NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
THIRD DIVISION
(Supplemental)
Robert J. Ables, Referee
PARTIES TO DISPUTE:
BROTHERHOOD OF RAILROAD SIGNALMEN
THE BALTIMORE AND OHIO RAILROAD COMPANY
STATEMENT OF CLAIM: Claim of the General Committee of the
Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Company:
(a) That the Carrier has violated and continues to violate
the Signalmen's Agreement, when Signal Gang No. 3 was arbitrarily transferred from their headquarters in camp cars at Frederick
Jet., to other camp cars at Woodbine, Md., without moving the
camp cars to which regularly assigned.
(b) That Foreman M. A. Walters, Signalmen S. I. Legg, T. D.
Younkins and R. E. O'Brien, each be allowed 1 hour travel time
at straight time rate each day, in accordance with the Rules, commencing June 1, 1959, to continue so long as this violation exists, to compensate them for traveling outside working hours from
Frederick Jet., to Woodbine, Md., and return.
(c) That Mr. M. A. Walters be allowed automobile expense
at 6 cents per mile for 47 miles traveling between Frederick Jet.,
and Woodbine, Md., each day and return, commencing 1-5-11-1723-29, and subsequent days that he drives his automobile to work
at Woodbine, so long as this violation continues.
(d) That Mr. S. I. Legg be allowed automobile expense at
6 cents per mile for 47 miles traveling between Frederick Jet.,
and Woodbine, Md., and return each day commencing June 2-8-1224-30, and subsequent days that he drives his automobile to work
at Woodbine, so long as this violation continues.
(e) That Mr. T. D. Younkins be allowed automobile expense
at 6 cents per mile for 47 miles traveling between Frederick Jet.,
and Woodbine, Md., and return each day commencing June 3-9-1519-25, and subsequent days that he drives his automobile to work
at Woodbine, so long as this violation continues.
[il
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(f) That Mr. R. E. O'Brien be allowed automobile expense at
6 cents per mile for 47 miles traveling between Frederick Jet.,
and Woodbine, Md., and return each day commencing June 4-10-1622-26, and subsequent days that he drives his automobile to work
at Woodbine, so long as this violation continues.
EMPLOYES' STATEMENT OF FACTS: The Claimants in this dispute
were regular assignees to positions in Signal Gang No. 3 with headquarters in camp cars located at Frederick Junction, Maryland. Signal Gang No. 2
with headquarters in camp cars was also located at Frederick Junction,
Maryland.
On June 1, 1959, Signal Gang No. 3 was transferred to Woodbine, Maryland, a point some 20 miles East of Frederick Junction. The camp cars to
which Signal Gang No. 3 was regularly assigned at Frederick Junction were
not moved with the gang to Woodbine from Frederick Junction, and the Carrier assigned Signal Gang No. 3 to other camp cars which were located at
Woodbine.
In view of the Carrier's action in arbitrarily transferring Signal Gang
No. 3 from their regular assigned camp car headquarters at Frederick Junction to other camp cars at Woodbine, claims were filed in behalf of the
Claimants by Local Chairman D. L. Esworthy for one hour each at the
straight time rate for each day they were required to travel outside of their
regular working hours from their regular assigned camp car headquarters
at Frederick Junction, to Woodbine and return, in addition to automobile
expenses incurred as a result of being required to travel from Frederick
Junction, to Woodbine and back, each day.
The claims were filed with Mr. J. H. Lindsay, Division Engineer, and
denied by him on August 14, 1959. On August 25 19'59, General Chairman
H. C. Guscott wrote Division Engineer Lindsay and advised him that it was
the desire of the Local Committee to progress the claims further and, therefore, he desired a conference on the matter.
Subsequently, on September 10, 1959, a conference was held between
General Chairman Guscott and Division Engineer Lindsay at which time
the following Memorandum of Conference was drafted:
"MEMORANDUM OF CONFERENCE
BETWEEN: THE BALTIMORE AND OHIO RAILROAD
COMPANY AND THE BROTHERHOOD OF RAILROAD
SIGNALMEN OF AMERICA, SEPTEMBER 10, 1959
Present at Conference:
H. C. Guscott, General Chairman,
Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen of America
G. A. DeLozier, Vice Chairman,
Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen of America
J. H. Lindsay, Division Engineer,
B&O Railroad
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ganization attempted, but failed, to have this rule changed through
negotiations.
Sections 14 and 16 of Article II makes no difference between
the performance of work within an employe's home seniority district and a foreign district. This Board cannot by interpretation find
such a distinction. The letter Agreement of the parties dated March
4, 1943, confirming their understanding of the proper application
of these identical Sections contains no limitation in its Preamble to
the matter of the performance of work on the employe's home seniority district. Section 2 of this letter Agreement does contain
such a limitation, but related specifically, however, only to the procedure to be followed in selecting the employes to be assigned to
this work. Section 4 of the same document, after referring to
Section 14 and 16 of Article II, states: 'It being understood that
the camp cars furnished them at the point to which sent need
not necessarily be those occupied by the signal gang from which
they are detached.' The record does not show that this letter
Agreement was ever abrogated. Even if it be assumed, for purpose
of discussion, that this letter Agreement of March 4, 1943, was intended to be limited only to performance of work in the employe's
home seniority district, the Board in constructing the language of
the effective Agreement dated February 1, 1946, cannot find that
the parties reasonably intended that while the car occupied need
not be the particular car, while work is done in the Missouri Division, the home seniority district, it must be the identical car if
work is done in the Illinois Division, a foreign district."
Thus this Division expressly overruled the organization's contention, first
of all, that the claimants had been assigned to certain camp cars, and, secondly, that "these particular camp cars" should have been made available
to the claimants. The Board held in effect that there were no assignments to
particular camp cars and that there was no requirement in the rules that
"particular camp cars" should be made available to the claimants. It will be
observed, therefore, that a similar issue has already been decided before this
Division.
CARRIER'S SUMMARY:
Carrier submits that in this case there is no
valid claim coming from employes under the Signalmen's Agreement. This
claim at all its parts is wholly without merit, and should be denied. Carrier
respectfully requests that this Division so rule and that the claim in its
entirety be denied.
(Exhibits not reproduced.)
OPINION OF BOARD:
To sustain this claim we would have to find
that the Carrier violated Rule 41 (c) of the Agreement when it did not move
the specific camp cars from one headquarters for a signal gang to another
headquarters but instead provided equally good camp cars at the new headquarters.
Such a construction of the rule would be straining good sense.
FINDINGS:
The Third Division of the Adjustment Board, upon the whole
record and all the evidence, finds and holds:
That the parties waived oral
hearing;
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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 Agreement was not violated.
AWARD
Claim denied.
NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
By Order of THIRD DIVISION
ATTEST: S. H. Schulty
Executive Secretary
Dated at Chicago, Illinois, this 15th day of December 1964.