-- ' .PUBLIC LAW HOARD NO. 2420 _









OPINION OF BOARDr

 Claimant. was tried on,, found guilty of,. and disciplined by dismissal for the following.charges:




MB 2420 -2- AWARD NO. 13

 The instant claim arises out of a disciplinary termination imposed on Claimant because of his alleged participation in an il-
 legal and unauthorized strike at Carrier's Canton, Ohio, Maintenance of Way Shop on September 28 and 29, 1978 by members of Local 350 of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees employed there.

 We have described the general circumstances of this strike and picketing situation revealed at the hearings thereon in our previous Award No.. 1,. as well as our opinion on certain procedural and substantive questions: raised by Organization there as well as here..

 Turning to the, particular facts of the instant situation,
 the record showsr ..'.

 1,. It is. not disputed that Claimant failed to appear for and perform his-.scheduled work as a first trick MW Repairman at the Canton Maintenance of .day Shop on September 28 and 29, 1978.

 Z. Testimony was given by Equipment Engineer Reeder and. Equipment Engineer Baker that at approximately 2:00 AM on September 29, 1978, he observed Claimant and another man at the Service Packaging entrance to the plant at a small fire..

 3.. Assistant Equipment Engineer Muir and. Cost Analyst Blaser testified that at 800 AM on the same date they observed Claimant with others at the Webb Street entrance to Carrier's Alliance Yard, about 17 miles from Canton.
 PLB 2420 .3- - AWARD No. 13.
4. Claimant testified that on both September 28 and 29, 1978,. he intended to report for work but when he got to his usual place of entry, "There was people standing around. I'figured it was unsafe. I didn¢t want any part of it."

 He explained his presence on September 29,. 1978 at the Service Packaging entrance as, "I was driving by, and I saw this guy up there;
 -so I asked him if the work stoppage was going to be orn." He stated that he-was there probably about ten minutes and did no "picket duty."

 As. to his having been at the Webb Street entrance to the Alliance Yardr he "vas .driving byte and "stopped to tails-for a -second", estimating again that he might have been there for ten minutes. Readmitted that he lived in Canton but got to Alliance on a ride with another individual who was going to take his wife shopping at alliance, and "we-just drove: by to see what was going on."- His estimate was, again,. that he had: been there for about ten minutes.

 We conclude that Carrier had material basis -for concluding that Claimant was an active picketer and striker in this unauthorized and illegal strike by his appearance and participation at various picketing sites obviously placed at points for deterring employees from ingress. to work. The pattern of these appearances justifies Carrier in not accepting the repeated excuses of appearances there
 PLB 2420 -4- AWARD NO. 13

 merely for the purpose of finding out what was going on, including a 17-mile trip to the Alliance picketing site.

 For these reasons, we find, that. carrier has-. established in degree*and kindijustification for its disciplinary action on the charges in this matter.

        Claim denied..


                              LOUIS YAGOI~, );;~3AIRn.Mx1N & NEUTRAL


FsIMD WLRPEL,. JZ~:., ORGANIZATION Y..-EMBER

 N.M.. SERNER,: CARRIER RcMBER

                                  DATED 7/7