For injured Port of Houston workers, LHWCA disability benefits usually turn on three issues: your average weekly wage before the injury, whether you are classified as temporarily or permanently disabled, and whether your injury is a scheduled loss or a non-scheduled loss based on reduced earning capacity.
For Port of Houston longshoremen, dock workers, crane operators, and other harbor workers, getting those numbers right can mean the difference between fair income replacement and a claim that is underpaid from the start.
Unlike Texas state workers' compensation, LHWCA claims are governed by federal rules administered by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs. The formulas, rates, and dispute procedures are distinct, and misunderstanding any one of them may cost an injured port worker significant compensation over the life of a claim.
Key Takeaways: How LHWCA Pay Is Calculated for Port of Houston Injuries
- Many LHWCA disability benefits are tied to two-thirds of the worker’s average weekly wage, but some benefits are based on lost earning capacity, and federal maximum and minimum rates may also apply depending on the type of benefit
- The maximum weekly compensation rate for injuries occurring between October 1, 2025, and September 30, 2026, is $2,082.70
- Average weekly wage under Section 10 of the LHWCA uses three different calculation methods depending on the worker's employment pattern in the year before the injury
- Scheduled injuries to specific body parts pay a fixed number of weeks, while non-scheduled injuries are based on actual or projected lost earning capacity
- Employers and insurance carriers frequently dispute average weekly wage figures and disability classifications to reduce long-term benefit payments
How Average Weekly Wage Is Calculated Under the LHWCA
Every Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA) disability payment starts with one number: the injured worker's average weekly wage. Section 10 of the LHWCA establishes three methods for calculating this figure, and the method that applies depends on how consistently the worker was employed before the injury.
Section 10(a): When the Worker Was Employed for Substantially the Whole Year
For Port of Houston workers who worked in the same employment during substantially the whole year before the injury, Section 10(a) generally uses the worker’s average daily wage multiplied by 260 for a five-day worker or 300 for a six-day worker, then divides that figure by 52 to reach the average weekly wage. This straightforward formula applies only when the worker had steady employment without significant gaps.
Overtime, shift differentials, and premium pay all factor into the total. The definition of wages generally includes all earnings, including overtime, Guaranteed Annual Income, and Container Royalty Payments that longshore workers sometimes earn. At high-volume terminals like Bayport and Barbours Cut, where overtime hours may fluctuate seasonally, correctly capturing every earning category matters.
Section 10(b): When Employment Was Not Consistent
Many port workers experience gaps in employment due to seasonal shipping fluctuations, layoffs between contracts, or work performed for multiple stevedoring companies.
For those with irregular work patterns or periods of unemployment, Section 10(b) examines the earnings of similar workers in the same employment class to provide a representative earnings figure. The total is divided by the number of days worked, then multiplied by 260 for a five-day worker or 300 for a six-day worker, and the result is divided by 52 to produce the average weekly wage.
Section 10(c): The Catch-All for Unusual Circumstances
When neither Section 10(a) nor 10(b) produces a fair result, Section 10(c) allows a broader analysis. This provision considers the injured worker's previous earnings, the earnings of similar workers in comparable roles, and other factors that reasonably represent annual earning capacity.
Why Average Weekly Wage Disputes Are Common at the Port of Houston
Port of Houston longshoremen often work shifting schedules across multiple terminals and stevedoring companies. A crane operator at Bayport may also pick up shifts at Barbours Cut or private wharves along the Ship Channel. Seasonal volume swings in containerized shipping create weeks of heavy overtime followed by lighter periods.
Each of these patterns gives an insurance carrier an opening to argue that the average weekly wage should be lower. Undercounting overtime, excluding premium pay, or selecting a calculation period that includes seasonal downtime may reduce the AWW by hundreds of dollars per week, and that reduction compounds across every disability check for the life of the claim.
The Four Types of LHWCA Disability Benefits
The LHWCA provides for four types of disability: temporary partial, temporary total, permanent partial, and permanent total. Each classification carries a different compensation formula, and the classification assigned to a worker's condition may change as recovery progresses.
Temporary Total Disability (TTD) Benefits
Temporary total disability applies when an injured port worker cannot perform any work while recovering. TTD compensation is generally two-thirds of the employee's average weekly wage, subject to minimum and maximum amounts. Benefits continue as long as the worker remains totally unable to work due to the injury.
For a Houston longshoreman earning $1,800 per week before the injury, TTD benefits would be $1,200 per week. For a worker earning $3,500 per week, benefits would be capped at the current federal maximum of $2,082.70 per week.
Temporary Partial Disability (TPD) Benefits
Temporary partial disability applies when an injured worker returns to lighter duty at reduced pay while still recovering. TPD compensation is generally paid at two-thirds of the employee's loss of earning capacity, calculated based on the difference between the average weekly wage and what the employee can earn after the injury.
If a dock worker's pre-injury average weekly wage was $1,500 and the worker returns to a reduced role earning $900 per week, TPD benefits would equal two-thirds of the $600 difference, or $400 per week. Temporary partial disability benefits cannot exceed five years.
Permanent Total Disability (PTD) Benefits
Permanent total disability is the most significant classification under the LHWCA. It applies when an injury permanently prevents the worker from performing any gainful employment. Benefits are paid at two-thirds of the average weekly wage during the continuance of the disability.
Loss of both hands, both arms, both feet, both legs, both eyes, or any two of these is presumed to constitute permanent total disability unless there is conclusive proof to the contrary. In all other cases, permanent total disability is determined based on the facts.
Permanent total disability benefits are subject to annual Section 10(f) increases tied to national average weekly wage changes, subject to the statutory cap on the annual adjustment.
Permanent Partial Disability (PPD) Benefits
Permanent partial disability applies after a worker reaches maximum medical improvement and retains some permanent impairment but can still work in some capacity. In a permanent partial disability longshore claim, the value of benefits often turns on whether the injury is scheduled or non-scheduled.
How Do Scheduled Injury Benefits Work Under the LHWCA?
Scheduled injuries involve specific body parts listed in Section 908(c) of the LHWCA. For each listed body part, the law assigns a fixed number of weeks of compensation paid at two-thirds of the worker's average weekly wage.
The Federal Schedule for Permanent Partial Disability
Common scheduled injuries and their assigned compensation periods include:
- Arm lost: 312 weeks of compensation
- Leg lost: 288 weeks of compensation
- Hand lost: 244 weeks of compensation
- Foot lost: 205 weeks of compensation
- Eye lost: 160 weeks of compensation
- Hearing loss in one ear: 52 weeks
- Hearing loss in both ears: 200 weeks
These week totals represent full loss. For partial loss of use, compensation is proportional to the degree of impairment. A longshoreman with a 25 percent loss of use of a leg, for example, would receive 25 percent of 288 weeks, or 72 weeks, of compensation at two-thirds of the average weekly wage.
Scheduled benefits are paid regardless of whether the worker actually loses wages. However, they also cap recovery at the assigned number of weeks.
What Happens When an Injury Is Not on the Schedule?
Non-scheduled injuries, covered under Section 908(c)(21), include back injuries, neck injuries, internal organ damage, and other conditions not tied to a specific body part listed in the schedule. For non-scheduled injuries, compensation is two-thirds of the difference between the worker's average weekly wage and the worker's wage-earning capacity after the injury, paid for the duration of the disability.
Wage-earning capacity reflects what the injured worker could reasonably earn given permanent restrictions, vocational qualifications, age, and the local labor market. For a Houston longshoreman who earned $2,000 per week operating cranes and now has permanent lifting restrictions limiting them to light-duty work at $800 per week, the non-scheduled PPD benefit would be two-thirds of the $1,200 difference, or $800 per week, for as long as the partial disability continues.
Insurance carriers frequently dispute these figures, pointing to theoretical job openings, vocational assessments, or labor market surveys to argue the worker could earn more than current wages reflect. These disputes may lead to a formal hearing before a U.S. Department of Labor administrative law judge after the OWCP’s informal claims process.
How Do Port of Houston Workers Prove Lost Wages After an Injury?
Building a strong LHWCA disability benefits claim starts with documenting earnings before the injury occurred. Port of Houston workers may strengthen their average weekly wage calculations by preserving several types of records.
- Pay stubs, tax returns, and W-2 forms from the 52 weeks before the injury establish the baseline earning figure that drives every benefit calculation
- Overtime and premium pay documentation confirms that shift differentials, holiday pay, and overtime hours appear in the records submitted to the insurance carrier
- Earnings records from multiple employers cover workers who held shifts at different terminals or worked for more than one stevedoring company during the lookback period
- Work schedules, dispatch records, and union hiring hall logs demonstrate the worker's typical employment pattern and earning capacity at the time of injury
Gaps or inconsistencies in any of these records give insurance carriers room to argue for a lower average weekly wage. Organizing wage documentation early, before the carrier locks in a number, may help prevent underpayment disputes down the line.
FAQs About LHWCA Disability Benefits Calculation in Houston
Are LHWCA disability benefits based on gross pay or net pay?
LHWCA average weekly wage calculations use gross earnings, not take-home pay. Taxes, union dues, and benefit deductions are not subtracted before calculating the average weekly wage. LHWCA disability benefits are not subject to federal income taxes, which means the two-thirds replacement rate often comes closer to actual take-home pay than the fraction suggests.
Does overtime count toward LHWCA disability benefits?
In many longshore cases, the wage calculation may include overtime and other qualifying earnings, which is why payroll records, union records, and compensation history matter so much. For Port of Houston workers who regularly work overtime during peak shipping seasons, making sure those hours are properly captured in the wage calculation is important.
What happens if my employer disputes my average weekly wage?
The employer's insurance carrier may challenge the average weekly wage figure by arguing for a different Section 10 calculation method, excluding certain pay categories, or using a lookback period that understates typical earnings. If any party disagrees with an OWCP recommendation regarding claims or benefit payments, a formal hearing before an administrative law judge may be requested. A Houston LHWCA attorney may help gather payroll records and present evidence supporting a fair wage calculation.
How much does LHWCA pay if I’m injured at the Port of Houston?
The amount depends on your average weekly wage under the LHWCA. Texas port workers covered by this federal law receive most disability benefits at two-thirds of their pre-injury average weekly wage. For injuries occurring between October 1, 2025, and September 30, 2026, weekly benefits cannot exceed $2,082.70 or fall below $520.68. Whether the final amount falls higher or lower within that range depends on whether the injury is scheduled or evaluated based on lost earning capacity.
How long do LHWCA disability benefits last?
Duration depends on the classification. Temporary total disability benefits continue as long as the worker remains unable to work. Temporary partial disability benefits cannot exceed five years. Permanent total disability benefits continue for the duration of the disability. Scheduled permanent partial disability benefits last for the number of weeks assigned to the injured body part, and non-scheduled PPD benefits continue for as long as the partial disability persists.
Can I receive LHWCA disability benefits and also file a third-party lawsuit?
LHWCA benefits and a Section 905(b) vessel negligence lawsuit address different sources of liability. An injured port worker may collect LHWCA disability and medical benefits from the employer's insurer while pursuing a separate tort claim against a vessel owner whose negligence contributed to the injury. However, the employer's insurance carrier may assert a lien against any third-party recovery.
Talk to a Houston Longshoreman Lawyer When Your LHWCA Benefits Don't Add Up
For many workers, disputed wage calculations directly affect Port of Houston injury compensation over the life of the claim. A few hundred dollars per week may not sound like much in isolation. Over two years of disability payments, it adds up to tens of thousands of dollars. Over a lifetime of permanent total disability, the gap between a correctly calculated benefit and an underpayment may reach six figures or more.
The Calderon Law Firm helps Port of Houston longshoremen, dock workers, and harbor workers review their LHWCA disability benefit calculations and push back when the numbers fall short. We answer phones 24/7, offer free case reviews in English and Spanish, and give every client the kind of honest, no-surprises communication that federal maritime claims demand.