risks and a seaman is injured as a result. The wrongfulness of the conduct is highly relevant, and helps determine how much money the seaman will receive. These lawsuits not only compensate the victim, they deter employers from ignoring the safety of their workers. 

Once an injured seaman has established negligence, he or she can ask the jury to award several types of damages. These fall into two categories, economic and non-economic. Economic damages compensate for things like past and future medical expenses, lost wages, and loss of earning capacity. Non-economic damages are meant to pay for pain and suffering, and to punish the employer in cases involving egregious conduct. 

Liability for Unseaworthy Vessels
Sometimes the substandard condition of a vessel is to blame for a seaman’s injury, rather than the direct actions of the employer or someone else onboard. In these situations, the “unseaworthiness” doctrine applies. The owner or entity in control of a vessel has a legal duty to ensure it is in safe working order, properly equipped, and operated by a competent crew. If any of these responsibilities are not met, and a seaman gets hurt, the owner will be liable in tort. This means the victim can recover the same types of damages available in a negligence lawsuit. 

Right to Maintenance and Cure
The doctrine of maintenance and cure differs from the other methods of obtaining compensation, primarily because it does not take the conduct of the employer or ship owner into account. In this respect, maintenance and cure resembles onshore workers compensation. All the seaman must prove is that the injury or sickness is work-related. 

A claim for maintenance and cure is easier for a seaman to prove, but the recoverable damages are far less extensive. Seamen must be paid a daily allowance to cover living expenses while they heal. Payment for medical expenses is also included, and must continue until the seaman reaches maximum medical improvement. It is important to note that these benefits, while modest, can be collected in addition to any recovery for negligence or unseaworthiness liability.