| Code: | C55 |
| Shipowners' Liability (Sick and Injured Seamen) Convention, 1936 | |
| Adopt: | November 24, 1936 |
| Force: | November 29, 1939 |
| Classify: | Social Security |
| Subject: | Seafarers |
| Prev: | Holidays with Pay (Sea) Convention, 1936 |
| Next: | Sickness Insurance (Sea) Convention, 1936 |
Shipowners' Liability (Sick and Injured Seamen) Convention, 1936 is an International Labour Organization Convention.
It was established in 1936, with the preamble stating:
The convention was ratified by the United States Senate and made effective by proclamation of the President on 29 October 1939, 54 Stat. 1963, 1704. In Warren v. United States, 340 U.S. 523 (1951), the Supreme Court considered the application and interpretation of Article 2 of the Convention in a seaman's case against his employer, the United States, in its capacity as owner of the merchant ship S. S. Anna Howard Shaw.
While on shore leave, the seaman visited a dance hall. An adjoining room overlooking the ocean had French doors that opened to an unprotected ledge. The seaman stepped out onto the ledge, lost his balance, and fell. He sued to recover maintenance and cure.
The district court awarded maintenance and cure and the Second Circuit Court of Appeals disallowed it. Reversing, the Supreme Court noted:
"The Convention was a product of the International Labor Organization. Its purpose was to provide an international system of regulation of the shipowner's liability. That international system was aimed at providing a reasonable average which could be applied in any country. . . . The aim indeed was not to change materially American standards but to equalize operating costs by raising the standards of member nations to the American level."
As of 2023, 18 states have ratified the convention. It has subsequently been denounced by 13 of those ratifying states.
| Country | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 11 Apr 1938 | Not in force |
| Belize | 15 Jul 2005 | Not in force |
| Bulgaria | 29 Dec 1949 | Not in force |
| Djibouti | 03 Aug 1978 | Not in force |
| Egypt | 04 Aug 1982 | In Force |
| France | 19 Jun 1947 | Not in force |
| Greece | 19 Jun 1968 | Not in force |
| Italy | 22 Oct 1952 | Not in force |
| Liberia | 9 May 1960 | Not in force |
| Luxembourg | 15 Feb 1991 | Not in force |
| Mexico | 15 Sep 1939 | In Force |
| Morocco | 14 Mar 1958 | Not in force |
| Panama | 04 Jun 1971 | Not in force |
| Peru | 04 Apr 1962 | In Force |
| Spain | 30 Nov 1971 | Not in force |
| Tunisia | 14 Apr 1970 | Not in force |
| Turkey | 17 Mar 2005 | In Force |
| United States of America | 29 Oct 1938 | In Force |