Seamen's Act
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The Seaman's Act, formally known as "Act to Promote the Welfare of American Seamen in the Merchant Marine of the United States" (Act of March 4, 1915, ch. 153, 38 Stat. 1164) was designed to improve the safety and security of United States seamen.
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[edit] Origins of the act
The Act was sponsored in the United States Senate by Robert Marion La Follette (1855-1925) (See [Memorial Society]).
The International Seamen's Union had a significant influence on the drafting of the Bill, with the President of the Union, Andrew Furuseth cited as being behind the content and intent of the Bill.
The Act was also supported by the Secretary of Labor, William B. Wilson (1862-1934).
The Act promoted the living and working conditions of seamen serving in the United States Merchant Marine, specifically applying to vessels in excess of 100 gross tons (GT), but excluding river craft.
[edit] Provisions of the act
The Act introduced provisions (inter alia) to:
- Abolish imprisonment for desertion
- Reduce penalties for disobedience
- Regulate the working hours of seamen both at sea and in port
- Establish a minimum quality for rations supplied to seamen
- Regulate the payment of wages to seamen
- Require specific levels of safety, particularly the provision of lifeboats
- Require a minimum percentage of the seamen aboard a vessel to be qualified Able Seamen
- Require a minimum of 75% of the seamen aboard a vessel to understand the language spoken by the officers
The origin of the Bill not only lay in the increasing activities of various trade unions such as the ISU but in the increasing tensions that lead to the First World War. (The Bill was initially proposed in 1913, but took two years to pass into Law, by which time the war had started.) Another significant influence was the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912, which raised the issue of safety at sea in the public consciousness.
[edit] Other acts
The Bill did little to help seamen who were injured in the course of their duties, and in 1920 the Merchant Marine Act, commonly known as the Jones Act was passed in an attempt to alleviate this situation.
[edit] Sources
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h990.html [1]
| Laws relating to the United States Merchant Marine | ||
| 1870s | Shipping Commissioners Act of 1872 |  |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | Dingley Act | |
| 1890s | Maguire Act of 1895 • White Act of 1898 | |
| 1910s | Seamen's Act | |
| 1920s | Jones Act | |
| 1930s | Merchant Marine Act of 1936 | |
| Current | Title 33 CFR • Title 46 CFR | |
