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Commonwealth act
This Act has been repealed and is no longer in force. It is retained for historical reference.
It creates a compulsory compensation system for seamen injured or killed while working on ships covered by the Act. The employer is primarily responsible for paying compensation (section 5(1)).
The Act sets out who is covered (definitions, section 3), where it applies (ships in Commonwealth service other than naval/military; ships trading with Australia or in Australian territorial waters; and ships engaged in international or interstate trade — section 4), and limits application to some foreign-registered ships to cases where the seaman’s articles were signed in Australia and the ship was subject to Commonwealth law while in Australia (section 4(2)).
It prescribes the kinds of payments available and how they are calculated: lump sums for death (subject to minimums and a maximum), weekly payments for total or partial incapacity (caps and special rates for younger seamen), rules for computing "average weekly earnings," and options to redeem weekly payments by a lump sum after a period (First Schedule, paras 1–2, 18). Weekly payments are protected from assignment or attachment (First Schedule para 20).
It requires prompt notice of accidents and time limits for bringing claims (notice as soon as practicable and claims generally within six months; section 6). Notices must include name, address, cause and date of injury and be served on the employer or the master (section 6(2)–(5)).
Dispute resolution is directed first to arbitration (including workplace committees where they exist) and, if not resolved, to County Courts; there are procedures for appointment of arbitrators, review of legal points by County Courts, and limited appeals (Second Schedule). Recorded arbitration awards or agreement memoranda can be enforced like County Court judgments (Second Schedule para 8).
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Direct links to the current provisions in Seamen's Compensation Act 1911.
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View on official registerSourced from the Federal Register of Legislation (legislation.gov.au), CC BY 4.0.
The Act gives employers some procedural protections and obligations: they can require medical examinations of claimants by employer‑provided doctors (subject to regulation) and the use of medical referees where parties disagree (First Schedule paras 5, 11–16; section 14). The Minister appoints medical referees and the regulations control the process and fees (section 14).
It deals with multi-party liability: a principal who contracts work to a contractor can be held liable to a seaman employed under the contractor as if the principal had directly employed the seaman, with a right of indemnity against the person who would otherwise have been liable (section 7). Where a third party (not the employer) is legally liable for the injury, the seaman may pursue both that third party for damages and the compensation regime, but cannot recover both (section 10).
It provides insolvency and insurance rules: if an employer has insured the liability, the seaman's rights against those insurers may be transferred to the seaman on employer insolvency (section 8). The Act also makes compensation liabilities a preferential debt in bankruptcy or winding up in many cases (section 8(3)).
Enforcement tools include detention of a ship found in Australian ports where the owner is probably liable and not resident in Australia (section 13), and reporting requirements for owners/masters to provide annual returns of injuries and compensation to the Comptroller‑General (section 16).
Who pays: the employer is primarily liable to pay compensation (section 5(1)). Employers often insure this liability; insurers’ obligations can pass to claimants on employer insolvency (section 8). A principal may also be required to pay where sub-contracted work is concerned (section 7).
Who decides: disputes and many factual or quantum issues are decided by arbitration (Second Schedule) or by County Courts; medical questions can be resolved by medical referees appointed by the Minister (section 14; First Schedule paras 13–14). The Minister and prescribed authorities have delegated powers under the Act and regulations (section 17; Second Schedule para 13).
Behaviour changes the law induces: employers must keep records and file returns (section 16), may require injured seamen to submit to medical exams (First Schedule paras 5, 11), and may opt to redeem long-standing weekly payments by a lump sum (First Schedule para 18). Seamen must give prompt notice and sue within statutory time limits (section 6). Principals and contractors need to anticipate indemnity claims between them (section 7).
Administrative discretion: the Minister may make regulations and modify parts of the arbitration schedule (section 17; Second Schedule para 13). The Minister appoints medical referees (section 14). A prescribed authority records and may refuse to record compensation agreements in certain cases (Second Schedule para 8).
Compliance burden: employers must accept potential liability, keep and produce returns to the Comptroller‑General (section 16), arrange and possibly pay for medical examinations and pay medical referees’ fees (section 14; First Schedule paras 5, 11). Noncompliance with notice and time limits can bar claims unless reasonable cause is shown (section 6).
Implementation risks and trade‑offs: the mix of arbitration, committee settlement, and County Court jurisdiction creates multiple procedural routes that can shift costs and timing between parties. The right of principals to indemnity against contractors (section 7) and insurers’ transfer rules on insolvency (section 8) create further layers of claims between private parties, increasing transaction and litigation costs. The ship detention remedy (section 13) is an enforcement power with operational and commercial consequences for shipowners and masters.