Social protection for people working at sea and in fishing

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The law regulates the Special Social Security Scheme for Sea Workers and defines who is included in it: from ship crew members to port dockworkers, net makers, shellfish gatherers and professional divers.
2. New groups are added, such as research personnel, fishery observers and security staff on board, and the term aquaculture is used for the first time, excluding workers in land-based aquaculture and recreational divers.
3. Workers are classified into three contribution groups based on ship size and how they are paid. Groups two and three can have correcting coefficients that reduce contributions, without affecting pension calculations.
4. The scheme covers the usual Social Security benefits (health care, disability, retirement, unemployment, maternity, among others) under general rules, and allows the retirement age to be lowered by up to ten years for very harsh jobs or jobs involving long family separation.
5. The Instituto Social de la Marina also manages specific protection beyond Social Security: pre-embarkation medical checkups, ship health inspections, assistance after shipwrecks, and maritime and health training.
6. The law repeals the 1974 text that regulated this special scheme and takes effect on the first day of the month after its publication, although several new provisions take effect on January 1, 2016.

Who it affects

• Crew members and technicians on merchant, fishing and pleasure vessels: They are covered by this special Social Security scheme.
• Port dockworkers and administrative staff of stevedoring companies: The law defines who counts as a dockworker and separates their treatment from administrative staff, who do not get retirement age reductions.
• Self-employed sea workers (shellfish gatherers, percebeiros, net makers, divers, aquaculture): They contribute as self-employed workers under this scheme.
• People who want to enter the maritime-fishing sector: They can receive maritime training and medical checkups from the Instituto Social de la Marina.

Words worth knowing

Retribuidos a la parte

Workers paid a share of the catch's value instead of a fixed wage.

Coeficientes correctores

Percentages that reduce the Social Security contribution base for certain groups.

Coeficientes reductores

Reductions that allow early retirement in very harsh or dangerous jobs.

TRB

Gross register tonnage, a measure of a ship's size.

Cese de actividad

Benefit similar to unemployment for self-employed people who stop working.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries