United Transportation Union - Let's Pull Together For The Furloughed Employees!

There are numerous brothers and sisters who are currently cut off or furloughed as a result of Carrier’s determination to cut our T&E work forces to a skeleton staff, in many cases forsaking the work/rest requirements of those train and enginemen still working.

Rule 100, Section 7 A of the UTU/B&O Schedule Agreement reads:

SECTION 7.
EMPLOYMENT

A. The Carrier will maintain, through recall of furloughed trainmen and/or hiring of new employees, a sufficient number of regular and extra employees to permit reasonable layoff privileges and to protect must-fill vacancies.

Public Law Boards and Special Boards of Adjustment have illustrated to the Organization that the above provisions cannot be used as a crutch to exonerate employees with poor absenteeism records, as the Boards have consistently ruled their layoff requirements were not “reasonable”. Nevertheless, this language has meaning or it would not be in the Agreement to begin with.

To honor those on the street currently, officers and members of the UTU alike are duty-bound to enforce the above contractual provision to the fullest extent possible in an effort to garner their return as expeditiously as possible. As I said, claims for employees embroiled in the Availability Policy will bear no fruit. However, claims for “reasonable layoff privileges” by those not already in Availability Policy handling can and should be progressed for a penalty day.

Bearing the above in mind, General Chairperson Lesniewski is requesting:

From Our Members:

If you are not currently in handling under CSXT’s Availability Policy, meaning you have not received an absenteeism letter from CMC’s Availability Specialist or received discipline for absenteeism in the past three (3) years, file a penalty claim (payroll con code “97”) for violation of Rule 100, Section 7-A whenever you have a mark-off request for any reason denied for “lack of manpower.” Make sure to mention within the claim text that you are not in handling under CSXT’s Availability Policy.
Ask the crew dispatcher denying your mark off to please denote in your Employee History that you requested to mark off, but were denied for lack of manpower. The worst the crew dispatcher can do is say “no”; but if he/she does make the notation, the incident is documented in Carrier records.
Report the matter of declination to your Local Chairperson immediately, so that he can forward the information to this office (and we can keep the heat on CSXT).
Assuming the claim is rejected, progress an appeal of the declination in the normal manner through your Local Chairperson.

From Local Chairpersons:

Compile a weekly report of Conductors and Trainmen, who are not currently being handled under CSXT’s Availability Policy (no absenteeism letters or discipline), that are denied “reasonable layoff privileges” and have filed a claim.
Email or fax this list to the General Committee office each Monday denoting the employee, his ID number, and the date and time of the incident.
In the event the employee’s penalty time claim for violation of Rule 100, Section 7A is declined, progress the employee’s appeal within applicable time limits in the usual manner via USPS or LCAT. Make sure to include a copy of the Claimant’s Employee History (with the notation that he attempted to mark off, but was denied for lack of manpower) and comments that he is not in handling under CSXT’s Availability Policy within your appeal.
For each reported violation above, file an 8 hour penalty claim for the 1^st out conductor or trainman (as the case may be) account of being deprived of employment when the Carrier failed to comply with Rule 100, Section 7A. If no rested and available conductor or trainman can be found, the penalty claim(s) should be filed for the senior furloughed trainman at the location that day; with subsequent violations on the same day being filed for the next senior furloughed trainman.
Process the penalty claims in Item #4 above, as necessary, in the customary manner under Rule 32 taking care to respect time limits.

If we are to fend off these attacks on our membership by the Carrier, it will take the cooperation and persistence of us all. Please take the time to support your Union brothers and sisters that are currently on the street.