Seafarers (also referred to as seamen or sailors) who are injured while at sea are entitled to maintenance and cure from their employers or shipowners.
- Maintenance is an injured seafarer's right to day-to-day living expenses.
- Cure is the seafarer's right to medical costs.
Employers are only obligated to pay maintenance and cure until the seafarer is fit for duty, or until they have reached a point where additional medical treatment will not help them.
An employer's obligation to pay maintenance and cure arises from maritime common law. See: Calmar Steamship Corp. v. Taylor, 303 U.S. 525 (1938) and Whitman v. Miles, 294 F. Supp. 2d 117 (D. Me. 2003).
Employers and unions cannot contract out of a seafarer’s right to maintenance and cure. The Merchant Marine Act of 1920 (The Jones Act) provides seafarers with additional protections. See also: workers’ compensation.
[Last updated in July of 2023 by the Wex Definitions Team]