This Board, after hearing upon the whole record and all evidence, finds that the parties herein are Carrier and Employe within the meaning of the Railway Labor Act as amended; that this Board has jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter of the dispute herein; that this Board is duly constituted by an Agreement dated July 23, 1982; and that all parties were given due notice of the hearing held on this matter. Pursuant to notice dated July 20, 1994, the Carrier charged Claimant, a Welder on Gang
At the August 8, 1994 investigation, the Manager of Track Maintenance testified that he granted Claimant a one-week vacation commencing on or about July 3, because Claimant was purportedly experiencing personal problems. Later, the Manager extended the time Claimant had permission to be off through July 13 because ostensibly Claimant lacked transportation to work but Claimant expected to have his truck repaired by July 14._ Therefore, Claimant was obligated to report to work on July 14, 1994.
Claimant was absent on July 14, 15, 18, 19 and 20. He did not contact the Carrier. After the July 20, 1994 notice was sent to Claimant, Claimant's mother called the Carrier and asked the Carrier to grant Claimant a leave of absence. The Carrier denied the request because it learned that Claimant was incarcerated in the San Joaquin County Jail.
At the investigation, Claimant admitted that he served a jail sentence from July 18 to August 2, 1994.
Claimant's admissions, coupled with the testimony of the Track Maintenance Manager, conclusively show that Claimant was absent without property authority beginning on July 15, 1994. Incarceration in a penal institution is not a valid justification for being away from work. Public Law Board No. 3241 Page 2
Moreover, if Claimant's jail term began on July 18, he never gave any explanation for being absent on July 14 and 15. Claimant aggravated his offense by failing to contact the Carrier to notify it that he would be absent. The Carrier rightly depends on its employees to regularly and punctually report to work. Given the seriousness of the infraction as well as the aggravating circumstances, the Board must affirm the assessed discipline.