At the time this dispute arose, Claimant was assigned as a Trackman. On March 19, 1990 Carrier awarded an Electric Arc (E/A) Welder Helper position bulletined in Advertisement No. 012-WIL-0290 to a junior employee. By letter of April 12, 1990, the Organization protested the award, alleging that Claimant was the senior employee, and was, therefore, entitled to the position. In that claim the Organization cited Rules 3, 10, and 17. Carrier denied the claim, stating in part that since neither employee possessed seniority on the E/A Welder Helper Seniority Roster, the order of preference went to the employee with the earliest Welder Helper seniority. Carrier further pointed out that the junior employee possessed an O/A (oxyacetylene) Welder Helper seniority date of April 2, 1984, while Claimant was a rostered Thermite Welder with a seniority date of October 31, 1988. .
The claim was then appealed through the usual channels, up to and including the highest Carrier officer authorized to handle such matters. During that processing, Carrier also noted that the Rules cited by the organization were inapplicable to the instant claim and, notwithstanding, had not been violated.
A careful review of the record before the Board indicates that the instant claim is without merit. The Rules cited by the Organization do not, in fact, bear any relevance to the dispute at issue. Moreover, it is uncontroverted on the record that Claimant did not have an earlier seniority date as a Welder Helper than did the employee awarded the position. Accordingly, he was not entitled to the position in question. In light of the foregoing, the instant claim must be denied.
This Board, after consideration of the dispute identified above, hereby orders that an award favorable to the Claimant(s) not be made.