Form 1 NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD Award No. 9571
SECOND DIVISION Docket No. 9780
2-B&M-CM-'83
The Second Division consisted of the regular members and in
addition Referee Eckehard Muessig when award was rendered.
(Brotherhood Railway Carmen of the United States and Canada
Parties to Dispute:
( Boston and Maine Corporation
Dispute: Claim of Employes:
1. That under the terms of Rule No. 31 of the current Agreement, Upgraded
Carman-Helper K. M. Cronin (hereinafter referred to as the Claimant)
was unjustly suspended and held out of service of the Boston and Maine
Corp. (hereinafter referred to as the Carrier) from February 20, 1981
to February 26, 1981, both dates inclusive, and was improperly assessed
12 Demerits as additional discipline.
2. That accordingly, the Carrier be ordered to compensate the Claimant for
five (5) days at the carmen's straight time rate of pay for the time lost
and remove the 12 demerits from the Claimants service record.
Findings:
The Second Division of the Adjustment Board, upon the whole record and all
the evidence, finds that:
The carrier or carriers and the employe or employes involved in this dispute
are respectively carrier and employe within the meaning of the Railway Labor Act
as approved June 21, 1934.
This Division of the Adjustment Board has jurisdiction over the dispute
involved herein.
Parties to said dispute waived right of appearance at hearing thereon.
The Claimant was notified to attend a hearing to determine the facts in
connection with a charge that he had improperly inspected a journal box on February
20, 1981. The journal box in question subsequently overheated and, as a result
thereof, completely burned out. Following the incident on February 20, 1981,
the Claimant was held out of service for five (5) days. The Organization contends
that the Claimant was withheld from service without sufficient cause and that the:
discipline of 12 demerits, assessed after the hearing, was improper.
Under any reasonable standard, failure to properly perform a required
inspection of a journal box is a very serious offense. In the instant case, Carrier,
prior to the incident under dispute, had issued two special instructions relative:
to the inspection of friction bearings on tank cars. The Claimant failed to
properly perform his duties even after he had been specifically notified to pay
particular attention to the journal boxes.
The authority to take an employee out of service after the occurrence of a
serious offense, when a prima facie case of wrongdoing has been established, pending
the final determination of the specific charge, is clear. Certainly, the seriousness
Form 1 Award No. 9571
Page 2 Docket No. 9780
2-B&M-CM-'83
of the incident is not in question and the record indicates that a fair and
proper investigation was held. The claim is therefore denied.
A W A R D
Claim denied.
NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
By Order of Second Division
Attest: Acting Executive Secretary
National Railroad Adjustment Board
By
Rosemrie Brasch - Administrative Assistant
Dated at Chicago, Illinois, this 13th day of July, 1983.