NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
Form 1 THIRD DIVISION Award No. 30040
Docket No. MS-29975
94-3-91-3-344
The Third Division consisted of the regular members and in
addition Referee Herbert L. Marx, Jr. when award was rendered.
(Joseph Russo
PARTIES TO DISPUTE:
(The Belt Railway Company of Chicago
STATEMENT OF CLAIM:
"The carrier violated the current working
agreement
by
denying my seniority rights. We
ask that the carrier allow me to exercise my
seniority
and
compensate me the difference of
the rate
of
pay, including over time (sic)
from claim date to the date the claim is
settled."
FINDINGS:
The Third Division of the Adjustment Board, upon the whole
record and all the evidence, finds that:
The carrier or carriers and the employe or employes involved
in this dispute are respectively carrier and employe within the
meaning of the Railway Labor Act as approved June 21, 1934.
This Division of the Adjustment Board has jurisdiction over
the dispute involved herein.
Parties to said dispute waived right of appearance at hearing
thereon.
Having been displaced from his position, the Claimant sought
to exercise his seniority to displace on the position of Valuation
Accountant. He was denied the opportunity to do so, as indicated
in a letter from the Chief Engineer, reading in part as follows:
"I have reviewed your file and find that your
educational background does not meet the
criteria deemed necessary for this position
nor does your work record indicate an adequate
knowledge of or exposure to the theories and
principles of accounting which are required
for these positions."
Form 1 Award No. 30040
Page 2 Docket No. MS-29975
94-3-91-3-344
The Claim contends that the Carrier acted in an "arbitrary and
capricious manner" in failing to give the Claimant the opportunity
to demonstrate his qualification for the position.
Relevant Rules are as follows:
"RULE 8 - PROMOTION BASIS
Employees covered by these rules shall be in
line for promotion. Promotion, assignment,
and displacement shall be based on seniority,
fitness and ability; fitness and ability being
sufficient, seniority shall prevail.
NOTE: The word 'sufficient' is intended to
more clearly establish the right of the senior
employee to bid in a new position or vacancy
where two or more employes have adequate fitness and ability."
"RULE 16 - TIME IN WHICH TO QUALIFY
(a) Employes entitled to bulletined positions
or exercising displacement rights will be
allowed thirty (30) calendar days in
which to qualify,..."
The established "Qualifications" for the position of Valuation
Accountant includes the following:
"B.S. with a major in accounting or equivalent
training and experience. Applicant must have
thorough knowledge and understanding of the
theory and principles of accounting, including
introductory, intermediate and advanced, cost
accounting and auditing principles."
There is no basis to show that these requirements are
unreasonable or prohibitive, given the content of the position's
responsibilities. The Carrier points out that the Claimant, while
holding a B.S. degree in marketing, successfully completed only one
course in accounting. As to his 19 years' experience with the
Carrier, the Claimant has held clerical assignments relating to
accounting for brief periods, but no actual accounting positions.
The right of the Carrier to make reasonable judgments as to an
employee's "fitness and ability" is well established. There is no
automatic right to a 30-day qualification period where it is
Form 1 Award
No.
30040
Page 3 Docket
No.
MS-29975
94-3-91-3-344
obvious, as here, that the employee does not have the underlying
prerequisites for the position.
Three previous Awards, involving the same parties, were
concerned with the same position. These are Third Division Awards
24478, 28646, and Public Law Board
No.
4247, Award 8. While these
involved different individuals with somewhat varying backgrounds,
the Awards support the view, as found here, that (quoting Public
Law Board
No.
4247):
"Claimant did not possess the necessary qualifications, nor could he have been reasonably
expected to develop them within the allotted
time period."
A
W
A R D
Claim denied.
NATIONAL RAILROAD ADJUSTMENT BOARD
By Order of Third Division
Attest:
`a,K,-<
,ot<-i.--
Catherine LoughrinT Interim Secretary to the Board
Dated at Chicago, Illinois, this 17th day of February 1994.