46 U.S.C. § 10317

Loss of lien and right to wages

A master or seaman by any agreement other than one provided for in this chapter may not forfeit the master’s or seaman’s lien on the vessel or be deprived of a remedy to which the master or seaman otherwise would be entitled for the recovery of wages. A stipulation in an agreement inconsistent with this chapter, or a stipulation by which a seaman consents to abandon a right to wages if the vessel is lost, or to abandon a right the seaman may have or obtain in the nature of salvage, is void.

( Pub. L. 98–89 , Aug. 26, 1983 , 97 Stat. 568 .)