Navy Yeomen (YN) — the enlisted rating responsible for performing administrative and clerical functions including correspondence preparation, personnel record maintenance, and administrative support — served both aboard naval vessels and at shore commands and administrative activities. Aboard ship, Yeomen worked in ship’s office spaces located in the ship’s interior construction; ashore, Yeomen worked in naval station administrative buildings. WWII-era and Cold War naval vessels incorporated asbestos-containing materials throughout their interior construction, including asbestos floor tile, asbestos insulation on overhead pipe runs, and asbestos-containing bulkhead construction materials in the enclosed office and administrative spaces where Yeomen worked. Naval station administrative buildings built during WWII and the Cold War similarly incorporated asbestos-containing floor tile, ceiling products, and pipe insulation in their construction. Yeomen accumulated background asbestos exposure from the asbestos-containing interior construction of the ships and shore facilities where they performed their administrative duties throughout their naval careers.

Shipboard Administrative Space Asbestos Exposure

YN ratings aboard ships worked in asbestos-containing office spaces:

  • Ship’s office interior construction — the ship’s office spaces aboard aircraft carriers, cruisers, amphibious vessels, and larger combatants where Yeomen worked were located within the ship’s interior construction using WWII-era and Cold War military construction materials. The overhead pipe runs serving ship’s service systems through administrative spaces used asbestos pipe covering, and the deck tile and overhead construction incorporated asbestos-containing materials consistent with the ship’s overall interior construction. Yeomen working in ship’s offices accumulated background asbestos exposure from the installed construction materials over the course of extended deployments

Shore Command Administrative Asbestos Exposure

YN ratings at shore commands worked in asbestos-containing buildings:

  • Naval station administrative building construction — the administrative buildings at naval stations, naval air stations, and naval training commands where Yeomen worked — including the administrative buildings at major installations such as Naval Station Norfolk, Naval Station San Diego, and similar installations — were constructed during WWII and the Cold War using military construction specifications with asbestos floor tile, asbestos ceiling products, and asbestos pipe insulation in the building mechanical systems. Yeomen assigned to shore commands for administrative duty accumulated background asbestos exposure from the asbestos-containing administrative building construction during their shore duty tours
  • Administrative building renovation exposure — naval station administrative buildings undergoing renovation and maintenance operations exposed Yeomen working in adjacent or involved spaces to asbestos fiber disturbed during the removal and replacement of asbestos-containing floor tile, ceiling materials, and pipe insulation during building renovation work

VA Claims for Yeomen

VA presumptive service connection under 38 CFR § 3.309(d) covers asbestos exposure aboard Navy vessels and at naval stations. Yeomen who served aboard naval vessels or at naval shore commands with asbestos-containing interior construction and have since been diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or asbestos-related lung cancer may qualify for VA disability benefits.