NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
THIRD DIVISION Docket Number SG-19633
Irwin M. Lieberman, Referee
(Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen
PARTIES TO DISPUTE:
(Erie Lackawanna Railway Company
STATEMENT OF CLAIM: Claim of the General Committee of the Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen on the Erie Lackawanna Railway Company that:
(a) Carrier violated the Signalmen's Agreement, as amended, particularly Rule 60, when it arbitr
(b) Carrier be required to reinstate Richard Apostolik to his former
position in Signal Gang No. 52 with all employment rights restored, including
seniority, and pay him for all time lost as a result of the dismissal.
(Carrier's File: 177 Sig.)
OPINION OF BOARD: Claimant was employed by Carrier May 14, 1970. Claimant was
notified on July 2, 1970 that his application for employment
was disapproved, and he was dismissed. Petitioner urges that Carrier's action
was a violation of Rule 60 of the applicable Agreement in that Claimant was entitled to a hearing un
"An employee who has been in service more than thirty
(30) days will not be disciplined or dismissed without a fair
and impartial hearing
...."
The Carrier states that its action was proper under the terms of Rule
32, which reads in part:
"No seniority will be established by a new employee unless his employment application is approve
applications not disapproved within ninety (90) days will be
considered accepted."
The crux of Claimant's position is that an employee with more than
thirty days service (but less than ninety) must be afforded the opportunity
under Rule 60 to challenge the basis for the disapproval of his application.
In First Division Award 12027 we said: "It is the holding of this
Division that one temporarily employed pending the approval of an application
for employment does not come under the investigation rule". Along the same
lines, we said in Second Division Award 866 "Rule 17(a) relates to discipline,
suspension or discharge for some act of the employe after entering the service
of the carrier. This rule does not extend or purport to extend to an investigation of the qualificat
Award Number 19674 Page 2
Docket Number SG-19633
in Third Division Award 8536 we said: "...The meaning of this rule is that
a new emplo·,·ee is on a probationary status during the first ninety days, and
that he may be discharged within that period without recourse under the Agreement."
The meaning of the two Rules would appear to be clear; an employees
application for employment may be disapproved for any reason during his first
ninety days of employment, an.: tie has no recourse under Rule 60. It has been
well established by this Board that the Carrier has the right to determine the
pti;-sical and other qualifications of its employees during a probationary period without challenge.
than 30 days of service must be afforded an investigatory hearing and proper
"due process" under .!;tile 60, prior to disciplinary action.
i·I:·:Di::GS: The Third Division of the Adjustment Board, after giving the p
to this dispute due notice of hearing thereon, and upon the whole
reccrd 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 Agreement was not violated.
A 47 A R D
Claim denied.
NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
By Order of Third Division
ATT=ST:
C~ecutive Secretary
T)atad at Chicago, Illinois, this 23rd day of March 1973.