§10504 Wages

Summary

A seaman can ask the ship’s master for one-half of any wages earned but not yet paid at each port where the ship loads or unloads cargo after the voyage starts. The seaman must wait at least 5 days after the voyage begins to make a demand, can only demand once every 5 days, and cannot demand more than once in the same port entry. If the master refuses, the seaman is freed from the service agreement and is owed all wages. A court can undo a release the seaman signed if there is good reason. These rules do not cover fishing or whaling vessels or yachts. The master must pay the rest of the wages within 2 days after the service agreement ends or the seaman is discharged, whichever comes first. If payment is delayed without good cause, the master or owner must pay a penalty equal to 2 days’ wages for each day of delay. For class actions by seamen on passenger ships that carry more than 500 passengers, that penalty cannot exceed ten times the unpaid wages. A class-action claim must start within 3 years after the later of the last voyage claimed or the seaman’s ordinary wage payment. The 2-day pay rule and the penalty rule do not apply to vessels in coastwise trade, yachts, fishing vessels, or whaling vessels. The law also applies to seamen on foreign ships while in a U.S. harbor, and courts can enforce it. On request, a seaman on a passenger ship that holds more than 500 people may have wages direct-deposited into an account or payroll card if the seaman chooses the bank, the bank’s country guarantees deposits under common international standards, the seaman gets a written pay statement at least monthly showing deposits, and the seaman can arrange to withdraw all funds while aboard.