The carrier or carriers and the employee or employees involved in this dispute are respectively carrier and employee 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.
Claimant D. Burke was employed by the Carrier as a Reservation Sales Agent at its Western Reservation Sales Office in Riverside, California. She was hired in 1987 and, until 1998, when she was charged with three separate incidents of not attending to duties, she had a clear disciplinary record.
In 1998, she was charged on three occasions with being unplugged from her computer and the reservation telephone system during her scheduled shift. Each of the three incidents resulted in discipline. The first two were suspensions; the third, (the instant case) was a discharge from service. The two suspensions were not fully adjudicated and have been held in abeyance pending the outcome of this case.
On November 18, 1998, the Claimant was directed to report on November 27, 1998, for a formal Investigation in connection with the following charges:
The charge letter contained twenty-two incidents on six days between October 14 and 28 when the Claimant was alleged to be unplugged from the reservation phone system without permission. The unplugged time on these specific days amounted to over 220 minutes.
A Hearing in the matter was held on January 26, 1999. As a result of that Hearing, the Claimant was found to be guilty as charged and was dismissed from the Carrier's service. The specifications involving two of the six dates cited in the Charge Letter were withdrawn by the Hearing Officer in his decision letter. The Claimant's dismissal, therefore, was based on being absent from her work station without permission on numerous occasions on four separate days in October 1998, for a total of approximately 161 minutes. A transcript of the Hearing has been made a part of the record reviewed by the Board. As a result of that review, the Board has concluded that the Claimant received a full and fair Hearing and was afforded all guaranteed rights due her under the Agreement. It has also concluded that no dispute exists concerning the amount of time the Claimant was "unplugged" from the reservation system. What is at issue here is whether the Claimant was productively employed performing businessrelated duties "when charges state, not attending to her duties as a Reservation Clerk."
Based on the total record before the Board, it has concluded that the Claimant was fully aware of the requirement for Reservation Clerks to remain plugged into the computer and the reservation telephone system when they were not on authorized breaks. In the months before her dismissal, the Claimant was disciplined twice for the same or similar Rule violations.
In spite of the Board's conclusion that the Claimant was guilty as charged, the Board does not conclude that dismissal is an appropriate remedy in this instance. It is our conclusion that the Carrier can make its point in this case with a long suspension and a return of the Claimant to work on a last-chance basis. The Claimant had ten years of unblemished service prior to the problems she encountered in 1998 that led to her dismissal. These ten years of good service should not be for naught. The Board therefore directs that the Claimant be returned to work on a last-chance basis with seniority intact and all other rights unimpaired, but without pay for lost time or benefits. The Claimant should be made aware that any further incidents of being unplugged from the system in violation of the Special Instructions governing the performance of Reservation Sales Agents can result in her permanent dismissal from service. Form 1 Award No. 35399
This Board, after consideration of the dispute identified above, hereby orders that an award favorable to the Claimant(s) be made. The Carrier is ordered to make the Award effective on or before 30 days following the postmark date the Award is transmitted to the parties.