PUBLIC LAW BOARD NO. 7766


Brotherhood of Maintenance

of Way Employes Division - IBT


and Award No. 2


New Orleans Public Belt Railroad


STATEMENT OF CLAIM:


"Claim of the System Committee of the Brotherhood that:


  1. The Carrier's imposition of discipline in the form of a fifteen

    (15) day actual suspension and fifteen (15) day overhead suspension upon Mr. J. Reed, by letter dated July 18, 2016, in connection with leaving work early and failure to show up for work was based on unproven charges, unjust, unwarranted and in violation of the Agreement (System File NOPB511JF16 NOP).


  2. As a consequence of the violation referred to in Part 1 above, the Carrier shall remove the charges and discipline from Claimant J. Reed's record, pay him for all time lost and afford him all other rights and benefits."


FINDINGS:


Public Law Board No. 7766, upon the whole record and all the evidence, finds the parties involved in this dispute are respectively Carrier and Employees within the meaning of the Railway Labor Act, as amended; this Board has jurisdiction of the dispute herein; the parties were given due notice of hearing before this Board and they participated therein.


The Claimant was disciplined pursuant to a Notice of Investigation dated June 1, 2016, Investigation held June 21, 2016, "to ascertain the facts and determine your responsibility, if any, in connection with your failure of following Rule GR-5 which requires you to report for duty at the designated time and place on May 28th and 29th, 2016. You failed to protect your employment on the aforementioned dates."


Page 1 of 3

In a discipline letter dated July 18, 2016, the Carrier found that "there was relevant evidence to support the conclusion that Mr. Reed was guilty of violating the following Company Rules: General Regulation 5 (GR-5) of the NOPE Safety and Operating Rules effective October 1, 2014. Specifically, I believe Mr. Reed left work early on May 28, 2016 without proper authority and failed to show up for work on May 29, 2016 without proper authority. Mr. Reed's actions fall under the Rule 1O(b) of the agreement between the New Orleans Public Belt Railroad and its employees represented by the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees dated January 1, 2015. Due to Mr. Reed being an hourly rate employee who absented himself from his duties for more than one (I) day without first having obtained informal leave of absence from his immediate superior, he is subject to discipline. Secondly, the project for that weekend was closely organized and scheduled to meet a very critical timeline of the Port of New Orleans since the work required the complete shutdown of the Clarence Henry Truckway, the Port's main road in and out of the terminal. Mr. Reed's unexcused absence put unnecessary burdens on his fellow workers and the NOPE to meet its commitment to the Port of New Orleans. Based on the record and after weighing the credibility of those who testified, I believe there was sufficient evidence to support the conclusion that Mr. Reed was guilty of the charge as described above. The actions of Mr. Reed constitute a serious offense. Discipline for not protecting one's assigned work cannot be properly addressed through classroom training or field training. Accordingly, the discipline assessed is fifteen (I 5) days suspension without pay and fifteen (I 5) days held in abeyance for 6 months effective July 25, 2016."


The Organization appealed the discipline and the Carrier denied the appeals. The dispute was not resolved during a settlement conference and progressed to arbitration. This matter is now before the Board for final and binding resolution. The Board has carefully reviewed the entire record in this case, including the arguments and awards provided in support of the parties' respective positions, whether or not specifically addressed herein.


The Board finds the Organization's procedural objections unpersuasive.


There is substantial evidence in the record to uphold the Carrier's discipline determination. The Organization's defenses are not persuasive. The discipline assessed by the Carrier was not

arbitrary, capricious, or an abuse of discretion under the facts and circumstances of this record, and will therefore not be disturbed by this Board.


AWARD:


Claim denied.


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Neutral Member Dated: March 22, 2018



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Erica Beck Carrier Member

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Andrew Mulford Labor Member