Form 1 NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
SECOND DIVISION
Award No. 14000
Docket No. 13874
09-2-NRAB-00002-080024
The Second Division consisted of the regular members and in addition Referee
Joseph M. Fwhen award was
rendered.
(International
Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
PARTIES TO
Due:
(BNSF Railway Company
STATEMEM OF CLAII~L
"I. That in violation of the c~ontro~ing ~greeat, Rule 12 in
pnficuer, the BNSF Railway Company etard
is
the recaff of
Ms. Lori Rice by delaying her
returning to work until February
2,2007, instead afreturning her on January 19,2007; the release
data frvm her personl physician.
2: Accordingly, the BNSF Railway Company be ordered
to
promptly make Electronic Technician Lori Rice whole by
prav-d'mg compensation for
January 19, 20, 21, 22, 269 27, 28,
and
29, 2007 in
the amount of 10
hours
at the pro rata rate
for each of the aforementioned dates for which she would have
rendered service if the carrier had returned her to work in a
timely manner."
FINDINGS:
The Second Division of the Adjustment Board, upon the whole record and all
the evidence, finds that:
The carrier or carriers and the employee or employees involved in this dispute
are respectively carrier and employee 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.
Form 1 Award No. 14000
Page 2 Docket No. 13874
09-2-NRAB-00002-080024
Parties to said dispute were given due notice of hearing thereon.
The Claimant was on an extended medical leave. While the record does not
state when the Claimant began this medical leave, it is stipulated that the Claimant
was off four work in excess of six months. Under the Crier's poky for reporting to
work after absence due to
a medical the Claimant's treating phpsiciant was
required to come a Medical Status Form reconumending when the Claimant was
medically able to return
to
work with or without restrictions. In addition, because the
Claimant had been absent for more than six months, she was required to pass a
"Return to Service Test." The Organization did not challenge the Carrier's right to
reqo. e
sums
rindical dOCumentation prior to the GIVduUMt's rR'rsra to work, nor
the C=miWs
right to
rapd<e the Clohoomt
to ~ to and
pass the retoro-to-mvioe
emminadon.
Tire gravaauen of this dispute is whether there was an nnreasouable delay in
the Claimant to service after her treaft phyddan relmsed her to return to
work
oft
Jay 19, 20®'x, and whether such
delay
wa: attn'batable to the Cbdsmmt
or to
the Carrier. In making this detlrminatioo, tire Board ooofed itself to
docw~ntstion that was suppBed during the handft of the case on the property as
opposed to onsu~stantiated statements of by eit~r party.
The initial fact that must be determined is when the Claimant's treating
physician sent the completed Medical Status Form to the Carrier's Medical
Department recommending that the Claimant be returned to work on January 19,
2007 with no restrictions. The Carrier stated in its August 20 letter to the General
Chairman that the Claimant's treatment provider informed the Medical Department
on January 15 that the Claimant would be able to return to service and that the
Medical Department received the doctor's report on January 20, 2007, which report
contained the January 19 recommended return date. The Carrier states that the
medical Department approved the Claimant's return to duty on January 24, 2007, at
which time the Claimant's Supervisor was advised to arrange for the Return to
Service test. The Carrier, based on this timeline, argues that the four days between
January 20 and January 24, 2007, is not an unusual amount of time to review the
Claimant's several medical conditions and determine her fitness for duty.
However, during the on-property handling, the Organization supplied the
Carrier with documentation establishing that on January 9, 2007, the Claimant's
Form 1 Award Nil 14000
Page 3 Docket No. 13874
09-2-NRAB-00002-080024
physician faxed the completed Medical Release Form to both CareSys, the Carrier's
medical provider, as well as to the Carrier's Medical Department. Even disregarding
the date of transmission, it appears that at least five days went by before any further
action was initiated by the Medical Department.
The Board will now adds the time InW between January, 24, when the
Medical Department cleared the Claimant to return to work, and February, 2, 2007,
when the Claimant returned to services As noted above, the Carrier had the right to
have the Claimant take and pass fts return-to-duty examination prior to allowing her
to return to work. The required examination was arranged for and conducted on
January 26, 2007 (within two days) which certainly was not dilatory. While the
Organization ~ that delay was caused by the Claimant's supervisor's iasisteuoe
on being
present at the tone the test was talon, there is
no proof offered to t this
allegation. Once tire Carrier received the results of the Claimant's return to-work
eaam~atloe on Febnmrp 1, the
Clmmant
was petmftted to return to work on the neat
day, February 2, 200?. There is nothing in the record to suggest that the time between
the Clslnnant's return-tv-duty
examination
and her actual return to duty was
uorasonaMe, nor in emess of the time that such proocss normally takes on thh
Based on a careW ezamroatioo of the record, the Board finds that the delay
between January 9 surd 15, 2007 was unreasonable
and contn`buted to the delay in
scheduling the Claimant's return-to-duty examination. Accordingly, the Board finds
that the Claimant should be compensated ten hours at the pro-rata rate for January
19, 20, 21 and 22, 2007, but that the balance of the claim remain denied
AWARD
Claim sustained in accordance with the Findings.
ORDER
This Board, after consideration of the dispute identified above, hereby orders
that an award favorable to the Claimant(s) be made. The Carrier is ordered to make
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Page 4 Docket No. 13874
09-2-NRAB-00002-080024
the Award effective on or before 30 days Mowing the postmark date the Award is
transmitted to the parties.
NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
By Order of Second Division
Dated at Chicago, Iltinols, this 9th day of April 2009.