NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
THIRD DIVISION
Dudley E. Whiting, Referee
PARTIES TO DISPUTE:
THE ORDER OF RAILROAD TELEGRAPHERS
THE NEW YORK, NEW HAVEN AND HARTFORD
RAILROAD COMPANY
STATEMENT OF CLAIM:
Claim of the General Committee of
The
Order of Railroad Telegraphers on The New York, New Haven and Hartford
Railroad that:
(1) The terms of the agreement between the parties have been
and are being violated when, effective November 7, 1949, the Carrier
arbitrarily declared abolished the first trick signal station operator
position at Kingston, Rhode Island, and consolidated said position
with the agent's position at the same location, requiring the incumbent of the agent's position to divide his time between the signal
station and the agency station during his tour of duty, resulting in
the suspension of work during regular hours on both positions. ,
(2) The employes, including the regular assigned relief employes, who were improperly removed from their assignments at the
Signal Station, Kingston, Rhode Island, and all other employes resultingly displaced from their assignments, shall be restored thereto
and be compensated in full in accordance with the provisions of
Article 29 for each day beginning with the date their assignments
were improperly declared abolished, or the date they were displaced,
and continuing each day thereafter until they are restored to their
respective assignments; and,
(3) A11 other employes who were deprived of work as a result
of this violative act shall be paid for all wages lost.
EMPLOYEE' STATEMENT OF FACTS:
An agreement, referred to
herein as the Telegraphers' Agreement bearing effective date of June 15,
1947 as to rates of pay and working conditions is in effect between the
parties to this dispute. Copies are on file with the National Railroad Adjustment Board.
Prior to November 7, 1949, the Carrier maintained at Kingston. Rhode
Island four positions covered by the Telegraphers' Agreement. These positions were shown in the agreement at page 46 as follows:
[1017
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formed by employes covered by the same Agreement, there must
be a total abolition of all tricks, and trick positions, and the work
thereof, at the particular point involved. Carriers do not, and cannot efficiently, operate their lines in such manner, and we do not
believe that it was ever contemplated, by any party to the controlling Agreement, that they would be required to do."
CONCLUSION:
Carrier submits the decisions of the Board, particularly
Award 911, warrant the assignment of duties involved in this case. It therefore requests that the claim be denied.
OPINION OF
HOARD: In the wage scale of the Agreement between
the parties effective September 1, 1949, appears the following:
Rates Hourly or
Location Occupation
No. of Positions Monthly With
r
Kingston Agent 1 $1.771
Kingston S. S. Operators 3 1.57
On November 3, 1949, effective November 7, 1949, the Carrier unilaterally discontinued the position of S. S. Operator on the first trick and
assigned the duties of such Operator to the Agent, whose hours of work
were changed to cover the hours of the former first trick S. S. Operator.
In our Award No. 434, between the same parties, we held that to
eliminate or combine positions, which have been negotiated into the agreement, the Carrier is obligated to follow the procedures established by the
rules for the modification of the agreement except when such action is due
to the elimination of the work and duties for which the position was
created or to a change in the service required since the position was negotiated into the agreement.
r
In this case the work and duties of the first trick S. S. Operator were
not eliminated but were admittedly assigned to the Agent, and there is no
evidence of any change in the services required from September 1, 1949
to November 3, 1949. The Carrier exhibited and relied upon evidence of a
decline in business which however indicates that such state existed and was
known prior to September 1, 1949 as well as between then and November
1949. It also exhibited and relied upon evidence of the seasonal character
of the work requirements at Kingston but such fact was equally evident
in prior years.
The Carrier contends that our Award No. 911 is controlling of decision
here but in that case there were very substantial changes in the services
required between the negotiations of the position of Towerman into the
Agreement and the abolition thereof.
Moreover Article 29 of the Agreement between the parties provides in
part as follows:
"Regularly assigned employes will not be required to work at
other than their regular positions, except in cases of emergency."
Here the position of Agent was not changed to Agent-Operator so the Agent
was obviously required to work at other than his regular position commencing November 7, 1949.
As we held in Award No. 5375, among many others, we should not
direct the reestablishment of the position involved so that Carrier may have
the opportunity to reassign the work in conformity with the agreement,
negotiate thereon with the Organization or act in accordance with subsequent changes.
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:
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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 Carrier violated the agreement.
AWARD
Claim sustained except the request for restoration of the position and
assignments thereto which is denied.
NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
BY
Order of Third Division
ATTEST: A. I. Tummon
Acting Secretary
Dated at Chicago, Illinois, this 3rd day of October, 1951.