Maersk Line Limited, the operator of the largest U.S. flag commercial fleet, has reached a settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor regarding a whistleblower retaliation case. The settlement requires Maersk to revise its safety reporting policies and compensate a mariner who was terminated for reporting safety concerns to the U.S. Coast Guard.

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The case originated from a December 2020 complaint by a mariner aboard the Safmarine Mafadi, a container ship. The mariner reported several safety issues, including faulty lifeboat equipment, potential alcohol consumption by crew members, inadequate supervision of cadet seamen, and a malfunctioning bilge system. In response, Maersk suspended and later terminated the mariner in March 2021 for not notifying the company before contacting regulatory agencies.

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) investigated and found that Maersk’s policy violated the federal Seaman’s Protection Act, which safeguards mariners’ rights to report safety concerns directly to authorities without employer retaliation. A three-day hearing in June upheld OSHA’s findings, leading to the settlement.

As part of the agreement, Maersk will eliminate the requirement for workers to inform the company before contacting the U.S. Coast Guard, refrain from retaliating against seamen who report safety concerns, train supervisors on the revised policy, and distribute OSHA’s Seaman’s Protection Act Fact Sheet to seamen on its U.S. flagged vessels for two years. Additionally, Maersk will compensate the terminated mariner for lost wages and damages.

Maersk Line Limited maintains that the termination was due to the mariner’s failure to report unsafe conditions to the company promptly, in accordance with its policy. The company also noted that an arbitrator and the Coast Guard found the mariner’s allegations unsubstantiated and motivated by personal reasons.

This case underscores the importance of mariners’ rights to report safety issues directly to the U.S. Coast Guard and reinforces the need for collaboration to ensure maritime safety. Maersk Line Limited, headquartered in Norfolk, remains a significant player in the U.S. maritime industry, operating a large fleet and employing about 700 U.S. mariners.

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