Case No. 64 Dispute - Claim of the System Committee that:

2. Claimants Max Ish, L.F. Goble, J.W. Crow, K.E. McFarling and
 R.A. Edwards shall each be compensated eight hours at their
 respective straight time rates of pay.
 Findings:
 Claimant Max Ish has established and holds seniority as a
 foreman while the remaining Claimants have established and hold
 seniority as trackmen. All were in a furloughed status when the
 incident involved here occurred. On October 25, 1988, the Carrier
 assigned employes covered by the Wabash Agreement to gauge track and
 change rail at Van Loon and Osborn, Indiana, which is located on the
 territory covered under the scope of the Nickel Plate Agreement dated
 February 1, 1951.
 The Organization asserts that Claimant was fully qualified and
 readily available to perform the work in question and that Carrier
 deprived Claimant of the opportunity to perform work to which they
 were entitled pursuant to their seniority under the Agreement. The
 claim was denied and has resulted in the dispute being placed before
 this Board.
 This Board has thoroughly reviewed the record in this case and we
 find that at the time of the incident in question the Carrier was
 faced with an emergency situation. Certain yard tracks were taken
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out of service due to track conditions and those yards were needed later in the day to interchange traffic. Those track repairs had to be done immediately.
 On that date there were two Nickel Plate gangs working in that seniority district but both had begun work on a project replacing the 96th Street turnout. The Record reveals that that work could not be suspended to allow either of the gangs to make the repairs that were necessary. The Claimants were on furlough and could not easily be reached.
 Consequently, in these limited circumstances, given the nature of the emergency situation faced by the Carrier, the Carrier did not violate the Agreement when it allowed the Wabash employes to perform work which is within the scope of the Nickel Plate Agreement. As the organization points out, since Rule I reserves the work in that seniority district to the Nickel Plate employes, under normal circumstances, there would have been a violation under this set of facts. However, given the nature of the emergency, and the fact that all of the Claimants were off on furlough, this Hoard must find that the Carrier did not act in violation of the Agreement. Award
    Claim denied.


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                      Neutral Me er


arrier em erl- r a ization memo e

 Date: 3'Z8-1/l6
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