Are Marine Construction Workers Jones Act Seamen?
Some confusion exists regarding the status of marine construction workers under the Jones Act. A recent Sixth Circuit opinion may offer some clarity to the topic and confirm that in most instances, marine construction workers do qualify as Jones Act seamen. The case is styled Arnold v. Luedtke, 2006 WL 2220978 (6th Cir. 8/4/2006).
The plaintiff began work in February 2002. He served as the foreman of a seawall construction project. The project required him to work in four phases. During the first two phases, he captained a tugboat and worked aboard a large derrick boat for extended periods of time. He was hurt during the third phase of the project, which had him working alone carrying very heavy steel plates from the beach to the top of the seawall and then onto a pontoon raft. The district court found that he was not a seaman during the third phase and the raft was not a vessel.
The Sixth Circuit disagreed on both points. It rejected the "snapshot" test that the U.S Supreme Court rejected in the Chandris case. It also held that the raft was a vessel as a matter of law. However, the court stated that some of the questions remained jury issues, amely whether his work aboard the raft was substantial in duration and nature.
The Sixth Circuit's opinion is perfectly consistent with Supreme Court precedent and corrects an obvious error by the trial court. It also clarifies that marine construction workers don't walk in and out of Jones Act seamen status depending on the particular work they are doing when injured.
