NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
THIRD DIVISION
BROTHERHOOD OF RAILROAD SIGNALMEN OF
AMERICA
STATEMENT OF CLAIM: "That Signalmen E. Brummerhop, R. B. Wiggins, and Signal Helpers C. E. Reaves and Roy Ogletree be paid expenses for time held away from their headquarters by direction of the Management October 9th to 22nd, inclusive, 1936."
EMPLOYES' STATEMENT OF FACTS: "Signalmen E. Brummerhop and R. B. Wiggins and Signal Helpers C. E. Reaves and Roy Ogletree were employed by the T. & N. O. Railroad as signal department employes under their respective classifications and assigned to work in a signal gang under the supervision of leading signalman R. B. Keller, with headquarters at what is known on the railroad as the old signal shop in Houston, Texas.
"On or about October 9, 1936, this gang was assigned the duties of renewing the storage batteries in service at an interlocking plant located at Virginia Point, which is also sometimes referred to as the causeway at Galveston. While performing these duties the employes above mentioned were required to remain at point of service and away from their regular assigned headquarters over night from October 9th to 22nd, inclusive, for which expense claims were denied."
EMPLOYES' POSITION: "It is the position of the organization that the employes involved in this claim were assigned regular headquarters at Houston, Texas, and when held away from that point over night are entitled to allowance of expenses for meals and lodging within the meaning and intent of the rules contained in the existing agreement governing rates of pay and working conditions of signal department employes of the Texas and New Orleans Railroad Company when said meals and lodging are not furnished by the Company.
"As stated above, these employes were assigned the duty of renewing the storage battery at the interlocking plant located at Virginia Point on the causeway between the mainland and Galveston Island. In preparing for this work an old box car, which at some time in the past had been in service as a bunk car, was used to transport the necessary tools and materials for the job from Houston to Virginia Point. The work of loading said tools and materials into the old bunk car was performed by these employes or at least a part of them. At the time these tools and materials were loaded into the car for shipment there was no indication that the management intended this car to be used for living quarters by these employes while the work was being done at Virginia Point. This is very evident as the car was not equipped for that purpose nor was there any effort made at the time to so equip it.
There is in evidence an agreement between the parties effective May 3rd, 1924.
OPINION OF BOARD: Section 3 of Article 2 of the current agreement, reading:
contemplates that Signal Department employes covered by this Agreement shall have a definite railroad point designated as their headquarters and home station from which their working time shall start and end during their regular work days. The permission contained in this rule for setting up more than one point has no application in this case.
By the evidence in the record it is reasonably shown that the headquarters or home station of the employes involved in this dispute was the old Signal Shop at Houston, Texas. The Carrier, by ordering the employes to consider Car T&NO 2075 located at Virginia Point as their headquarters and home station during the time this construction and repair gang was renewing the storage batteries at the lift bridge on the Galveston Causeway, changed the headquarters and home station of these employes without bulletining such change, a practice since adopted in like circumstances and reasonably requisite under the rules.
Therefore employes were not assigned to "Camp Cars" as contemplated by Section 15 of Article 2 of the current agreement and shall be compensated for expenses incurred for meals and lodging while working at Virginia Point, Texas, from Oct. 9th to 22nd, inclusive, 1936.
FINDINGS: The Third Division of the Adjustment Board, after giving the parties to this dispute due notice of hearing thereon, and upon the whole record and all the evidence, finds and holds:
That the carrier and the employes involved in this dispute are respectively carrier and employes within the meaning of the Railway Labor Act, as approved June 21, 1934;
That this Division of the Adjustment Board has jurisdiction over the dispute involved herein; and
That the employes involved shall be compensated for the expenses incurred for meals and lodging while working at Virginia Point, Texas, Oct. 9th to 22nd, inclusive, 1936.