U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS ADMINISTRA'rION 

Office of Workers' Compensation Programs Washington. D.C 20211 

SEP 2 51974 No. 19 ·@Y 

NOTICE TO INSURANCE CARRIERS, SELF-INSURED EMPLOYERS .t; 

UNDER THE LONGSHOREMEN'S AND HARBOR WORKERS' COMPENSATION 

ACT, AND OTHER INTERESTED PERSONS 

Subject: Maximum and Minimum Compensation Rates Effective 

October 1, 1974; Adjustments of Permanent Total 

Disability and Death Cases 

Section 6(b) (3) of the Longshoremen's and Harbor Workers' 

Compensation Act provides that prior to October 1 of each 

year, based on the national average weekly wage for the three 

calendar quarters ending June 30 of that year, the Secretary 

of Labor shall determine the national average weekly wage to be 

applicable for the period beginning October 1 of that year and 

ending with September 30 of the next year. It has been determined that the national average weekly wage applicable for the 

period beginning October 1, 1974, and ending September 30, 

1975, is $149.14. 

Section 6(b) (1) (Cl provides that for the period October 1, 1974 

through September 30, 1975 the maximum rate of compensation under 

this Act shall not exceed 175 percent of the national average 

weekly wage. The maximum compensation rate for total disability 

for injuries sustained during this period and for benefits payable for deaths occurring within this period is $261.00 (175 

percent of $149,14). 

Compensation .for disability or death benefits subject to this 

maximum should be paid at 66-2/3 percent of the employee's 

average weekly wage as determined under section 10, subject 

to the foregoing limitation. In death cases where there is 

a widow and one or more children, and 66-2/3 percent of the 

employee's wages exceed the maximum allowable, the total benefit shall be limited to $261.00, the widow being entitled to 

three-fourths of that amount and the child or children to onefourth of the total benefit, share and share alike. 

The minimum compensation rate payable for disability incurred 

in the above period is $74.57 per week, fifty percent of the 

national average weekly wage. However, if an employee's average 

weekly wage is less than this amount, he receives his entire 

average weekly wage as compensation for total disability. 

Im:tuJ, your aJJru,, ZIP coJ,, and ftl, m,mb,r on all correspondmc, 
In computing death benefits covered by this applicable period, 

the average weekly wage of the deceased employee shall be considered to have been not less than $149.14 per week, but total 

weekly benefits shall not exceed the average weekly wage of the 

deceased. 

The foregoing maximum and minJ.Inum rates do not apply to employees 

covered by the Nonappropriated Fund Instrumentalities Act. · The maximum and minimum rates for those employees change when~ 

ever Federal employees' pay rates change. 

In accordance with section lO(f) of the Act, effective October l, 

1974 compensation or death benefits payable for permanent total 

disability or death arising out of injuries sustained during 

the period from October l, 1973 through September 30, 1974, 

are to be increased by 6.26 percent, the percentage by which 

the national average weekly wage of $149.14 (effective October l, 

1974) exceeds the previous national average weekly wage of 

$140.36 (effective October l, 1973 through September 30, 1974). 

The weekly compensation after adjustment shall be fixed at the 

nearest dollar, and no adjustment of less than $1 shall be made. 

In no event shall compensation for death benefits be reduced. 

District offices of the Office of Workers' Comp~nsation will 

advise beneficiaries receiving payments and insurance. carriers 

and self-insured a~ployers of the amount of adjustment due in 

each case. 

Field or district offices of insurance carriers or self-insured 

employers paying benefits under the Longshoremen's and Harbor 

Workers' Co-capensation rlct, the District of Columbia Compensation 

Act, the Defense Base Act, the Outer Continental Shelf Lands 

Act and the Nonappropriated Fund Instrumentalities Act will 

soon receive specific instrl).ctions from the Office of Workers'. 

Compensation Program.s' (OWCP) District Offices for making the 

adjustments under section lO(f) and should begin paying at the 

new benefit levels as soon as possible. 

If the section lO(f) increase is applied to a case previously 

adjusted under section lO(h) (l) of the Act, an insurance 

carrier or ~~player is to be reimbursed for all the adjusting 

payment under reimbursement procedures which have been 

established by the OWCP National Office. In case of .questions 

about implementing these mandatory adjustments, any district 

office or the OWCP National Office may be contacted. 

~).~ 

,JOHN E. STOCKER 

Associate Director for Longshore 

and Harbor Workers' Compensation