BEFORE SPECIAL BOARD OF ADJUSTMENT NO. 924
BROTHERHOOD OF MAINTENANCE OF WAY EMPLOYEES
and
CHICAGO & NORTH WESTERN TRANSPORTATION COMPANY
Case No. 213
Award No. lp y
STATEMENT OF CLAIM: Claim of the System Committee of the
Brotherhood that:
1. The dismissal of Machine Operator T. W. Prough for
allegedly occupying the main line without proper
protection was without just and sufficient cause,
inappropriate, excessive and capricious
(Organization File 2PG-3427D; Carrier File 81-9223).
2. Machine Operator T. W. Prough shall now be allowed
the remedy provided in Rule 19(d).
FINDINGS:
On August 26, 1991, the Claimant operated a ballast
regulator on the main track between Des Moines and McCallsburgh.
Subsequently, the Claimant was notified to appear for a hearing
to determine his responsibility for his actions in which he
occupied the main line without permission on the date in
question. Claimant was found guilty and dismissed from service
and was later reinstated as a trackman on September 24, 1992.
However, the one year that he was off from work and his
disqualification as a machine operator remained.
The instant claim was filed by the Organization on behalf of
the Claimant and the parties being unable to resolve the issue,
this matter comes before this Board.
This Board has reviewed the evidence and testimony in this
case and we find that there is sufficient evidence in the record
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to support the finding that the Claimant was guilty of occupying
the main line trackage without authority. Claimant admits that
he only "thought" he had permission; he could not prove that he
had permission.
Once this Board has determined that there is sufficient
evidence in the record to support the guilty findings, we next
turn our attention to the type of discipline imposed. This
Board will not set aside a Carrier's imposition of discipline
unless we find its action to have been unreasonable, arbitrary,
or capricious.
In the case at hand, the Claimant's original dismissal was
reduced to a one-year suspension and disqualification as a
machine operator. Given the serious nature of the offense of
which he was found guilty, this Board cannot find that the
Carrier acted unreasonably when it suspended him and disqualified
him from his position of a machine operator. The record reveals
that the Claimant is currently working for the Carrier as a
trackman. If the Carrier believes that he should have his
machine operator rights reinstated, it can so order. This Board
is without a sufficient basis to do that since we do not find
that the Carrier acted unreasonably, arbitrarily, or
capriciously.
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AWARD:
Claim denied.
PETE R. MEYERS
Nei tTi-a 1/ Member
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C er Member rganizatio em~
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