THIRD DIVISION
(Supplemental)
STATEMENT OF CLAIM: Claim of the System Committee of the Brotherhood that:
EMPLOYES' STATEMENT OF FACTS: The Carrier bulletined a welder helper's position and, upon receiving no bids on said position, it promoted a former Virginian Railway section laborer, Claimant Lafferty, thereto. Instead of paying Claimant Lafferty the welder helper's rate of pay as provided for within the Norfolk and Western Maintenance of Way Employes' Agreement, it paid him the lower rate provided for within the former Virginian Maintenance of Way Employes' Agreement.
On April 5, 1966, a claim was filed with Bandmaster Terry requesting that, beginning sixty (60) days prior to April 5, 1966, the claimant be paid the difference between what he was then receiving at the former Virginian rate of pay for welder helpers and what he should have received at the Norfolk and Western welder helper's rate of pay.
OPINON OF BOARD: The record discloses that this claim was, after having been timely rejected by Carrier's Roadmaster, appealed to the General Manager on 22 April, 1966, but was not denied by him until 5 August, 1966. Section 1(a), Rule 34, places a time-limit of 60 days on such denials and, clearly, Carrier failed to meet this requirement. Therefore, the Carrier is liable to the date of the late disallowance without regard to the merits but subsequent to the date of the late disallowance the case should be considered on its merits. See National Disputes Committee Decision No. 16.
With regard to the facts on the merits, Carrier advertised a new position of welder helper by bulletin but after receiving no applications, appointed claimant, a former Virginian Railway section laborer who held no seniority as a welder helper. Claimant was compensated under the Virginian-Maintenance of Way Agreement instead of the Norfolk and Western-Maintenance of Way Agreement which latter agreement provided for a higher rate.
The dispute here centers on the words "new employes" used in the 27 May, 1960, Implementing Agreement which agreement resulted when the former Virginian Railway was merged with the Norfolk and Western Railway prior thereto. Sections 6 and 7 of said agreement provide the following:
The Organization contends that a "new employe" is not only a new biree but in addition, that a "new employe" is also one who acquires seniority in a classification where he had not previously held seniority.
With the Organization's interpretation, we cannot agree. It is a well founded and recognized rule of contract construction that words must be given their ordinary and popular meaning. See Award 7343. We cannot find, in the language of Sections 6 or 7, that the parties used the words "new employes" to mean anything other than their common and popular meaning, i.e., new hirers. Therefore, the claim from the date of the late denial, as hercinbefore mentioned, must be denied.
FINDINGS: The Third Division of the Adjustment Board, 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;