REGULAR CONVENTION - Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen

Transcription

Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen
REGULAR
CONVENTION
July 14 – 18, 2014 • LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen — 2010 Officers’ Report
1
PRESIDENT
PRESIDENT EMERITUS
SECRETARY-TREASURER
W. Dan Pickett
C.J. Chamberlain
Jerry C. Boles
VICE PRESIDENTS
Floyd E. Mason
Joe L. Mattingly
Dennis M. Boston
Kelly A. Haley
Mark J. Ciurej
John D. Bragg
TRUSTEES
DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH
Mike K. Owens
R. Gus Demott
William L. Duncan
Mike S. Baldwin
GRAND LODGE REPRESENTATIVES
Jim M. Finnegan
Tim M. Tarrant
NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR
Leonard Parker, Jr.
RETIRED OFFICERS
W.A. Class, Jr.
M.B. Frye
W.B. Harwell, Jr.
W.W. Lauer
W.A. Radziewicz
W.R. Saar, Jr.
V. Van Artsdalen
B.M. Wilson
George E. Jones
Charlie A. McGraw
Kim T. Poole
W.H. Little
RETIRED REPRESENTATIVE
W. DAN PICKETT
Welcome to the 51st Regular Convention of the
Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen. We welcome your
participation in one of our Brotherhood’s oldest and
most cherished traditions, as the Brotherhood enters its
113th year of service to our members. This is the seventh
Regular Convention that we have held in Las Vegas,
Nevada, with the first convening here at the 38th Regular
Convention in 1970.
Over the last four years, our organization has faced many
challenges: the ever-evolving technology of railroad signaling, the Congressionally mandated installation of Positive
Train Control, the assault on our collective bargaining
agreements by so-called “railroad policies;” the future
of Signalmen Certification is still undetermined, just to
name a few. However, our members have always been
adaptive to technological and other changes that face our
craft. We are proud to lead this organization, and we commend our members for making our nation’s railroad network the safest mode of transportation in the country.
As our members strive to maintain that high standard, it
is important to remember that the purpose of our organization is to promote the interests and general welfare
of our members; to provide methods for relief of sickness
and distress; to instill the principles of trade unionism
and unity, so that members may secure the recognition
of rights to which they are justly entitled; to advance and
elevate the profession of railroad signaling; to educate our
members so that their happiness, prosperity, and general
well-being may be enhanced; to perpetuate our organization on the basis of truth, justice, and brotherly love.
Our move from the Chicago area to Washington, D.C.,
President
JERRY C. BOLES
in 2004, has placed our organization in a much better
position of responding to assaults on our jobs and benefits, such as when Congressman Paul Ryan introduced a
budget in 2012, which passed the Republican-controlled
House, that sought to reduce our members’ Railroad
Retirement benefits. Thankfully, due to our educational
efforts, and with the help of all Rail Labor and our friends
in the Senate, the Senate refused to approve those changes.
This attack on our benefits is a reminder that we must
remain constantly vigilant to ensure that our members are
well represented when laws, regulations, retirement system
changes, safety matters, and even governmental budgets
are discussed and decided in Washington, D.C.
Each officer and delegate to this Convention is charged
with the serious responsibility of determining the direction of the Brotherhood. We are confident that this
Convention, through the democratic practice of open discussion and careful deliberation, will make decisions in the
best interest of your Brother and Sister Signalmen and the
Organization as a whole.
This Convention also provides an important opportunity
for Signalmen to renew old acquaintances and forge new
friendships. These ties reflect the common bond and spirit
that has always bound Signalmen together in the endeavor
to achieve collectively the things that we are unable to
achieve individually.
We are certain that the spirit of brotherhood, unity,
and harmony will prevail during this important week
as we continue to advance the proud heritage of the
Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen. 
Secretary-Treasurer
FLOYD E. MASON
Vice President
JOE L. MATTINGLY
Vice President
DENNIS M. BOSTON
Vice President
MARK J. CIUREJ
Vice President
KELLY A. HALEY
Vice President
JOHN D. BRAGG
Vice President
LEONARD PARKER, JR. MICHAEL S. BALDWIN
National Legislative
Director of Research
Director
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JIM M. FINNEGAN
Grand Lodge
Representative
TIM M. TARRANT
Grand Lodge
Representative
TABLE OF CONTENTS
President’s Report ........................................................ 4
Transportation Trades Department ................................ 9
Report of the Grand Executive Council ...................... 10
Report of the Grand Board of Trustees ....................... 14
Financial Report .......................................................... 17
Vice Presidents’ Activities .......................................... 24
FELA Directory........................................................... 49
Official Publications .................................................... 50
BRS Conventions 1908–2014 ..................................... 52
Grand Lodge Headquarters ......................................... 53
BRS Membership 2010–2014 ....................................................................................... 57
In Memoriam ................................................................................................................ 58
Railroad Retirement Board ........................................................................................... 60
Agreement Status .......................................................................................................... 64
National Railroad Adjustment Board ............................................................................ 66
Special Boards of Adjustment ....................................................................................... 68
National Railroad Adjustment Board — Case Handling Status ................................... 69
Minor Disputes ............................................................................................................. 80
Resolutions — 2010 Convention .................................................................................. 82
Union Plus ..................................................................................................................... 82
Legal Aid Program ........................................................................................................ 83
National Legislation Report........................................................................................... 84
General Counsel’s Report ............................................................................................ 86
Federal Railroad Administration Report ....................................................................... 88
Signalmen’s Political League ........................................................................................ 93
MIKE K. OWENS
Grand Board Trustee
R. GUS DEMOTT
Grand Board Trustee
WILLIAM L. DUNCAN
Grand Board Trustee
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Regular Convention
President’s Report
The following report of the activities of the
Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS) Grand
Lodge Officers is submitted in accordance with Article
I, Section 86, of the Brotherhood’s Constitution:
“Under the guidance and direction of the President and
Secretary-Treasurer a full and complete printed report of
the official acts of the Grand Lodge Officers shall be made
at each regular Convention.”
This report covers the period from April 1, 2010,
through March 31, 2014, and will be supplemented by
reports from the Grand Executive Council and Grand
Board of Trustees.
Grand Lodge Offices
There have been three changes to Grand Lodge
Officers, one change in office on the Grand Board of
Trustees, and three changes in the position of Grand
Lodge Representative since the previous Convention
Report.
President — The 2010 Convention reelected W.
Dan Pickett to his fifth full term as President. Brother
Pickett has been a BRS union officer for 40 years
and began full-time service for the BRS when he was
appointed Grand Lodge Representative in October
1980. Following a brief assignment at headquarters,
he was assigned to Washington, D.C., as National
Legislative Representative. Brother Pickett held that
position until he was elected Vice
President of the Southeast Region in
1985, then elected to the position
of BRS President in 1992. Brother
Pickett began his railroad career as a
lineman’s helper for the Norfolk and
Western Railway in July 1965.
Secretary-Treasurer — The 2010
Convention reelected Walt Barrows
to his third full term as SecretaryTreasurer. Brother Barrows was subsequently appointed as the Labor
Member of the Railroad Retirement
Board by President Obama and confirmed by the Senate in September
2011. Brother Barrows resigned at that
time. Jerry Boles who was elected to
his third full term as Vice President
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Headquarters at the
2010 Convention,
was elected to fill
the unexpired term
of Brother Barrows
on October 10,
2011. Brother
Boles was assigned
to Grand Lodge
W. DAN PICKETT
in August of 1997
President
as a Grand Lodge
Representative.
In August of 1999, he was assigned to the position of
Publications Editor. Beginning in 1981, Brother Boles
served in the positions of Local Vice President, Local
Recording-Financial Secretary, Local Chairman, and
General Secretary-Treasurer.
Vice President National Railroad Adjustment Board
(NRAB) — The 2010 Convention elected Kelly Haley
to his first full term in this office after the retirement of
Brother Charlie McGraw. On October 10, 2011, John
Bragg was elected to this position when it was vacated
by Brother Haley. Brother Bragg held the position of
Director of Research prior to his election.
Vice President East — The 2010 Convention reelected Floyd Mason to his fifth full term as Vice President
East. Brother Mason had previously served as Vice
President at Grand Lodge and presently maintains an
office in Denver, North Carolina.
Vice President Midwest — The 2010 Convention
reelected Joe Mattingly to his fourth full term as Vice
President Midwest. Brother Mattingly served as Vice
President of the Northeast prior to his election as Vice
President Midwest. The Vice President Midwest is
presently headquartered in Trenton, Kentucky.
Vice President Commuter, Passenger, Transit/
Political Director — The 2010 Convention reelected
Dennis Boston to his fourth full term as Vice President
Commuter, Passenger, Transit/Political Director. Prior
to his election as Vice President Commuter, Passenger,
Transit/Political Director, Brother Boston served as
the National Legislative Representative for the BRS in
Washington, D.C. Brother Boston presently maintains
an office in Centreville, Virginia.
Vice President West — The 2010 Convention elected
Mark Ciurej to his first full term as Vice President
West following the retirement of Brother George Jones.
Brother Ciurej held the position of Grand Lodge
Representative prior to his successful election. Brother
Ciurej currently maintains an office in Kansas City,
Missouri.
when John Bragg was elected to the position of Vice
President — NRAB in October 2011. Brother Baldwin
was appointed by President W. Dan Pickett to the position of Grand Lodge Representative in May 2010. He
is currently assigned to Grand Lodge Headquarters in
Front Royal, Virginia.
Jim Finnegan was appointed to the position of Grand
Lodge Representative in October 2010, and is currently assigned to Grand Lodge Headquarters in Front
Royal, Virginia.
Tim Tarrant was appointed to the position of Grand
Lodge Representative in October 2011, and is currently assigned to Grand Lodge Headquarters in Front
Royal, Virginia.
Officers Emeritus —
The Grand Executive Council acted in July 1992 to
honor former President C.J. “Chuck” Chamberlain
with the title of President Emeritus. Brother
Vice President Headquarters — The 2010
Convention reelected Jerry Boles to his third full term
as Vice President Headquarters. On October 10, 2011,
Kelly Haley was elected to this position when it was
vacated by Brother Boles. Brother Haley held the position of Vice President – NRAB prior to his election.
Trustees — The 2010 Convention reelected Mike
Owens, Kim Poole, and Gus Demott as Trustees.
Brother Owens served as Chairman of the Grand
Board of Trustees. Brother Poole served as Secretary
of the Grand Board of Trustees, and Brother Demott
was the third Trustee. As a result of the retirement of
Brother Poole on December 12, 2013, Bill Duncan
was elected to fill that unexpired term. Currently,
Brother Owens serves as Chairman, Brother Demott
serves as Secretary, and Brother Duncan serves as Member.
Representatives —
Leonard Parker, Jr., serves as National Legislative
Director. Brother Parker was appointed in April of
1999 by President W. Dan Pickett, and he currently
has an office in Washington, D.C.
Mike Baldwin currently serves as Director of Research.
Brother Baldwin was appointed to that position
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Chamberlain served as President from 1967 to 1977,
at which time he resigned to become the Labor
Member on the Railroad Retirement Board. Brother
Chamberlain served on the Railroad Retirement Board
for 15 years, retiring May 31, 1992.
Retired Officers —
During this reporting period, George Jones, Charlie
McGraw, and Kim Poole joined the ranks of retired
Grand Lodge officers, which include Brothers C.J.
Chamberlain; W.A. Class, Jr.; M.B. Frye; W.B.
Harwell, Jr.; W.W. Lauer; W.A. Radziewicz; V.M.
Speakman, Jr.; and Val Van Artsdalen.
National Negotiations 2009
The last round of National Negotiations began in
December 2009, and concluded with a decision from
Presidential Emergency Board 243. The BRS joined
with five other unions to form a coalition called the
Rail Labor Bargaining Coalition (RLBC). As the
President of the BRS, I oversee the negotiations of our
National Agreement, and I also served as the Chair of
the RLBC. For more detailed information on the last
round of National Negotiations see the Grand
Executive Council’s Report.
Amtrak Negotiations
Just prior to the 50th Regular
Convention in July 2010,
and after the Officers’
Report was finalized, the
BRS and Amtrak held
their first collective bargaining session in May
2010. In June 2012, the
BRS and Amtrak entered
into mediation after several unsuccessful attempts at
bargaining a voluntary agreement. In September 2013, the
parties entered into an agreedupon interest arbitration process in
an attempt to reach agreement. The decision reached by the three-member board in the interest
arbitration process followed both the freight pattern
and what Amtrak had asserted as its pattern. For more
detailed information on Amtrak Negotiations, see the
Vice President Commuter, Passenger, Transit/Political
Director’s Report.
Safety Training — Hazardous Materials
The BRS and eight other rail labor unions continue to
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participate in a
hazardous
materials
training
program
for railroad
workers
that educates BRS
members and
other rail
employees
how to
recognize
the dangers and know the proper response procedures when
working around hazardous materials. This training program was done in conjunction with the National Labor
College (NLC) until its closing in 2013. Since then,
the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) has
taken up the NLC’s role in order to continue
the training.
The Rail Worker Hazardous
Materials Training Program
is funded by federal grants
through the federal government’s National Institute
of Environmental Health
Science, Department
of Transportation, and
Department of Energy. The
objective of the training is to
provide rail workers with the
skills and knowledge necessary
to protect their health, as well as
the health of their coworkers and
community.
The program offers a Hazardous Materials
Instructors Training – Train the Trainer Course,
Chemical Emergency Response Training, Radiological
Transportation Training, as well as other training.
These training courses are presented over five-day and
six-day periods and the program covers travel expenses,
meals, and offers stipends for most rail workers to
attend. Courses are presented in Houston, Texas, and
other various locations throughout the United States.
The BRS actively supports this program through letters
of endorsement for grant applications and by having a
BRS representative on the program’s Advisory Board.
Since 1990, the Rail Workers Hazardous Materials
Training Program has provided training to over 30,000
rail workers from the nine cooperating rail unions.
Railroad Retirement Board
Representing the BRS, as well as those labor groups
that participate in Railroad Retirement, I serve as Chair
for those groups dealing with Railroad Retirement
Board (RRB) issues.
This year the RRB will observe the 79th Anniversary of
the enactment of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1935.
In addition to paying retirement and survivor benefits
to railroad employees and their families, subsequent
legislation also authorized the payment of unemployment and sickness benefits to rail workers.
The National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust
(Trust) was established by the Railroad Retirement
and Survivors’ Improvement Act of 2001. The sole
purpose of the Trust is to manage and invest Railroad
Retirement assets. The Trust is a tax-exempt entity
independent from the federal government. As of
September 30, 2013, trust-managed assets and RRB
assets held in reserve totaled almost $26 billion.
The RRB, which is headed by a three-member board
appointed by
the President
and confirmed
by the Senate, is
an independent
agency in the
executive branch
of the federal
government. The
current members
of the Board
are Chairman
Michael S.
Schwartz,
Management
Member Jerome
F. Kever, and
Labor Member Walter A. Barrows.
Brother Barrows served the Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen as Secretary-Treasurer from 1999 to 2011,
when he was appointed to serve as Labor Member.
Barrows is the fourth BRS member to assume this
important post, following in the footsteps of V.M.
Speakman, Jr., C.J. Chamberlain, and A.E. Lyon.
The RRB, which is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois,
maintains a network of 53 field offices across the country to serve the needs of railroad employees.
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Affiliations
Committee, representing railroad management, and
the CRLO, representing 13 major labor organizations.
The CRLO functions as the negotiating body for the
participating labor organizations in all national negotiations relating to health and welfare benefit issues and
I serve as Vice Chair of this body.
The AFL-CIO represents 12.5 million members,
including 3 million members in its community affiliate, Working America. The AFL-CIO was created in
1955 by the merger of the American Federation of
Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations.
Grand Lodge Headquarters
The BRS continues to be an active participant in
the American Federation of Labor and Congress of
Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). The AFL-CIO is
a voluntary federation of 56 national and international
labor unions.
Richard L. Trumka was re-elected as President of
the AFL-CIO in 2013, at the Federation’s 27th
Convention in Los Angeles, California. On the same
day, Elizabeth “Liz” Shuler was reelected SecretaryTreasurer of the AFL-CIO, and Tefere Gebre was
elected to the post of Executive Vice President.
Within the AFL-CIO is the Transportation Trades
Department (TTD), which was founded in April
1990, and is an umbrella organization of the AFLCIO. I serve on the TTD Executive and Financial
Committees. TTD represents the interests of several
million aviation, rail, transit, trucking, highway, and
ship workers before Congress, the Executive Branch,
and independent government agencies. Through TTD,
the working men and women who are represented
by the Department’s 32 affiliated
unions have a strong, united voice in
Washington, D.C. Within the TTD
is a sub-group called the Rail Labor
Division (RLD) and I also serve as
the Chair of this division. The RLD,
of which BRS is a very active member, focuses TTD resources on issues
that are of specific interest to railroad
employees. The Rail Labor Division
of the TTD consists of nine other railroad unions.
The Cooperating Railway Labor
Organizations (CRLO) was created in
1991 to ensure that railroad employees have a strong voice in establishing
and maintaining their health and
welfare benefits. The National Health
and Welfare Plan, a collectively bargained plan, is administered by the
Joint Plan Committee, which consists
of the National Carriers’ Conference
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The Grand Lodge of the Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen is located at 917 Shenandoah Shores
Road in Front Royal, Virginia, and it serves as the
Brotherhood’s headquarters. The headquarters was
relocated to Virginia, from Mount Prospect, Illinois,
in December of 2004. This relocation has saved the
union tens of thousands of dollars each year in reduced
travel expenses and property taxes.
Additional activities and developments during this reporting period are outlined in greater detail in other sections of
this report. This report reflects the Brotherhood’s continued
active involvement and participation in the wide variety
of activities and issues involving Signalmen. The report
also reflects the continued commitment to providing BRS
members with effective, progressive representation in keeping with our 113-year tradition of the Brotherhood of
Railroad Signalmen. 
Regular Convention
Transportation Trades Department
During this reporting period, the Transportation
Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), Rail Labor
Division remained a vital tool for BRS members. The
Rail Labor Division consists of eleven labor organizations with membership in the freight and passenger
rail sector.
The Rail Labor Division was created to promote collective action and cooperation among rail unions in
the policy arena. Today, it is the main coordinating
body for rail policy and legislation within the labor
movement.
The Transportation Trades Department of the
AFL-CIO represents the interests of several million
A bold voice for transportation workers
workers in the aviation, maritime, rail, transit, trucking, highway, and related industries. The TTD is the
transportation policy and legislative arm of its parent
organization, the National AFL-CIO, which represents more than nine million workers in the United
States.
Ed Wytkind is the President of the Transportation
Trades Department and Larry Willis is the SecretaryTreasurer of the Transportation Trades Department. 
Organizations currently affiliated with the Transportation Trades Department:
(Rail Labor Division members are denoted by bold type)
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Air Line Pilots Association
Amalgamated Transit Union
American Federation of Government Employees
American Federation of State, County and
Municipal Employees
American Federation of Teachers
American Train Dispatchers Association
Association of Flight Attendants-CWA
Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen
Communications Workers of America
International Association of Fire Fighters
International Association of Machinists and
Aerospace Workers
International Brotherhood of Boilermakers,
Iron Ship Builders, Blacksmiths, Forgers
and Helpers
International Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers
International Longshoremen’s Association
International Organization of Masters, Mates
& Pilots
International Union of Operating Engineers
Laborers’ International Union of North America
Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association
• National Air Traffic Controllers Association
• National Association of Letter Carriers
• National Conference of Firemen & Oilers,
SEIU (NCFO/SEIU)
• National Federation of Public and Private
Employees
• Office and Professional Employees International
Union
• Professional Aviation Safety Specialists
• Sailors’ Union of the Pacific
• Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation
Workers
• Transportation Communications International
Union
• Transport Workers Union of America
• UNITE HERE!
• United Mine Workers of America
• United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber,
Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and
Service Workers International Union
• United Transportation Union-SMART
WEBSITE: TTD.org
TWITTER: @TTDAFLCIO
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Regular Convention
Report of the Grand Executive Council
In accordance with
Article I, Section 66,
of the Brotherhood’s
Constitution, this segment
of the Officers’ Report will
outline the official activities of the Grand Executive
Council (GEC) for the
period of January 1, 2010,
to March 31, 2014.
The GEC, which consists
of the President, SecretaryTreasurer, and six Vice
Presidents, held eight
regular meetings and six
special meetings during
this reporting period. The
schedule of meetings from
this reporting period is
outlined in another section of the Officers’ Report.
Each regular meeting of the GEC follows an agenda
with 25 to 30 items that are reviewed, discussed,
and acted on as needed. Some agenda items, such as
Grand Lodge finances, claims handling, legislative
issues and negotiations, are included on the agenda for
each meeting. Other items, including legal matters,
training, railroad mergers, and safety issues, are added
to the agenda in accordance with ongoing activities.
At the beginning of this reporting period, much of
the GEC’s attention was focused on preparations for
the 2010 Convention. The Convention was held July
26–30, 2010, in Orlando, Florida.
Throughout this reporting period, the GEC worked
on safety initiatives involving federal regulatory protection for employees who work on or about railroad
tracks, and provisions on the use of signal technology and testing procedures for new technology.
Monitoring of the employee on-track safety issue continued throughout the past four years and the results
are much better during this reporting period than the
last. We are pleased to report that no fatal roadway
10
worker accident has occurred to any BRS member
during this reporting period.
Rail Safety Advisory Committee
A major development in 1996 was the FRA’s establishment of a Rail Safety Advisory Committee
(RSAC), comprised of representatives from rail labor,
management, and the railroad equipment supply
industry, to make recommendations regarding railroad
safety issues. The BRS has been an active member of
the RSAC from the outset and continues to have a
leading role in RSAC activities.
During this reporting period, the Organization
continued to work not only on unfinished RSAC
tasks that were initiated prior to 2010 but also on
several new tasks. Some of the more notable RSAC
tasks initiated after the 2010 reporting period
that have an impact on signalmen are: Minimum
Training Standards, Dark Territory, Electronic Device
Distraction, Fatigue Management Plans, and Risk
Reduction.
National Negotiations
The last round of National Negotiations began in
December 2009. The BRS joined with five other
unions to form a coalition called the Rail Labor
Bargaining Coalition (RLBC), with President
Pickett serving as Chairman. The RLBC was
comprised of the following railroad unions:
Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen; Brotherhood of
Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET-IBT);
Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes
Division (BMWED-IBT); National Conference
of Firemen and Oilers (SEIU); Sheet Metal
Workers’ International Association (SMWIA); and
International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB).
International Union; American Train Dispatchers
Association; International Association of Machinists
and Aerospace Workers; International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers; and Transport Workers Union.
After negotiations moved into its second year, with
virtually no tangible progress toward a settlement,
the RLBC applied for mediation services with the
National Mediation Board (NMB). The NMB
responded by appointing Senior Mediator Terri
Brown to the case on January 12, 2011.
The PEB ended its fact-finding investigation on
November 5, 2011, and the White House released
the PEB’s report the same day. While not labeling
the UTU Agreement a “pattern,” PEB 243’s recommendations were obviously influenced by that breakaway settlement. On the downside, the PEB report
included healthcare cost shifting to the employees
that was phased in and eventually increased until it
matched the employee cost shifting contained in the
UTU Agreement. On the upside, the PEB recommended a General Wage Increase package that was
more generous than the wage package found in the
UTU Agreement, even outpacing the projected inflation rate. The compounded General Wage Increase
provided in the National Agreement added more than
20% to member wages over the term.
In separate negotiations, three months later, the
United Transportation Union (UTU) reached a
tentative agreement with the National Carriers’
Conference Committee (NCCC), which was subsequently ratified by their rank and file. Afterwards, the
NCCC declared that the UTU Agreement established
a pattern that the rest of rail labor must follow to
reach any voluntary agreement.
The RLBC and the other Rail Labor Unions rejected
the UTU Agreement as a pattern and chose not to
follow suit. The rest of Rail Labor believed that the
UTU had given up too much in the way of health
and welfare benefits and employee contributions, and
the general wage increases were too low given the
rail carriers’ financial successes since the last round of
bargaining. Subsequent mediated negotiating sessions
only reinforced that the parties were at an impasse,
and the NMB subsequently released the affected
Labor Organizations from mediation on September
6, 2011. Under provisions of the Railway Labor Act,
this triggered a 30-day cooling off period.
As expected, and before either side could engage in
self-help, President Obama established Presidential
Emergency Board (PEB) 243 to help resolve the stalemate. He appointed five members to PEB 243 on
October 6, 2011, with instructions to investigate and
make non-binding recommendations in the dispute
between the 11 Rail Labor Unions and the NCCC.
The 11 Rail Labor Unions included the RLBC
unions and the Coalition of Rail Unions, which was
comprised of the Transportation-Communications
Hearings were subsequently held in Washington,
D.C., on October 13–20, 2011. During the hearings,
the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, the 10 other
rail unions, and the NCCC made comprehensive presentations to the PEB covering wages, work rules, and
health and welfare.
To address the BRS’s responsibility differential that
the Organization was seeking for maintenance
employees, PEB 243 recommended a “non-binding
study and fact-finding designed to focus upon the job
responsibilities of a Signal Maintenance employee and
Signal Installer.”
On November 17, 2011, after nearly two years of
negotiations, the NCCC and the BRS reached a
voluntary tentative six-year agreement, based on the
PEB recommendations. While we recognize that the
agreement contained phased-in healthcare cost shifting to the employee, it provided six general wage
increases applied on July 1 of each year 2010–2014
and on January 1 of 2015, of 2.0%, 2.5%, 4.3%,
3.0%, 3.8%, and 3.0%, respectively. The first two
general wage increases resulted in retroactive back pay.
In general, members received retroactive wages and an
additional lump sum totaling about $3,000 or more.
Over the period, the base Signalman’s rate changed
from $25.10 to $30.14 per hour, which equates to a
20.08% increase in wages. In addition, the tentative
agreement contained no work rule changes.
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That tentative agreement, which was unanimously
endorsed by the BRS Negotiating Committee
and unanimously ratified by the affected General
Chairmen, was overwhelmingly approved by a membership vote on February 2, 2012.
Amtrak Negotiations
During this reporting period, our National Railroad
Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) members had been
seeking a fair contract since November 1, 2009, when
the Organization filed its Section 6 notice. The BRS
is a member of the Passenger Rail Labor Bargaining
Coalition (PRLBC), which consists of the BRS and
the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes
(BMWED).
To complicate this round of bargaining, the BRS and
the BMWED are the only organizations that have yet
to enter into an agreement with Amtrak. The other
Unions have agreed to terms that were inferior to the
package found in the National Agreement. Our position has always been that BRS members employed by
Amtrak should get no less than what is included in
the national package.
After almost four years with no progress, in September
2013, the PRLBC finalized an agreement with Amtrak
to arbitrate and settle the contract dispute as provided
in Sections 7 and 8 of the Railway Labor Act. This
arbitration agreement provided for a three-person
panel that met to hear arguments and review evidence
from the parties and then determine which of the two
patterns that BRS- and BMWED-represented Amtrak
employees will fall under: the current Amtrak pattern
established by other organizations or the National
Agreement pattern.
The hearings were held for seven days in January
2014. Amtrak members can expect their new contract
to be in place on or before April 1, 2014. Under the
terms of the arbitration agreement, the neutrals’ decision is not subject to appeal or membership ratification.
Organizing
There was organizing activity during this period; 21
new members employed by the Madison Terminal
Railway; 5 new members employed by the Chicago,
Fort Wayne and Eastern Railroad; and 5 new members employed by Summit Signal, Inc. had to establish
their first collective bargaining agreement and all are
members of Local 236.
12
Additionally, when Transit America Services, Inc.
(TASI) assumed the responsibilities for the operation of Caltrain after Amtrak lost that contract, it
voluntarily recognized the BRS as the bargaining representative of the Signal Department Employees (22
members) who were previously employed by Amtrak.
These members continue to belong to Local 153, represented by the Union Pacific General Committee.
Job Responsibility Study
The last round of collective bargaining, at which
the BRS requested that signal maintenance employees be compensated at a higher rate because of the
huge responsibility incumbent with those positions,
concluded with the appointment of Presidential
Emergency Board (PEB) 243. The PEB recommendation stated that the Maintenance Employee
Differential issue “be sent back to the parties for a single
non-binding study and fact-finding designed to focus
upon the job responsibilities of a Signal Maintenance
employee and a Signal Installer.” PEB 243 published its
final report on November 5, 2011. In May of 2012,
the BRS began meeting with the NCCC, which represents five Class I railroads, as well as many other
smaller railroad properties that are part of national
bargaining.
• The Job Responsibility Study Committee held
its first meeting on May 31, 2012, to begin the
process of establishing the Committee’s operating
procedures that would be followed throughout
the entire study.
• There were numerous document exchanges and
conference calls leading up to the Committee’s
second meeting on December 7, 2012, at which
time the Committee’s operating procedures document was finalized.
• The Job Responsibility Study Committee held
its first field visit on April 10–11, 2013, in the
Atlanta, Georgia, area — a CSX Transportation
property.
• The Job Responsibility Study Committee held its
second field visit on September 25–26, 2013, in
the St. Louis, Missouri, area — a Union Pacific
property.
The field visits included interviews with a variety of
signal craft personnel and visits to signal locations in
the field, all of which helped the Committee to have
an understanding of the responsibility of signal maintenance employees. These meetings are ongoing and
the facts gathered from these meetings will be used as
necessary in the next round of collective bargaining.
Rail Safety Improvement Act
Changes to the industry imposed by the Rail Safety
Improvement Act of 2008 are still significantly
impacting our craft and many of these changes are
still pending full implementation. Positive Train
Control (PTC) has been at the forefront during this
reporting period, but other changes include improvements to the Hours of Service Laws, and significant
improvements to the Grade Crossing Safety
Regulations. A more detailed analysis of
these changes can be found in the
Federal Railroad Administration
Report later in this Officers’
Report.
PTC installation has significantly increased our
membership numbers
during this reporting
period. Some carriers
negotiated contracting agreements; a few
are using their current
workforce; two Class I
carriers chose to negotiate a
helper’s agreement to facilitate
the huge, federally mandated
project.
There has been an ongoing push from the
carriers, since the Rail Safety Improvement Act of
2008 became law, to postpone the current December
31, 2015, PTC implementation deadline for a variety
of reasons. The BRS has consistently held that PTC
will save lives and the deadline is realistic if the carriers commit the resources.
BRS Website
In the third quarter of 2011, the BRS website,
www.brs.org, was redesigned. This redesign included
a members-only login area and free “brs.org” email
accounts for all BRS members, active and retired.
You can find more details in the Official Publications
Report.
Grand Lodge Offices
changes in the Grand Executive Council. The 2010
Convention reelected Dan Pickett to his fifth full
term as President; Walt Barrows was reelected to his
third full term as Secretary-Treasurer; Kelly Haley was
elected to his first full term as Vice President NRAB,
to replace the retiring Charlie McGraw; Floyd Mason
was reelected to his fifth full term as Vice President
East; Joe Mattingly was reelected to his fourth full
term as Vice President Midwest; Dennis Boston was
reelected to his fourth full term as Vice President
Commuter, Passenger, Transit/Political Director;
Mark Ciurej was elected to his first full term as Vice
President West, to replace the retiring George Jones;
and Jerry Boles was elected to his third full term
as Vice President Headquarters.
Secretary-Treasurer Walt A.
Barrows resigned his position
on September 30, 2011,
due to his appointment
as Labor Member on the
Railroad Retirement
Board. Subsequently,
President Pickett,
convened the Grand
Executive Council and
the General Chairmen
on October 10, 2011,
to hold an election to fill
the vacancy, as provided
under Article I, Section 33,
of the Constitution. That election resulted in Jerry Boles being
elected to fill the term of SecretaryTreasurer; Kelly Haley elected to fill the
term of Vice President Headquarters, vacated by Jerry
Boles; and John Bragg elected to fill the term of Vice
President NRAB, vacated by Kelly Haley.
Federal Employers’ Liability Act
Throughout this reporting period, the GEC monitored activities under the Federal Employers’ Liability
Act (FELA). The BRS publishes a list of designated
counsel in The Signalman’s Journal and on the BRS
website. The Grand Executive Council continuously
monitors this list to ensure that those listed maintain
the highest of standards. BRS members are encouraged to provide information regarding FELA cases,
including criticism or commendations regarding the
service of designated counsel. 
During this reporting period, there were some
13
Regular Convention
Report of the Grand Board of Trustees
In accordance with the provisions of Article I, Section
78, of the BRS Constitution,
the Grand Board of Trustees
submits the following report
covering its activities from
the conclusion of the 2010
Convention through April
2014.
Grand Board Trustee
CHAIRMAN
Mike Owens
Following the election of
the Grand Board of Trustees
at the 2010 Convention in
Orlando, Florida, the Board
immediately convened, in
accordance with Article
I, Section 68, of the BRS
Constitution, and elected
M.K. Owens, Chairman;
K.T. Poole, Secretary;
and R.G. Demott, Board
Member.
In November of 2013,
Board Secretary K.T. Poole
announced his retirement.
Grand Board Trustee
Due to the retirement of
SECRETARY
Brother Poole, the BRS
Gus Demott
President, in accordance
with Article I, Section 35, of
the BRS Constitution, convened the Grand Executive
Council and the General
Chairmen to hold an interim election for the vacant
Grand Board of Trustees
position. On December 12,
2013, by a majority vote of
those assembled, Brother
W.L. Duncan, General
Grand Board Trustee
MEMBER
Chairman of the Northeast
William Duncan
General Committee, was
elected to fill the vacant
position on the Grand Board of Trustees. Following the
election of Brother Duncan, and in accordance with
the BRS Constitution, Article I, Section 68, the Board
immediately convened and elected M.K. Owens as
14
Chairman, R.G. Demott as Secretary, and W.L. Duncan
as Member.
As required by Article I, Section 68, of the BRS
Constitution, the Chairman of the Grand Board of
Trustees caused the records of the BRS SecretaryTreasurer to be audited each year by a certified public
accountant. The firm Geissler & Associates has performed those audits. Reports of the audits are on file;
copies of the annual audit and quarterly financial reports
have been issued in accordance with the Constitution.
At the 2010 BRS Convention, Walt Barrows was
reelected as BRS Secretary-Treasurer. The following
year, Brother Barrows was appointed to the position
of Labor Member at the Railroad Retirement Board.
Subsequently, Brother Barrows submitted his resignation
to the BRS President effective September 30, 2011. As
per Article I, Section 34, of the BRS Constitution, the
Chairman of the Grand Board of Trustees caused the
books and accounts of the Secretary-Treasurer be audited
by a firm of certified public accountants. The special
audit, dated September 30, 2011, was conducted by the
firm Geissler & Associates.
In accordance with Article 1, Section 33, of the BRS
Constitution, the BRS President convened the Grand
Executive Council and the General Chairmen, which
by a majority vote elected J.C. Boles as BRS SecretaryTreasurer.
In June of 2010, the Board approved converting
some of the cash assets into railroad stocks. At that
time, the Brotherhood’s railroad investments were
expanded to include the Canadian Pacific. As a result,
the Brotherhood’s railroad holdings are in the UP, NS,
CN, CP, KCS, CSX, and the BNSF through BerkshireHathaway stock.
In March of 2012, the Board approved the purchase of
a Xerox WorkCentre 7775 to replace the older copier at
the headquarters.
In October of 2012, the Board approved the installation
of security cameras at the BRS headquarters in response
to a break-in.
In December of 2012, the Board approved new carpet
and paint for BRS headquarters. The Brotherhood has
operated out of the Front Royal headquarters since
December 2004. The carpet and paint has taken some
wear since then and needed to be replaced in order to
maintain a clean, professional appearance that can serve
the members well.
In April of 2013, the Board approved the creation of a
temporary office position at the headquarters, specifically, to scan numerous paper documents which take
up valuable physical space. The scanned documents
become more accessible to the Grand Lodge and staff
because they are searchable by computer. The Board also
approved the purchase of a production class scanner for
the project.
In April of 2013, the Board initiated and approved the
Adoption of General Fund Investment guidelines.
The Board and the Secretary-Treasurer have invested
the funds of the Brotherhood with a conservative,
union outlook and those investments have provided a
moderate, relatively secure, income stream that meets
our guidelines and principles as a Labor Organization.
Fortunately, membership levels have been steady and
investment returns have been good. However, that
income is in a constant struggle against expenditures
over which we have limited or no control. This includes
such items as transportation, lodging, and staff health
care. Further, legal, contractual, and political fights continue to test our resolve and our finances. The Board’s
view is that the management of our finances must be
both effective and conservative. In order to survive as
an organization, we must manage our current, positive
financial position in a manner that will help us to withstand possible leaner times such as those we have known
in the past.
The Trustees are available to discuss any issue pertaining
to the financial matters of the Brotherhood and welcome earnest suggestions from any member to help provide for a more efficient operation of the Brotherhood.
The Board wishes to note the invaluable service of
Brother K.T. Poole. His efforts and dedication on this
Board and to the Brotherhood are greatly appreciated
and remembered.
The Grand Board of Trustees considers it a true distinction to serve the members of this Brotherhood and we
express our sincere thanks to the Grand Lodge Officers
and office staff for their assistance and cooperation. It
has been a genuine honor to serve in positions of such
responsibility. We hope our efforts have exceeded the
members’ expectations and contributed to making this a
better Union. 
Following the 2010 BRS Convention, the official meetings
of the Grand Board of Trustees were as follows:
December 6-92010
June
6-92011
December 5-82011
August
5-82012
December10-14 2012
29-312013
July
December10-13 2013
March 24-262014
10-112014
April
GENERAL FUND
FYTotal
Ending Income Expenses Net Income Capital
6-30-09 —
—— 3,647,718.67
6-30-10 4,841,979.32 4,428,496.03 413,483.29 4,061,201.96
6-30-11 5,006,621.04 4,945,657.89 60,963.15 4,122,165.11
6-30-12 5,298,304.43 4,719,472.89 578,831.54 4,700,996.65
6-30-13 5,801,843.14 4,673,011.911,128,831.23 5,829,827.88*
2,182,109.21 (2010-2013)
*Increase in net income of $2,182,109.21 equals the increase in
total capital.
CONTINGENT FUND
FYContingent
Ending
Increase DecreaseFund
6-30-09— —3,469,792.49
6-30-1073,056.11
6-30-11
—
—
3,542,848.60
(50,968.40)3,491,880.20
6-30-1279,941.33
—
3,571,821.53
6-30-1381,955.13
—
**
3,653,776.66
234,952.57 (50,968.40)
The contingent fund from 2009-2013 has grown from
$3,469,792.49 to $3,653,776.66 for an increase of $183,984.17.
**
COMBINED FUND
FY Ending Combined Funds
6-30-09
Total increase of
General Fund 2010-2013
Total increase of
Contingent Fund
7,117,511.16
2,182,109.21
183,984.17
6-30-13
2,366,093.38
9,483,604.54
15
Regular Convention
Financial Report
This report covers a period of four years, beginning
April 1, 2010, through March 31, 2014.
Financial Audit
Article I, Section 68, of the Constitution directs the
Chairman of the Grand Board of Trustees to cause
the records of the Secretary-Treasurer to be audited
annually by a firm of certified public accountants. The
Constitution also requires that a copy of the audit be
forwarded to the Recording Secretary of each Local
Lodge.
The records of the Secretary-Treasurer have been
audited in each of the last four fiscal years by certified public accountants from the firm Geissler and
Associates. The fiscal year for Grand Lodge is from
July 1 of one year to June 30 of the following year.
Copies of the audit reports have been furnished
to each Local Lodge and General Committee.
Summaries of those reports have also been published
in “The Signalman’s Journal” to provide all members
with information regarding the financial condition of
Grand Lodge.
Financial Report Statements
Financial Statements Numbers 1 through 7 on the
following pages reflect all financial transactions for the
four-year period beginning April 1, 2010. The reporting period closed March 31, 2014, in accordance with
customary practice to allow time for preparation and
printing of this report.
Statement Number 1 lists total income to and disbursements from the General Fund and Contingent
Fund for the four-year reporting period. This statement provides a ready reference for tracking changes
in the funds since the last Convention report.
All General Fund transactions for the reporting period
are reflected in Statement Number 2. Statement
Number 6 categorizes the travel expenses incurred by
individual Grand Lodge officers and representatives
during the four-year period.
All Contingent Fund transactions for the reporting period are reflected in Statement Number 5.
Statement Number 7 is the schedule of wages currently paid to Grand Lodge officers and representatives.
16
General Fund
The information in Statement Number 2 indicates that the General Fund incurred a net gain of
$2,340,725.76 for the four-year reporting period and
when combined with the Contingent Fund resulted in
a net gain of $2,532,473.04 for the four-year reporting period in the total funds of Grand Lodge. By
contrast, the General Fund as of March 31, 2010, had
incurred a net gain of $1,299,851.77, and combined
funds had a gain of $1,499,985.91.
The General Fund has two major sources of income.
The investment income is explained under the
Investment Income heading. The primary source
of regular income (93.8%) for the General Fund is
the per capita tax paid by members. Obviously, this
income is directly related to the number of Signalmen
working for employers at any given time. Your attention is directed to the membership section of this
Officers’ Report. The chart found in that section
shows our membership increased by 1,377 active
full-dues members. Every increase of 100 members
raises our income $54,120.00 annually. The gain of
1,377 members translates into an annual income of
$745,232 in per capita tax.
Contingent Fund
Statement Number 5 indicates the Contingent Fund
incurred a net income of $191,747.28 for the fouryear reporting period. By contrast, the Contingent
Fund as of March 31, 2010, had incurred a net
income of $200,134.14 for the preceding four-year
period.
Income for the four-year period included allocation from the General Fund in the amount of
$317,404.00.
The only major disbursement from the Contingent
Fund was the Convention credit in August 2010,
totaling $124,814.04 and no disbursements were
made during the four-year reporting period as a result
of strike activity.
Investment Income
While return on investment has always been an issue,
it became more of a concern when the Constitution
was first amended to allow income generated by the
Contingent Fund to be transferred to the General
Fund. A 1% change in our return on investment
is currently about $52,000.00 annually for the
Contingent Fund and increases to 78,000.00 with the
new General Fund investments.
The General Fund investment guidelines are as follows:
The goal of the BRS investment strategy is to maintain
some liquidity for payments during a strike, maximize
return on income producing investments for continued use in the General Fund, produce growth on
investments in equities, and protect the fund from any
large losses.
Fixed Income Allocation
The foundation of a successful investment strategy is
the asset allocation. In 2005 and 2008, the SecretaryTreasurer and the Grand Board of Trustees consulted
investment advisors to review the asset allocation.
Since the 2008 revision, the asset allocation for the
Contingent Fund has remained unchanged.
Equities Allocation
Investment Allocation
35%– 70%— Fixed Income
30%– 6 5% — Equities
0%–10%— Cash
35% –70% — Secured investments
(CDs, US Treasury, or Agency bonds)
0%–35%—Investment Grade bonds
(including bond funds)
30%–85%— Large Cap US
5%–25%— Mid Cap US
(excluding railroads)
5%–15% —Small and Mid Cap US
Following this strategy, stock, bond and CD investments were made through an investment advisor
at Wells Fargo Advisors and CDs were purchased
through CD Securities.
The current investment strategy has proven to be beneficial. During very volatile markets, the annualized
rate of return for BRS investments held at Wells Fargo
Advisors for the past four years was 12.57%. The current return on Contingent Fund CD investments at
CD Securities is 1.15%. The total Contingent Fund
investment income during the four-year period ending March 31, 2014, was $533,044.79 compared to
$551,052.63 in the period ending March 31, 2010.
In addition to the realized gains, booked as income,
the Contingent Fund investments currently have
$1,455,250.07 of unrealized gains.
In May of 2013 the Secretary-Treasurer with the
approval of the Grand Board of Trustees opened an
investment account with Branch Banking and Trust
after consulting with their financial advisors. A low risk
investment strategy was adopted for the General Fund
to get a better return on investment while CD rates
hovered just over the 1% range. The fund was opened
with an initial investment of $1,000,000.00 and has
since generated a return on investment of just over
10% while the yield on CD’s continue at 1.78%. 
17
Statement No. 1
GENERAL FUND — April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2014
Income
Disbursements
Net Income (Loss)
2010
April–June1,231,521.97 1,468,785.90
(237,263.93)
2010–2011
July–June5,006,621.04 4,945,657.89
60,963.15
2011–2012
July–June5,298,304.43 4,719,472.89
578,831.54
2012–2013
July–June5,801,843.14 4,673,011.91 1,128,831.23
2013–2014
July–March4,681,330.50
809,363.77
19,678,895.32
2,340,725.76
ONTINGENT FUND — April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2014
C
Income
Disbursements
Net Income (Loss)
2010–2014 Totals
22,019,621.08
3,871,966.73
2010
April–June18,218.00
45.10
18,172.90
2010–2011
July–June74,028.00124,996.40 (50,968.40)
2011–2012
July–June80,110.00
168.67 79,941.33
2012–2013
July–June82,148.00
192.87 81,955.13
2013–2014
July–March62,900.00
253.68
2010–2014 Totals
317,404.00
62,646.32
125,656.72
191,747.28
RECAPITULATION — April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2014
General Fund
Net Income (Loss) Contingent Fund
Net Income (Loss) 2010
April–June(237,263.93)
Combined Funds
Net Income (Loss)
18,172.90
(219,091.03)
2010–2011
July–June 60,963.15(50,968.40)
9,994.75
2011–2012
July–June578,831.54 79,941.33 658,772.87
2012–2013
July–June1,128,831.23
81,955.13 1,210,786.36
2013–2014
July–March809,363.77
62,646.32
2010–2014 Totals
18
2,340,725.76
191,747.28
872,010.09
2,532,473.04
Statement No. 2
GENERAL FUND — Profit & Loss — April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2014
Ordinary Income/Expense
Income
Convention Entertain, Donations217,204.00
Local/GC Accounting Fees
77,324.73
Interest
92,582.28
Interest Contingent Fund
533,044.79
Interest General Fund — BB&T 19,780.49
Membership Fees (Initiation)
198,200.00
Miscellaneous
152,695.30
Per Capita Tax
20,657,277.06
Per Capita Tax Late Fees
-25.00
Sale of Supplies
70,931.43
Subscriptions
606.00
Total Income
22,019,621.08
Expense
Contingent Fund Allocation
317,404.00
Contributions & Donations
118,008.95
Convention
853,173.41
Direct Taxes/Use Tax
10,512.14
Dep. Building
241,792.36
Dep. Other
178,864.12
2,137,645.80
Health & Welfare Benefits
Office & Administrative
Advertising
8,118.92
Bank Charges
30,203.35
Brokerage Management Fee
4,394.01
Building Expense
318,843.33
Express Mail Charges
35,720.11
Flowers
1,376.40
186,214.01
Food Service
67,899.25
Insurance Expense
45,952.02
Meeting Rooms
Membership & Registration 110,026.43
Rent — Office/Storage
107,506.83
672,577.36
Supplies
Total
Office
&
Administrative1,588,832.02
Payroll Expenses
Officer Salary
Payroll Taxes
Representative Salary
Employee Salary
Special Detail Salary
Total Payroll Expenses
3,613,427.52
1,402,897.78
1,686,107.17
2,346,024.95
12,200.24
9,060,657.66
Pension — Retired Officers
188,672.95
46,876.32
Pension Benefits — Local 1546
Per Capita Taxes
AFL- CIO
323,022.65
32,825.40
Assessments — AFL-CIO
113,017.50
TTD
34,080.00
TTD-Rail Labor
Union Label
9,600.00
Total Per Capita Taxes
512,545.55
Postage
Printing
Professional Fees
Accounting & Auditing
Attorney
Professional Services
Total Professional Fees
119,277.82
41,786.61
86,985.00
351,561.29
183,150.91
621,697.20
Real Estate Tax
35,415.04
Ry Pub & Stat Data
81,921.03
Telephone
171,126.79
The Signalman’s Journal
Articles
1,680.00
Binding
3,797.95
Print & Mail
350,856.16
Update — Print & Mail
13,051.74
Total The Signalman’s Journal 369,385.85
Education & Training
23,872.72
Travel Expenses
Expenses — Travel Officers 1,199,736.52
Expenses — Travel Reps.
273,354.89
Expenses — Travel Special Detail10,589.52
Expenses — Travel Employees 21,030.05
Transportation Officers
1,212,682.35
Transportation Reps.
199,124.73
Transportation Special Detail 13,851.37
Transportation Employees
29,057.55
Total Travel Expenses
2,959,426.98
Total Expense
19,678,895.32
Net Ordinary Income
2,340,725.76
Net Income
2,340,725.76
19
Statement No. 3
GENERAL FUND — Balance Sheet Changes — April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2014
March 31, 2010
March 31, 2014
$ Change
Assets
Current Assets
Checking/Savings
Wells Fargo Bank — Checking
1,024,136.59
1,996,015.11
971,878.52
Wells Fargo Bank — CD
22,094.23
22,396.40
302.17
Wells Fargo Bank — SAS Relief
225.00
— (225.00)
BB&T S&S Money Market
— 26,690.46
26,690.46
Petty Cash
200.00
200.00
—
Total Checking/Savings
1,046,655.82
2,045,301.97
998,646.15
Accounts Receivable
Accounts Receivable
3,235.80
5,276.72
2,040.92
Total Accounts Receivable
3,235.80
5,276.72
2,040.92
Other Current Assets
Securities (Bonds & CDs)
993,000.00 1,490,980.00 497,980.00
Securities (Stocks & Mutual Funds)
—
988,696.02 988,696.02
Expense Advances
3,500.00 2,500.00
(1,000.00)
Total Prepaid Expenses
50,222.35 119,086.43 68,864.08
Security Deposit
436.60
—
(436.60)
Total Other Current Assets
1,047,158.95 2,601,262.45 1,554,103.50
Total Current Assets
2,097,050.57
4,651,841.14 2,554,790.57
Fixed Assets
Building
Depreciation
(263,714.58)
(505,506.94)
(241,792.36)
Front Royal Original Cost
2,278,610.18
2,335,279.71
56,669.53
Land
Front Royal Original Cost
81,663.00 81,663.00
—
Office Furniture & Equipment
Depreciation
(324,417.30)
(325,069.91)
(652.61)
Original Cost
424,595.77
402,823.28
(21,772.49)
Telephone System
Depreciation
(30,783.81)
(39,623.90)
(8,840.09)
Original Cost
39,623.90
39,623.90
—
Total Fixed Assets
2,205,577.16
1,989,189.14 (216,388.02)
Total Assets 4,302,627.73
6,641,030.28 2,338,402.55
Liabilities & Equity
Liabilities
Current Liabilities
Other Current Liabilities
Total Payroll Liabilities
Total Other Current Liabilities
Total Current Liabilities
Total Liabilities
Equity
General Fund Balance
Total Equity
Total Liabilities & Equity
20
4,161.84 4,161.84 4,161.84
4,161.84
1,838.63 1,838.63
1,838.63
1,838.63
(2,323.21)
(2,323.21)
(2,323.21)
(2,323.21)
4,298,465.89
4,298,465.89
4,302,627.73
6,639,191.65
6,639,191.65
6,641,030.28
2,340,725.76
2,340,725.76
2,338,402.55
Statement No. 4
CONTINGENT FUND — Balance Sheet Changes — April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2014
March 31, 2010
March 31, 2014
$ Change
Assets
Current Assets
Checking/Savings
Wells Fargo Bank
12,335.91
46,262.61
33,926.70
Money Market
288,745.08
125,160.53
(163,584.55)
Total Checking/Savings
301,080.99
171,423.14 (129,657.85)
Other Current Assets
AFL-CIO Housing Fund
120,002.64
141,783.05
21,780.41
A/R Items of Exchange
—
(11,585.22)
(11,585.22)
Securities (Bonds & CDs)
2,058,730.30
2,120,465.04
61,734.74
Securities (Stocks)
1,044,861.77
1,294,336.97
249,475.20
Total Other Current Assets
3,223,594.71
3,544,999.84
321,405.13
Total Current Assets
3,524,675.70 3,716,422.98 191,747.28
Total Assets
3,524,675.70
3,716,422.98
191,747.28
Liabilities & Equity
Liabilities
—
——
Equity
3,524,675.70
3,716,422.98
191,747.28
Total Liabilities & Equity
3,524,675.70
3,716,422.98
191,747.28
Group Insurance Program
The Brotherhood’s Group Insurance Program was initiated by the Grand Executive Council to provide an
opportunity for BRS members to obtain supplemental insurance coverage at group rates. The Insurance
Program currently provides access to a broad range of
coverage for selection by BRS members on an individual
basis.
Programs Sponsored by BRS
The BRS presently sponsors programs offered by two
companies, Union Labor Life Insurance Company
(ULLICO) and American Income Life Insurance (AIL).
The Grand Executive Council endorsed ULLICO in
1990 for the purpose of offering a life insurance program to BRS members.
AIL was endorsed in 1993 by the Grand Executive
Council to provide a full range of programs, including
whole life, term insurance, disability income protection,
supplemental hospitalization, accidental hospitalization
and a vision maintenance program.
The BRS incurs no expense in making the group
insurance programs available and the Brotherhood of
Railroad Signalmen, and its officers and representatives receive no income from the plan administrators
in connection with the Brotherhood’s Group Insurance
Program. Plan administrators are directed to return any
profits from the programs to the individual participants.
Union Plus Insurance
Union Plus offers a variety of insurance products,
such as: Auto Insurance, UnionSecure Insurance, Pet
Insurance, and Retiree Insurance. Visit the Union Plus
website for more information on these programs —
www.unionplus.org.
Ongoing Program Evaluation
The BRS continues to monitor the quality and service
of the current plan administrators under the Program.
The Brotherhood also continues to evaluate the need
for making additional coverage available under the
Program.
This monitoring and evaluation is meant to ensure
that Signalmen and their families participating in the
Program receive the best value for their investment
and know that the Program is responsive to the needs
expressed by BRS members. To that end, concerns
expressed by BRS members about AIL program administration have been addressed and will continue to be
closely monitored. 
21
Statement No. 5
CONTINGENT FUND — Profit & Loss — April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2014
Income
General Fund Allocation
Total Income
Disbursements
Bank Charges
Convention Credit
Total Disbursements
Net Income
317,404.00
317,404.00
842.68
124,814.04
125,656.72
191,747.28
Statement No. 6
OFFICERS’ EXPENSES — April 1, 2010 through March 31, 2014
WD PICKETT
P
WA BARROWS
S-T
JC BOLES
S-T
FE MASON
VP
DM BOSTON
VP
JL MATTINGLY
VP
MJ CIUREJ
VP
KA HALEY
VP
JC BRAGG
VP
GE JONES
VP
CA MCGRAW
VP
L PARKER JR
GLR MS BALDWIN
GLR GLR JM FINNEGAN
TM TARRANT
GLR
MK OWENS
T
KT POOLE
T
RG DEMOTT
T
WL DUNCAN
T
TOTAL
TRANSPORTATION
328,407.73 36,395.51 109,357.07 132,031.67 188,083.07 125,133.10 135,973.67 62,795.58 74,018.83 18,650.99 9,626.42 45,451.17 51,046.59 33,982.23 27,072.87 16,753.19 10,396.40 6,490.87 140.12 1,411,807.08 EXPENSES
286,030.01 43,997.85 116,626.63 194,688.71 149,150.81 145,342.07 111,680.00 64,098.87 85,678.28 23,240.91 3,383.94 84,546.94 68,113.87 42,938.15 26,755.04 7,684.35 12,519.18 6,507.44 108.36 1,473,091.41 TOTAL
614,437.74
80,393.36
225,983.70
326,720.38
337,233.88
270,475.17
247,653.67
126,894.45
159,697.11
41,891.90
13,010.36
129,998.11
119,160.46
76,920.38
53,827.91
24,437.54
22,915.58
12,998.31
248.48
2,884,898.49
Statement No. 7
SALARIES for Grand Lodge Officers
EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2013
PER YEAR
President 141,103.63
Secretary-Treasurer
Vice President
22
114,899.62
109,521.45
Grand Lodge Representatives
PER MONTH
8,194.91
Grand Board of Trustee
DAILY
331.51
Grand Executive Council Meetings
DATELOCATION
July
21–23 2010
December
8–9 2010
June
9–10 2011
October
10 2011
November
30 2011
December
7–8 2011
December
28 2011
Orlando, FL
Front Royal, VA
Front Royal, VA
Front Royal, VA
Conference Call
Front Royal, VA
Conference Call
DATELOCATION
January
3 2012 Conference Call
April
May
August
7–8 2012 Front Royal, VA
December 13–14 2012 Front Royal, VA
June
December 12–13 2013 Front Royal, VA
General Chairmen’s Meetings
Under Article I, Section 83, of the Constitution, the
President convenes the General Chairmen at least once each
year.
Article I, Sections 32, 33, and 35, of the Constitution, provides that the Grand Executive Council and the General
Chairmen will be convened whenever there is a vacancy of
any Grand Lodge office for the purpose of holding an election to fill the vacant office.
Article I, Section 65, of the Constitution provides that
national notices to be served under Section 6 of the Railway
Labor Act must be approved by a majority of the General
Chairmen representing affected members. Similar approval is
required for the national agreement ratification process.
Pursuant to the foregoing, the following General Chairmen’s
meetings were held during this reporting period:
DATELOCATION
October
22 2010 Las Vegas, NV
August 25–26 2011 Dawson, PA
October
December
10 2011 Front Royal, VA (Trustee Election)
6 2011 Front Royal, VA (Ratification)
October
August
8–9 2013 Dawson, PA
December
12 2013 Front Royal, VA (Trustee Election)
23
Regular Convention
Vice Presidents’ Activities
Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen Vice Presidents, in accordance with
Article I, Section 42, of the Brotherhood’s Constitution, are under the supervision and direction of the President. During this reporting period, assignment of the officers in the six Vice President positions has remained consistent
with the Brotherhood’s previous operating practices. The following outline
reflects the current assignment status of these offices.
CONVENTION REPORT OF — Floyd E. Mason
Vice President assigned to the East Region
This is the Convention report of Floyd E. Mason, Vice
President East for the period of April 2010 to March
31, 2014. The office of Vice President East, in connection with Grand Lodge officers, along with general
committee officers, as well as local officers and members, have made some important improvements during
the report period.
About the East Jurisdiction
The East jurisdiction ended the reporting period with
3470 members verses 3024 members from the previous
reporting period, indicating an increase of 13%. The
East jurisdiction includes
CSXT (B&O, B&OCT,
C&OCD/PM, CSXTN
{former Conrail}, RF&P,
Clinchfield, L&N/C&EI,
SCL {w former A&WP},
and Monon), NSR (ERN
former Conrail), N&W,
Southern (including former
CofGA), the Pan Am RR
(former Springfield Term.),
the D&H, the P&W,
the NYS&W (1st CBA
2007), St. Lawrence and
Atlantic, Conrail (referred
to the Shared Asset Areas).
Commuter operations over
freight railroads include
Tri-Rail, MARC, as well
as VRE and potentially
Sunrail.
24
FLOYD E. MASON
Vice President East Region
The membership levels increased steadily throughout
the period despite the significant attrition. Negotiation
of provisions covering Positive Train Control had the
greatest impact to membership levels, and, to a lesser
extent, expansion of signal systems, and, as in previous
periods, protecting work and active involvement in
disputes has contributed to these membership levels.
Hiring continues on NSR and CSX and increases are
expected on the Pan Am. In addition, we are presently
engaged in a Representation election on Sunrail where
maintenance and future construction work could add
dozens of new members on that commuter/freight
operation.
The East administers 20 separate collective bargaining
agreements and a variety of national, system and local
agreements that apply to multiple properties. The territory covers 27 states, Washington, D.C., and part of
Canada.
There are 11 General Chairmen (6 full time), and two
additional full-time Committee officers in the East
Jurisdiction.
Important Issues April 2010–March 2014
Representatives and Representation
There were changes in the full-time General Chairmen
positions as Mike Efaw was elected to head the B&O
General Committee. There were changes in part-time
General Chairmen also as Joe Clark was elected to the
B&OCT position, previously held by Jeff Beal; Don
Westbrooks filled the RF&P position, previously filled
by Walter Moorehouse; and Eric McDonald became
General Chairman of the Monon. Longtime Assistant
General Chairman Bill “Cookie” Keebler passed away
unexpectedly in April 2013, and a new full-time officer,
Jason Worcester was appointed to take his place. In
addition, Terry Hedges, the UGC General Secretary
Treasurer retired and his position was filled by Les
Miller.
The B&O General Committee was returned to
autonomous operation after a period of operation in
Trusteeship by the BRS national organization.
The relatively newly organized New York and
Susquehanna Railroad is presently under its second
Collective Bargaining Agreement after the second
Section 6 process, following its joining the BRS. The
NYS&W is part of the United General Committee
and, has over this relatively short period, established
new work rules that include reducing the total number
of hours worked before overtime is paid from more
than 60 to the present 45 hours, an increase in expense
reimbursement of 11.2%, and the establishment of a
401(k) plan. It is encouraging to know that the new
members of BRS Local 240, our newest chartered
Local, have gained in wages and working conditions
that have made joining the BRS, in addition to many
other benefits, a good financial decision for these new
members. Nathan Young is the Local Chairman for
Local 240.
CSXT Positive Train Control
An agreement was made effective December 1, 2010.
The Agreement addressed several concerns beyond
CSXT’s potential need to subcontract, including maintenance pay: $1 to $1.20 per hour for maintenance,
longevity pay $1 for 17 years, $2 for 25 years if working in maintenance positions and contracting is necessary. No contracting is presently occurring.
One important aspect of the Agreement is the requirement to hire additional employees which has reduced
any need for outside help. The Agreement required
that CSXT hire and graduate from initial orientation
every three weeks a class of Helpers until a total of 274
Helpers were added to perform construction of PTC.
Importantly, the Agreement required the hiring of
Assistant Signalmen to fill each maintenance vacancy
created by employees moving to construction positions.
In total, more than 500 new Signalmen were added to
our roles, exceeding the rate of attrition as intended.
Many separate local issues were resolved in connection
with this Agreement and CSXT Shop Representation,
which had been divided between various former com-
ponent properties, was transferred to the SEGC. Shop
employees were provided a one-time out, receive the
maintenance pay increase but not longevity pay.
NSR Positive Train Control
The parties met regularly throughout the period that
PTC Agreements were negotiated with other Class
I Railroads. NSR’s initial position was that it could,
and would, subcontract as much as possible on the
Southern, due to a Scope Rule 1 (i) allowing contracting of “large installations,” move system gangs to
N&W, ERN and without agreement changes install
PTC. Alternatively, if it could not it would get the time
frame for PTC installation extended beyond December
31, 2015. In the interim, all other Class I Railroads
made agreements. At that time there were no extensions forthcoming and NSR requested to discuss subcontracting of PTC on N&W, ERN, and Central of
Georgia, the agreement areas where subcontracting was
not permitted.
Our initial response, supported by all committees, was
that NSR would have to eliminate Scope Rule 1(i),
which allows so-called limited subcontracting. In addition, NSR sought extensive seniority district changes,
including the elimination of the CofGa.
The Agreement made was implemented fully by June
18, 2013. Some limited provisions went into effect
May 31, 2013. Of interest, the Agreement reserves all
PTC work to BRS (defined as all work not involving
on-board or base station locations in the communication system). The Agreement allows contracting which
will start June 18, 2013, in exchange for hiring ten new
employees per month beginning March 2013, and continuing as long as contracting of PTC occurs on NSR.
The Agreement provides maintenance employees $1.20
additional per hour and provides terms to extend both
if a time extension is granted by the Government.
The Central of Georgia merged into the Southern
and members were paid lump sums that ranged
from $5000.00 to $60,000.00 based on seniority,
and provisions to protect their interests as part of the
Southern Agreement were negotiated. Effective June
18, 2013, maintenance employee pay increased by
$1.20 per hour, rolling in the skill differential, and
limits were placed on the ability of NSR to contract on
the Southern. We have worked through a number of
implementation disputes as they arose through periodic
meetings with NSR.
25
An expanded Committee chaired by President Pickett
has started building the necessary facts to support a
conclusion of additional pay. Joint meetings, including
interviews and field visits by both NCCC and BRS,
have occurred on CSX near Atlanta and UP near St.
Louis. The record is establishing a factual basis that may
lead to additional pay based on the responsibility of our
craft.
Setbacks
Job Responsibility — BRS Craft Specific
Issue PEB 243
Chairing the group that presented to PEB 243, a joint
presentation included testimony from Brothers Burton,
technical trainer CSX, and Brother Snyder, BN Signal
Maintainer. John Bragg, Mike Baldwin, and I prepared
witness testimony, including questions and answers.
The BRS negotiating committee and Brother Haley
participated in editing and reviewing material with the
witnesses.
We made our argument to PEB 243 for additional pay
for Signalmen based on the extensive responsibility of
our craft, particularly members engaged in maintenance
and FRA testing. Included in the record were material
from the extensive training programs for Signalmen.
We argued in the record that Signal Maintenance members should be provided rate increases based on their
increased technical ability (including training and experience), the responsibility of maintenance positions due
in large part to federal regulations, and the increased
productivity Signal Maintenance employees provide the
railroad.
The Board (November 6, 2011), recommended a single
fact-finding study, Responsibility Study, to involve representatives and/or witnesses from all Carriers which
would lead to either a mutually agreeable solution,
or barring that, provide a factual record for resolution in the Section 6 process in the upcoming round.
Following bargaining on November 8 and November
16, 2011, a tentative agreement was reached. The Job
Responsibility Study will determine facts in connection with the “productivity, technical ability, effort and
job responsibilities” of Signal Maintenance employees.
If agreement cannot be reached for the development
of a factual record, a Neutral, confined to resolving
areas of disagreement, will make a final determination.
26
The reporting period was not without setbacks.
Important High-Speed Rail Projects intended to be
a keystone program in the Obama Administration’s
Economic Stimulus Program were canceled or delayed
throughout the country. Particularly disappointing
was the cancellation of the Ohio 3C Project intended
to establish commuter service between Cleveland,
Columbus, Cincinnati, (and Dayton). Myself, Eldon
Luttrell and Kurt Mullins had made significant progress
advocating for the interest of Signalmen for the project
with Ohio State DOT Secretary Jolene Molitoris under
then Governor Strickland. An election of a governor
not friendly to our interests saw the projects and the
hundreds of millions of dollars that could have supported additional good paying railroad jobs go by the
wayside as politics trumped public interest.
There was, however, significant progress in this area on
a variety of commuter/freight rail projects.
Commuter/Freight Rail Expansions
Sunrail
In November 2011, CSX abolished BRS-represented
maintenance positions on a 60-mile segment of track
engaged in the interstate commerce of freight, sold the
line to the state of Florida, and our represented employees exercised seniority to other parts of CSX. A group
involving myself, Gus Demott, SCL GC, along with
Rich Edelman and Dan Pickett, and Signalmen from
the SCL exercised extensive involvement at the state
level opposing this move. Our efforts were strongly supported by Mike Williams and the Florida AFL-CIO.
The BRS ultimately obtained a written commitment
from FDOT that signal maintenance work would be
performed on this segment by a Rail Carrier, preserving
our right to organize railroad members and preserving
the rights associated with RRB, FELA, and RLA to
newly organized members if we were successful. The
Agreement brought all signal maintenance work under
BRS representation, provided a Rail Carrier was available to perform the work. Our Agreement additionally
extended to Phase II of the construction work (Phase
I was in progress and was lost during the fight to nonrailroad employees).
The BRS is the only rail labor organization to expand
membership over the Sunrail (FTA funded) project, as
all other rail labor organizations gave up without a fight
in exchange for protective benefits for their members.
Many years prior, BRS preserved signal work on TriRail, a segment of freight/commuter rail service that
runs from West Palm Beach to Homestead, Florida.
The BRS was the only unionized rail labor signal
employees to perform construction work and BRS continues to represent Signalmen after that line transferred
from CSXT to the state of Florida (and is presently
BRS represented).
Following a lawsuit to enforce our Agreement about
Sunrail with the state of Florida, a rail carrier, TASI, was
ultimately awarded the signal maintenance work. We
have established a Representation Election under RLA
rules. The votes will be counted in April.
Worchester to Boston — This office worked with
VP Dennis Boston, and GCs Eldon Luttrell and Dave
Ingersoll to successfully transfer CSXT members and
representation from the CSXTN Agreement to MBCR.
New York Line — Working with VP Dennis Boston,
and GCs Eldon Luttrell and Dave Ingersoll, we transferred members and representation from the CSXTN
Agreement to Amtrak.
Michigan Line — Again, working with VP Dennis
Boston, and GCs Eldon Luttrell and Dave Ingersoll
members and representation were transferred from the
NSR ERN Agreement to Amtrak.
National Training Committee
As Chair of the National Training Committee, I serve
with VP Joe Mattingly, VP Mark Ciurej, and Trustee
Chairman Mike Owens, along with President Pickett.
Together, we have helped to develop Signal Training
processes and our goal is to increase that effort consistent with mandates in the Rail Safety Act. We have
begun the work to coordinate our efforts with a training group, working to develop training for all crafts in
rail transit.
Current Projects
As chair of a bargaining committee with full-time GCs
Luttrell, Demott, Duncan, Vincent and Efaw, we have
worked on a voluntary effort to reduce the number
of CBAs on CSXT. The effort of a little over a year
has made progress, but our work has been substantially hampered by a constant rotation of CSX Labor
Relations officers, including the dismissal of two, the
reassignment of one, and the demotion of another.
As we close the reporting period, we have started an
initiative to bring journeymen and continue training
to NSR. A committee headed by myself, GCs Luttrell,
Everett and Mullins are establishing Committee and
Local officers to work with NSR signal management to
expand training in this area that is long overdue.
Best Accomplishments
If I had to point to progress on two issues that bring
the most satisfaction over the reporting period, I would
point to 1) the reduction in NSR’s ability to subcontract work, both in the present and to an even greater
extent in the future once PTC systems are installed, and
2) preserving Rail Carrier status on Sunrail (previously
CSX) and the resultant representation election. 
All three of the example line transfers above had the
potential for Sunrail-like consequences. Through effort
and some sacrifice we were able to hold onto BRS representation providing for the members that were doing
the work to follow their jobs and retain a flow-back
right through a leave of absence. These efforts and the
effort on Sunrail has slowed these sham transactions, at
least for now.
Local Matters — There were a variety of local agreements made with terms beneficial to Signalmen during the reporting period with the assistance of this
office. The resolution of these matters saved arbitration
resources and brought fair settlements for our members.
These settlements were developed in conjunction with
then VP Boles and the arbitration department.
27
CONVENTION REPORT OF — Joe L. Mattingly
Vice President assigned to the Midwest Region
This report covers activities from March 1, 2010,
through March 31, 2014. The Midwest Region’s Office
is presently headquartered in Trenton, Kentucky.
The following is a list of some of Brother Mattingly’s
activities that cover this reporting period:
• Attended 50th Regular Convention July 26–30,
2010, in Orlando, Florida.
• Attended BRS Grand Executive Council
Meetings.
• Attended regular and special meetings of BRS
Local Lodges and General Committees when
requested and as time and finances permitted.
• Researched, prepared and assisted General
Committees, Negotiating Committees and Local
Lodges with Memorandums of Agreements, dispute resolutions, membership services and Section
6 contract proposals.
• Assisted members with Labor Protective Benefits
concerning Feb. 7 and New York Dock Protective
Benefits.
• Attended BRS Local and General Chairman’s
Training Seminars.
• Coordinated and attended Joint Midwest General
Chairman’s Meetings.
• Attended Transportation Trades Department –
Rail Labor Division Meetings.
• Serves as a member of the BRS National
Responsibility Committee’s Work Study Group.
• Attended the Railway Systems Suppliers, Inc.
(RSSI) C&S Exhibitions.
• Attended AAR Technical Conferences on railroad
signaling and communications.
• Served as a Communications & Signal Labor
Member of the American Railway Engineering
and Maintenance of Way Association.
• Serves as a member of the BRS National Training
Committee.
• Attended Designated Legal Council Meetings.
• Coordinated BRS Section 6 notices and assisted
signal and communications employees on
28
the Dakota
Minnesota &
Eastern Railroad
in reaching their
first Collective
Bargaining
Agreement.
Agreement
Administration
JOE L. MATTINGLY
Vice President Midwest
Reviewed claims and
grievances as a member of the Review Committee and progressed claims
and grievances as prescribed by Article I, Section 64, of
the BRS Constitution.
Lobbying legislative objectives of:
• Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS).
• Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO
(TTD).
• American Federation of Labor and Congress of
Industrial Organization (AFL-CIO).
• Met with candidates holding and seeking public
office to enlist support for issues supported by
BRS members; Railroad Retirement Reform being
the key issue.
• Attended meetings with the Association of
American Railroads, individual railroads,
American Short Line Railroad Association, and
the American Public Transportation Association.
Attended meetings to address BRS issues with Federal
agencies in the Washington, D.C. area. These agencies included:
• U.S. Department of Transportation
• U.S. Department of Labor
• Federal Railroad Administration
• Federal Transit Administration
• National Labor Relations Board
• National Transportation Safety Board
• National Mediation Board
• National Railroad Adjustment Board
• U.S. Railroad Retirement Board
• Public Law Boards
• U.S. Surface Transportation Board
Duties also involved addressing BRS issues with the
following associations, committees, and institutes:
• Association of American Railroads
• American Public Transit Association
• American Association of Arbitrators
• American Railway Engineering and Maintenance
of Way Association
• Bureau of Labor Statistics
• George Meany Center
• National Carriers’ Conference Committee
• High-Speed Ground Transportation Association
• Railway Progress Institute
• Volpe Safety Center
Additional Assignments:
FRA — Rail Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC):
The Midwest Vice President continues to serve as
one of the two BRS alternate voting members allotted to the Federal Railroad Administration’s Rail
Safety Advisory Committee. The FRA/RSAC agenda
is subject to change, including the possible addition of further proposed tasks under the Rail Safety
Improvement Act of 2008.
FRA — Fatality Analysis of Maintenance-of-Way
Employes and Signalmen (FAMES): The Midwest
Vice President continues to serve as a member of
an industry task group with the Federal Railroad
Administration to analyze roadway worker fatalities. The task group is named the Fatality Analysis
of Maintenance-of-Way Employes and Signalmen
(FAMES). The Mission of the FAMES group is to
analyze all fatalities and select related incidents in order
to make recommendations to reduce the risk of future
occurrences and eliminate fatalities to roadway workers.
FRA — Positive Train Control Implementing Work
Group (PTC): The Midwest Vice President was
assigned by President Pickett to an industry task group
with the Federal Railroad Administration to develop
implementing regulations for Positive Train Control
(PTC) Systems and their deployment under the Rail
Safety Act of 2008.
Status of Section 6 Negotiations —
Midwest Region:
Alton & Southern Railway: Alton & Southern
Railway employees belong to Local #132. They are
members of the Union Pacific General Committee
and are represented by General Chairman John
McArthur and Assistant General Chairman Harry
Doucet. During the 2010 round of negotiations,
the A&S was represented by the National Carriers’
Conference Committee with respect to its National
Section 6 notice. The new National Agreement was
ratified on February 2, 2012. The terms of the current Agreement run through December 31, 2014.
However, either party may serve a new contract notice
after November 1, 2014, not to become effective
before January 1, 2015.
Belt Railway of Chicago: Belt Railway of Chicago
employees belong to Local #194. They are members of
the BRS Northeast General Committee and are represented by General Chairman Bill Duncan. During
the 2010 round of negotiations, the Belt Railway of
Chicago was represented by the National Carriers’
after November 1, 2014, not to become effective
before January 1, 2015.
29
Canadian National Railway:
(Grand Trunk Western) Grand Trunk & Western
employees belong to Local #14. They are members of
the BRS Northeast General Committee and are represented by General Chairman Bill Duncan. The Grand
Trunk & Western’s current Agreement was signed on
June 26, 2013, in Homewood, Illinois. The terms
of the current Agreement run from July 1, 2010, to
December 31, 2014. However, either party may serve
a new contract notice after November 1, 2014.
by Soo Line General Committee Chairman Keith
Huebner. During the 2010 round of negotiations, the
CP/Soo Line was represented by the National Carrier’s
ratified on February 2, 2012. The terms of the current
Agreement run through December 31, 2014. However,
either party may serve a new contract notice after November 1, 2014, not to become effective before January
1, 2015.
(Illinois Central Gulf) Illinois Central employees
belong to Locals #51, #81, #107, #162, and #191.
They are members of the Illinois Central General
Committee and are represented by General Chairman
Dave Picou. The terms of the current Agreement run
from July 1, 2010, to December 31, 2014. However,
either party may serve a new contract notice after
November 1, 2014.
(Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad
Corporation — Iowa, Chicago & Eastern Railway)
Soo Line Local #226 has incorporated the members
of the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern into its Local
Lodge. BRS members on the Dakota, Minnesota
& Eastern are represented by Soo Line General
Committee Chairman Keith Huebner. The DM&E’s
current Agreement was signed on August 1, 2011. The
terms of the Agreement run from August 1, 2011, to
January 1, 2015. However, either party may serve a
new contract notice after July 1, 2014. On January 2,
2014, Canadian Pacific and Genesee & Wyoming Inc.
announced that they have executed an agreement pursuant to which CP will sell the west end of its Dakota,
Minnesota & Eastern (DM&E) line to G&W for
continued rail operations. The west end encompasses
approximately 660 miles of CP’s current operations.
(Bessemer & Lake Erie) Bessemer & Lake Erie
employees belong to Local #15. The General
Chairman of the Bessemer & Lake Erie General
Committee is Kevin Walker. Our current Agreement
covers the Canadian National/Bessemer and Lake Erie
Railroad members from January 1, 2005, through
December 31, 2009. Via notice dated December 16,
2009, the Bessemer & Lake Erie General Chairman
served a Section 6 notice on the Canadian National
requesting to revise and supplement all existing agreements in accordance with its proposed notice. A tentative agreement was reached between the parties on
February 6, 2014. The agreement ballot was sent to
the membership on February 14, 2014, and was subsequently ratified.
(Wisconsin Central — Signal & Communications
Department Technicians) Wisconsin Central employees are members of BRS Local #239. They are members of the Wisconsin Central General Committee and
are represented by General Chairman Butch Hillila.
The current Agreement was signed on June 29, 2012,
in Homewood, Illinois. The terms of the Agreement
run from January 1, 2010, to December 31, 2015.
after November 1, 2014. The Wisconsin Central
members have a newly codified agreement following
major rule changes.
Canadian Pacific Railway:
(Soo Line Railroad Company) BRS members on the
Soo Line belong to Local #226. They are represented
30
Evansville Western Railway, Inc.: The Evansville
Western (EVWR) employees belong to Local #46.
They are represented by the Illinois Central General
Committee and General Chairman David Picou. The
Evansville Western’s current Agreement was signed on
February 16, 2011, in Paducah, Kentucky. The terms
of the Agreement run from March 1, 2011, to January
1, 2016. However, either party may serve a new contract notice after July 1, 2015.
Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad Company: Indiana
Harbor Belt employees belong to Local #3. They are
represented by the Northeast General Committee and
General Chairman Bill Duncan. During the 2010
round of negotiations, the Indiana Harbor Belt was
represented by the National Carriers’ Conference
Committee with respect to its National Section 6
notice. The new National Agreement was ratified on
February 2, 2012. The terms of the current Agreement
run through December 31, 2014. However, either
party may serve a new contract notice after November
1, 2014, not to become effective before January 1,
2015.
New Orleans Public Belt: The NOPB remains under
the jurisdiction of the BRS’s Illinois Central Gulf
General Committee. They are members of the Illinois
Central General Committee and are represented by
General Chairman David Picou. The current term of
the NOPB contract has been extended under the provisions of the Railway Labor Act.
May 13, 2013. It will remain in effect, without change,
through December 31, 2016, and thereafter until
changed or amended in accordance with the Provisions
of the Railway Labor Act, as amended. Neither party
will serve or progress prior to November 1, 2016, not
to become effective before January 1, 2017.
Paducah & Louisville: Paducah and Louisville
Railway Inc. employees belong to Local #46. They are
members of the Illinois Central General Committee
and are represented by General Chairman David
Picou. The current Agreement runs to January 1, 2014.
However, either party can serve a bargaining notice
after July 1, 2013. The BRS served a Section 6 notice
dated December 2, 2013, and requested a conference
in order to begin negotiations. The first negotiation
meeting was scheduled for March 2014.
(Signal & Communications) The Wheeling & Lake
Erie Signal and Communication employees belong
to Local #237. They are represented by the United
General Committee and General Chairman Eldon Luttrell and Assistant General Chairman Jason Worcester.
The current Agreement was signed in Brewster, Ohio,
on June 26, 2012, and will remain in force until July
1, 2016. Neither party will serve or progress prior to
January 1, 2016, not to become effective before July 1,
2016.
Siemens Corporation (Formerly Invensys Rail):
Siemens Corporation employees belong to Local #234.
They are members of the Safetran General Committee
and are currently represented by General Chairman
Garry Harrod. The current Agreement runs through
May 31, 2014, and will continue for one-year periods thereafter unless either party provides at least 60
days written notice prior to the contract expiration or
the annual expiration date thereafter of its desire to
terminate or modify. Plans to file a Desire to Modify
Agreement Notice and NMB Form F-7 during March
of 2014.
Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis: Terminal
Railway Association of St. Louis employees belong to
Local #132. They are members of the Union Pacific
General Committee and are represented by General
Chairman John McArthur and Assistant General
Chairman Harry Doucet. During the 2005 round
of negotiations, the Terminal Railroad Association of
St. Louis was represented by the National Carriers’
after November 1, 2014, not to become effective before
January 1, 2015.
Union Railroad: Union Railroad employees belong
to Local #193. They are represented by the Union
Railroad General Committee and General Chairman
Jason Vincent. The current Agreement was ratified on
Wheeling & Lake Erie:
(Maintenance-of-Way) The Wheeling & Lake Erie
Maintenance-of-Way employees belong to Local
#237. They are represented by the United General
Committee and General Chairman Eldon Luttrell and
Assistant General Chairman Jason Worcester. The current Agreement was signed in Brewster, Ohio, on June
26, 2012, and will remain in force until July 1, 2016.
Neither party will serve or progress prior to January 1,
2016, not to become effective before July 1, 2016.
(Locomotive Mechanics) The Wheeling & Lake Erie
Locomotive Mechanics employees belong to Local
#237. They are represented by the United General
Committee and General Chairman Eldon Luttrell and
Assistant General Chairman Jason Worcester. The current Agreement was signed in Brewster, Ohio on June
26, 2012, and will remain in force until July 1, 2016.
Neither party will serve or progress prior to January 1,
2016, not to become effective before July 1, 2016.
National Negotiations: The BRS Midwest assignment
has four (4) assigned properties represented by the
National Carriers’ Conference with respect to the 2014
round of National Negotiations. They are the Alton
& Southern Railway, the Belt Railway Company of
Chicago, the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad Company,
and the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis. The
new National Agreement was ratified on February 2,
2012. The terms of the current Agreement run through
December 31, 2014. However, either party may serve
a new contract notice after November 1, 2014, not to
become effective before January 1, 2015. 
31
CONVENTION REPORT OF — Dennis M. Boston
Vice President assigned to Passenger, Transit, and Commuter Operations
This reporting
period began on
April 1, 2010, and
continues through
March 2014. The
past 4 years have
been even busier
than my proceeding terms in office,
DENNIS M. BOSTON
and I would like to
Vice President
provide you with
Passenger, Transit, and
the details of what I
Commuter Operations
have been involved
in, as well as provide you with an update on all General Committees
that fall under the Passenger, Transit and Commuter
Operations.
As the jurisdictional VP, I continue to follow the
Federal Government’s focus on High Speed Rail and
growing the commuter and transit operations in the
United States. Our union has stepped up its focus on
these growing operations. The BRS has been a leader
in working with the White House and Congress to
expand, for our members, protections and benefits
with all of the commuter authorities and new HighSpeed Rail and the passenger expansions. We have
been saying for years that we will see a new growth in
this area under my jurisdiction. It has come true over
the last three plus years and we were at the table with
the new entities and past partners fighting for the best
agreements with protections that not only protected
those who moved from a freight railroad to a transit
and the hiring of new members, but also assured that
those who made that move to a new operation would
also be protected if they needed to return to a freight
railroad. I have been elected by other crafts in bargaining coalitions with the BRS to be the Chairman and/
or Spokesperson for Rail Labor Bargaining Coalitions
that have gone from bargaining directly with carriers
to mediation and to Presidential Emergency Boards.
Additionally, I was instrumental in preparing and providing testimony for the Amtrak Arbitration case. The
Arbitration Board will issue its ruling on or before April
1, 2014. Although the BRS may not be the largest
participant in these coalition bargaining units, we are
among the most qualified negotiators in Rail Labor.
32
Over the past 40 plus months, I have spent my time
traveling to many Local meetings. I have met with
Presidents of Amtrak, TASI, MBCR, NS, UP, and
BNSF. I have also met with Vice Presidents and
Chairmen of every group under my jurisdiction. I have
met with the United States Secretary of Transportation,
the Deputy Secretary of DOT, the FRA Administrator
and many of his staff. In Massachusetts, I met with the
Secretary of Transportation of MA, the President of
the Senate, and the Lieutenant Governor. In Michigan
I met with the Chief of Staff for the Governor, also
the Lieutenant Governors of Illinois, Maryland, and
Colorado. I have also met with numerous Senators of
the United States and members of the United States
Congress to promote the BRS membership as the most
highly skilled craft in the Railroad industry.
Amtrak
Many changes took place in the Amtrak General
Committees during this reporting period. My friend
and Brother Bob Tirocchi decided to take a position
with the Federal Railroad Administration. As many
of you know, Bob was an Electronic Technician for
Amtrak and for a short time at the beginning of his
Railroad career, Bob worked on the Boston and Maine.
Bob was most noted for being an eloquent speaker and
being a very knowledgeable General Chairman for the
New England General Committee. Many of us looked
up to Bob for his guidance and assistance in a vast
number of issues. Bob is missed and will always be a
friend of the BRS and mine.
The members of the New England General Committee
agreed to join with the Amtrak Eastern General
Committee; the Amtrak Eastern GC welcomed the
Brothers into their committee. General Chairman
Dave Ingersoll was re-elected to another term of office
as General Chairman of the Amtrak Eastern General
Committee. Dave has had numerous disputes with
Amtrak. I think the number one issue has been the
training programs Amtrak has put in place. The carriers neglect to train in accordance with the Agreement,
which has lead the AGC to file numerous claims for
their violations. There are many other claims and grievances but this is the one issue that is at the core of our
existence within our highly skilled workforce. Also, the
carrier is unwilling to provide a safety program that
would empower our members to run the program, to
develop protocols for violations, and to instruct the
proper training across the system. Amtrak made a decision to hire an outside contractor to in-as-much take
the fall for a training program that doesn’t work called
Safe-to-Safer. Amtrak is now in worse shape as far as
safety goes then at any other time in their existence.
During this reporting period, it was also time to serve
our Section 6 notice to the carrier. I don’t think there
is a Signalman on Amtrak that has not heard of the
campaign we developed to put a stop to the 8-year
long holdout of coming to terms on our last agreement. The entire process was established by Amtrak
management and pitted us against them. Amtrak says
it decided to come to the table this time and negotiate
with the unions in an attempt to make amends to the
8 years without a contract last time. Well, that is not
how two organizations felt about what took place this
time around. This time, Amtrak was greeted by one
union who was willing to get a quick deal with Amtrak.
For their craft union it meant taking less to get it and
accepting far less than other unions were willing to give
back. The BRS began to bargain on May 14, 2010.
We met with the carrier almost every month in 2010.
In 2012, we then entered mediation under the NMB
as we saw no way to come to a voluntary agreement
that would provide our members what they deserved.
We were in mediation for all of 2012, and continued
until July 2013. President Pickett and I met directly
with the NMB numerous times to request a release
from mediation and then to request a PEB. The meetings always ended up with the NMB members saying
they understood and would contact us after they had a
chance to deliberate this difficult issue. Each and every
time it was another dead end for our members. We
met with our coalition and decided to take a course
of action that some may say was very risky. The fact
is, we did what we felt was in the best interest of our
members. We agreed to make a request to Amtrak to
go jointly to an Arbitration Board with a short period
of time for the board to begin the hearing and make
their decision. Amtrak agreed with our coalition and we
began the process of establishing an arbitration board.
Amtrak, the BRS, and the BMWED came to terms
of the Arbitration Board; ground rules if you will. We
agreed on who the three-member panel would consist
of; Ira Jaffe was selected as Chairman, Shyam Das and
Herbert Fishgold as members. All was set for the case
to begin. We met for weeks to develop our testimony
and to prepare for what would likely be the carriers’
positions and rebuttal. On Monday, January 13, 2014,
we began our case and the Arbitration case went into
Saturday, January 18, 2014. As is common in PEBs
and this type of Arbitration, the Chairman calls for the
parties together in an attempt to settle our case without
the Arbitration Board needing to write a detailed report.
The two unions met with the Chairman and the carrier
also met with the Chairman, but there was little appetite to play let’s make a deal with Amtrak. On March
26, 2014, the Arbitration Board released their findings
in the case between Amtrak and the two Unions, BRS
and BMWED. The Board did not grant us the ability
to claim that the alleged pattern on Amtrak was actually
not a pattern at all. Our case was built on the premise
that TCU, UTU, and others may have agreed on and
ratified similar agreements but they were not patterns,
they all had different sections that could lead you to
say that the separate union agreements were not the
same, and therefore not a pattern. We are a bit disappointed but we made the best case we could have made
with the facts we presented to the Board. The decision
from the Board was a five-year deal, GWIs contained in
the Amtrak Pattern through the end of 2014. For the
last GWI, however, which is to take effect on January
1, 2015, the Board directs that the GWI be increased
from the 1.5% that is part of the Amtrak Pattern settlements to an increase of 3.0%, with the additional 1.5%
increase funded by the changes in health care plan
design that were part of the Freight Pattern and which
are ordered adopted as of the same date. The GWIs
awarded, therefore, will be as follows: Total of 15.5%
(3.1% over 5 years). While the two January 1, 2015,
GWIs of 1.5% occur on the same day, it is intended
33
The Acting General Chairman of members in Local
236 is Mike Baldwin, Director of Research for the
BRS. Mike does a very good job keeping track of the
day to day activities in Local 236.
LIRR
that they be treated as two separate GWIs and thus will
be compounded. We are meeting on April 16, 2014,
with Ira Jaffe in a mediator role so that Amtrak and the
Unions can agree on the implementation of the new
agreement. Amtrak can’t seem to agree with us on what
the implementation should state and its application.
Balfour Beatty
During this reporting period, our members felt the
effects of the sluggish economy. BBRI found it difficult
to find projects to bid on and maintain a full workforce. We worked with BBRI to give them some relief
on work rules which allowed them to bid on work and
at the same time receive temporary relief of work rules
that kept our members working and not furloughing.
There are two distinctive sides to the BBRI work-force;
we have a construction side and a side that does maintainance for states and commuter authorities. Recently,
the construction side has taken a big hit. What caused
the drop in construction work? Perhaps it is the economy, and perhaps it’s the bidding process. We believe
it is some of both. BBRI seems to be only bidding
on small projects and not going after larger projects
that may bring in more work for our members. We
have continued to push for BBRI to be more aggressive and we have tried to get them work on BN where
there were a number of projects in signaling allowed
by an agreement with the BN and the BRS General
Chairman. We will continue to push BBRI to be more
aggressive in their bidding process.
The members who work for BBRI are members of
Local 236 where our construction locals are all located.
34
Long Island Rail Road Bargaining Coalition (LIRRBC)
has come a long way. I am the Spokesperson for the
coalition. Our coalition has been through mediation
and petitioned the NMB to be released and, finally
in 2013, we were granted a release along with three
other unions in our coalition. We agreed to go before
a Presidential Emergency Board (PEB). The Board
was made up of three senior neutrals from the railroad industry; the Chairman was Ira Jaffe, the Board
Members were Roberta Golick and Arnold Zack. The
dates were chosen as December 2–7, 2013. Our coalition selected The Guerrieri Law Firm to represent us. A
Partner in the firm, Carmen Parcelli presented our case
before the PEB. I testified on behalf of the LIRRBC
in front of the PEB and after a week of long and very
detailed testimony we concluded. As in most PEB’s the
Chairman called just a few leaders from both sides into
an early Saturday morning “mediation” session to give
the parties one last chance to come to terms on what
may be our last chance to settle before the PEB deliberates and provides the White House their report of
PEB 244. As expected, the carrier was no more willing
to make a deal than it was for the last three and a half
years. We concluded the very long and stressful week
feeling very good about our presentation to the Board.
On December 21, 2013, the PEB report was issued
from the White House. The report was favorable to the
Unions in almost every area we wished to accomplish.
All we needed now was to come to terms and turn the
report into an Agreement. The report derived from our
PEB was wage increase totaling 18.4% over six years
(2.9% per year). The members would begin contributing to health insurance premium costs, starting at a
contribution of 1.0% based on a member’s 40-hour
workweek (cap) starting in June of 2006, then increases
each year to 2015, ending up at 2.25% caped at the
40-hour workweek straight-time basis. No work rule
changes were included in the PEB report. One craft,
the Conductors, received a $10 per shift payment for
becoming certified. We feel certain that this will give
the BRS an opportunity to achieve the same $10 per
shift when the DOT/FRA determines that our members fall under certification of our craft. The LIRR continues to stonewall any attempt to come to terms on a
joint settlement and it appears in early April, we will be
issued a second PEB by the White House. The unions
will argue that the first PEB had it right. The second
panel of senior railroad neutrals will be selected by the
White House and review the first PEB’s report and
make a recommendation. This unusual process of having two PEBs is allowed under Section 9(a) of the RLA.
However, there are but a handful of cases that have
gone to the second PEB. In all of those cases but one
(the first PEB ever), the parties came together after the
second PEB issued their report which was the same as
the first PEB. I look forward to reporting to you at the
BRS 51st Regular Convention that we got it done and
our members received the wage increases they deserve.
I, along with President Pickett, was able to go on a tour
of the East Side Access Tunnels in New York. This project will bring trains from all 11 branches of LIRR into
a new concourse being built beneath Grand Central
Station in New York City. The new connection will
increase LIRR trains into Manhattan and dramatically
shorten travel times to all other locations. Our Brothers
have worked hard to improve the transit needs of the
people in and around NYC.
Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad (MBCR)
MBCR will soon become (KCS) of Keolis America.
This carrier falls under my jurisdiction and I work with
General Chairman Dave Ingersoll of the AEGC.
Since our last Convention, I served as Spokesman
for the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail Labor
Bargaining Coalition (MBCRLBC). This contract was
reported on in my last convention’s report and continues into this report. The coalition consisted of 12 separate craft unions and we were engaged in tough mediation with the Company. On April 8, 2011, we settled
our outstanding issues with MBCR. There were only
three other unions that settled outside of the coalition.
I can report that all unions on MBCR have now settled
and they settled for the same provisions established by
the MBCRLBC.
Also, during this reporting period the State of
Massachusetts began talks with CSX and MBCR to
transfer track that allowed for expansion of commuter
service down into Wooster, MA. It was a win-win for
us and MBCR. We transferred, by agreement, members
of the CSX Local that had seniority on the former CSX
line. We were able to protect the incoming CSX members and those who currently are working on MBCR.
We are now in the process of working with a new carrier, Keolis. You will see that this is a trend in commuter
contracts when the State is not the carrier and keeps an
arm’s length relationship with the service provider and
these new entities spun out of States accepting PRIIA
money through the FRA then purchasing Freight Lines.
The State then looks for an operator who in most cases
is required to become a carrier and is required to comply with all of the Federal Laws and Regulations. The
procurement process took well over two years and it
pitted MBCR against Keolis, with our members in the
middle. The new coalition bargaining unit represents
BRS, BMWED, IAM, NCFO, TCU, and TWU. Our
coalition is working directly with the new carrier to
establish an Implementing Agreement that will secure
our members, seniority, classifications, and their positions and H&W for existing past and new members
as well. We will begin negotiations, as we are in our
Section 6 notice period at this time with MBCR. We
will need to also serve a Section 6 on Keolis, as they will
become the new carrier on July 1, 2014. From there, we
will enter into negotiations. This process will be moving
along and while I do not have the final result in time
for this report, I will be glad to provide updates when
we caucus at the Convention.
Metra
We have been very active with disputes on Metra. We
are in Section 6 negotiations and in May we entered
into Mediation; we could not come to terms on an
agreement with Metra. There are a number of unions
that have signed and ratified agreements coming out of
direct negotiations, as well as through mediation. We
have had one goal from the start of negotiations and
that is to come to the table and receive equal value for
our members in Local 183. As one of the first unions
to agree to accept H&W contributions with the understanding that our members would take additional wages
during this period but equal in total compensation. In
other words, our wage increases (slightly higher) than
crafts that decided for their union/craft not to pay into
H&W contributions, but with slightly less compensation. We will continue to fight for our principles in
mediation and push for what we believe is fair and
equal. Perhaps we will have additional information
about this case at our Convention this July.
Additionally, on Metra we have a Labor Management
Committee that all unions are encouraged to attend.
There have been many good items that Labor and
Management work together on, safety being number
one. With the backing of the company, safety committees are formed; leaders are selected and work in teams
35
to make suggestions on unsafe situations that arise.
From the safety committees to the full labor management committee, everyone works to make Metra a safer
workplace. There are always situations on any railroad
project that you want fixed that your manager will not
look at or take the time to listen to you about. On the
Labor Management Committee, you can always push
the issue all the way to the top to get another set of eyes
to look at the issue. That includes both Labor and management.
New Jersey Transit
During this reporting period, our agreement was once
again open for serving Section 6 notices and we have
served. General Chairman Terry Maher arranged meetings that go into April and if there is little movement
we will be discussing our options for moving the process in a more expeditious manner.
The carrier continues to say that they are waiting for
the Governor of NJ, Chris Christie. Terry was reelected
as General Chairman during this reporting period. He
also has a new assistant, Mark Culver. There have been
many changes in management with NJT.
PATH
During this reporting period, the PATH Local/General
Committee has elected a new General Chairman,
Richard Clark. The committee has served their Section
6 notice and is in the process of negotiating but has not
come close to agreeing on any portions of their notice.
There is a great deal of work being done on PATH to
update its signaling system. The system being installed
is being done in sections of the railroad; contractors
are performing aspects of the implementation of the
new system. We have had a great deal of safety violations on PATH, the most egregious violation involved
PATH BRS members diving out of the way of a train
pushing flat-bed railcars with a conductor on the car
with no lights on the rail car or on the conductor. After
that, we have had members almost killed because of lax
Roadway Worker protections; a Rule Book which has
not been updated in years. When the FRA mandated
that they make corrections and updates, the carrier
once again fell short. After much discussion, the carrier has agreed to make the changes that Richie and
his committee pushed to be added for the safety of the
membership. There are issues every day that the carrier
creates by not following FRA and Federal Regulations,
including OSHA violations. Many of you have seen the
Awards that have come out of PATH dealing with BRS
members. PATH continues to cause OSHA complaints
36
and blatant violations of the Whistle Blower protections. The officers of the PATH General Committee
and its Local Officers are doing their best to promote
good standing with other Rail Labor Organizations
and they have tried to have a daylong discussion with a
FELA/FRA/OSHA/RLA conference to help train our
members in these areas which we hope leads to more
activity by Local Members. We also had other crafts
stop by and add their experiences. Thank you to Marc
and Eva from the Flynn & Wietzke Firm for helping us
out all day. Richie continues to fight every day for our
PATH members.
Posey
In June 2011, John Posey sold his company and we no
longer represent them.
Septa
On April 4, 2013, the BRS lost Brother Bill Keebler.
Bill served 45 years on the railroad, and as Assistant
General Chairman of the Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen. We miss his fire and compassion for his
work and his commitment to our members here at the
BRS.
During this reporting period, we settled our long outstanding Section 6 issues. It was not without very difficult negotiations. We stayed pinned down on a few
issues and we just couldn’t get the carrier to budge. We
asked the Local to set up a special meeting to discuss
with the members where we were at the bargaining
table and listen to them about what they thought. After
the meeting with the members, we agreed to put out
a tentative agreement based on what we were able to
accomplish at the bargaining table. We went back to
the carrier and worked out an agreement based on the
member’s comments. Then we worked with the General
Committee and Local to get the tentative agreement
out to the members and it was ratified. This agreement
will continue until open for Section 6 notices after
June 30, 2014. I wanted to provide some history on
what has taken place prior to the BRS and Rail Unions
showing up on Septa on the subway and light rail side.
The largest transit union on the property is TWU;
they always come to terms on an agreement when it is
ratified on the rail side and others come in and begin
negotiations based on the TWU deal. There has never
been back pay paid to the rail side if the negotiations
become delayed. Here is a little background on how
SEPTA formed out to the 3R Act. It was in the early
70’s when all of the former Penn Central and NYC etal
were declared bankrupt and the Federal Government
created a panel to oversee and work through the creation
of the 3R Act and created Conrail. What spun off from
Conrail is now known as the SEPTA Rail side. Some of
our members that came over from Conrail continue to
work at Septa today.
TASI (Formally operated by Amtrak)
TASI (part of Herzog) became a new carrier as of April
2, 2012. They now operate the Commuter Service in
the San Francisco Bay area, through an agreement with
the Joint Powers Board (JPB). JPB is a board set up
by the County and Communities in the San Francisco
Bay area to alleviate congestion for their Cities and
Communities and has a political Board of Directors that
keeps a close eye on the operators. This is the new trend
for commuter operations across the country. BRS saw
this coming long before other crafts would acknowledge
it. In this reporting period, the JPB became very frustrated with Amtrak, the carrier that they had contracted
to run the service their way. JPB finally dumped Amtrak
in a long bidding process. This process is becoming far
to interment and is very stressful on our members and
their families. If you look at this property, a former SP
property transferred from the control of SP to JPB years
ago. SP members in the beginning came over under protection of seniority to flow back to SP then UP. Those
members today are down to a couple. When Amtrak
took over the service, the unions helped the BRS members transfer to the new carrier. Then again, when TASI
was formed as a carrier with FELA protection, RLA,
NMB, and the golden nugget Federal Law 13(c) protects our members. Federal 13(c) requires the continuation of collective bargaining rights, and protection of
transit employees’ wages, working conditions, pension
benefits, seniority, vacation, sick and personal leave,
travel passes, and other conditions of employment.
Section 13(c) also requires paid training or retraining
for employees affected by Federal assistance. When it
was announced that TASI had been selected by the JPB
to be the new carrier, the BRS set up a conference call
with our General Chairman (the members on TASI
are part of the UPGC). After that, we contacted all of
the crafts willing to form a coalition for the purpose
of H&W continuation at the same level of benefits as
was in place under Amtrak. I was one of the appointed
spokespersons for the H&W issues for all craft unions
on the property. This process took months of very technical and detailed work looking at the coverage provided
by TASI and ensuring that it would be as equal as possible. I give credit to my partners in the committee,
TCU Secretary Treasurer Russ Orthout and his assistant
Ellen Conboy, and I thank TASI’s staff for working for
the members who receive these benefits. We actually
provided benefits that were not required under 13(c),
but the parties agreed that it would be the right thing to
do in this very stressful environment. We completed all
of our work and the BRS and eventually all of the other
craft unions signed new contracts in April 2012. These
are unusual waters we have been treading into, but, as
usual, the BRS stepped up to the task and got the job
done for our members. All of Rail Labor benefits from
our knowledge and ability to adapt to changes in the
Passenger, Transit and Commuter industry.
Hurricane Sandy
On October 29, 2012, Hurricane Sandy made landfall near Atlantic City, NJ. This Category 3 Hurricane
caused Rail Operation Centers to be engulfed in water.
In many locations the track was covered in debris or
had been washed away by the powerful storm. Many
stations were flooded, Signal systems were covered with
salt water, and switches were covered with debris from
the storm waters and operations ceased. After the storm,
President Pickett, Secretary-Treasurer Boles, and I headed north to New Jersey to support our members. We
ended up driving through a snowstorm that dropped
close to a foot of snow onto the same area that had just
been struck by Sandy which knocked out power to more
homes and our railroads. Our members worked day
and night walking through water that was up to their
chest. We have stories of members saving lives, reaching
down into raging waters to grab onto brothers to keep
them from being swept away by the storm. All across
the region and out to Long Island, we met with our
members who were working long hours in the Signal
shops repairing equipment as quickly and safely as possible to get it back in service so that families could get
the help they needed and the community could get back
to work. It was devastating to see all of the destruction
left behind by Sandy. At the same time though, we saw
members performing heroic acts and being fully dedicated to getting our Signal and Communication Systems
repaired and then continue to work for hours testing and inspecting each system and then finally being
able to call in to say the system is back in service. Our
members were recognized, both Brothers and Sisters of
the BRS, for doing the extraordinary and when asked
why they worked so hard to get the Signal System back
working safely, they simply said, “I did what everyone
did.” In our eyes, these members at PATH, NJT, LIRR,
and Amtrak are heroic in every way. 
37
CONVENTION REPORT OF — Kelly A. Haley
Vice President assigned to Headquarters
Convention report of Kelly Haley, Vice President
Headquarters, covering activities from January 1, 2010,
through March 31, 2014.
At the beginning of this reporting period, Jerry C.
Boles held the position of Vice President Headquarters,
after his reelection at the 2010 Convention. That
changed on October 10, 2011, when Brother Boles
was elected to fulfill the unexpired term of SecretaryTreasurer Walt Barrows, who resigned his position to
accept an Obama-appointment as the Labor Member
on the Railroad Retirement Board. I was elected to
Vice President NRAB at the 2010 Convention and
subsequently elected to Vice President Headquarters
to fulfill the unexpired term vacated by Jerry Boles’
election to Secretary-Treasurer. This report covers both
those positions I filled during the reporting period.
I attended the Brotherhood’s 50th Regular Convention
July 26–30, 2010, in Orlando, Florida, where I was
elected to my first full term as Vice President NRAB.
During the year I served as Vice President NRAB, my
duties included day-to-day claim and grievance pro-
cessing, as well as
participating as the
BRS Labor Member
before various
Public Law Boards,
Special Boards of
Adjustment, and
National Railroad
Adjustment Boards.
KELLY A. HALEY
My main duties
Vice President Headquarters
throughout the
reporting period
include the administration and improvement of claim
and grievance handling procedures. As a member of the
Review Committee, I reviewed all unsettled disputes
referred to Grand Lodge under Article I, Section 64, of
the BRS Constitution. I prepared and reviewed submissions for cases scheduled for arbitration at the National
Railroad Adjustment Board, Public Law Boards, and
Special Boards of Adjustment, as well as researched and
prepared for special arbitrations. I presented arguments
before the NRAB and PLBs in cases supplemental to
the ones presented by the current BRS member at the
Board. I attended meetings and was a member of the
Section 3 Rail Labor Subcommittee1.
I assisted Local Chairmen and General Committee
Officers on grievance issues, claims, and appeals, and
provided results of research on arbitration decisions
when required.
I reviewed agreements, researched past agreements, and
assisted with advice and language when requested.
I attended all Grand Executive Council meetings
and attended meetings of Local Lodges and General
Committees, as assigned.
I attended Accident Investigation Orientation for
Section 3 of the Railway Labor Act (45 USC §153)
— A 1934 amendment to the Railway Labor Act, adding Section 3 which established the National Railroad
Adjustment Board consisting of four Divisions, each
handling grievances from specific crafts or classes of
employees. The Third Division covers maintenance of
way employees, signal employees, clerks, and dispatchers. The other three Divisions cover other railroad
crafts.
1
38
Rail Professionals training in order to be qualified by
the National Transportation Safety Board to join the
NTSB on railroad accident investigations.
During this reporting period, I worked closely with
Vice President NRAB John Bragg and Grand Lodge
Representatives Jim Finnegan and Tim Tarrant to revise
and continually improve the Local Chairman’s Training
program. We held Local Chairman’s Training as follows:
• March 19–20, 2010
Front Royal, VA
• October 7–9, 2010
Front Royal, VA
• June 17–18, 2011
Front Royal, VA
• July 28–29, 2011
Front Royal, VA
• September 9–10, 2011
Front Royal, VA
• April 20–21, 2012
Front Royal, VA
• August 3–4, 2012
Front Royal, VA
• October 9–10, 2012
New York City, NY
• October 25–26, 2012
Pigeon Forge, TN
• November 9–10, 2012
Front Royal, VA
• Nov. 30–Dec. 1, 2012
Las Vegas, NV
• March 15–16, 2013
Front Royal, VA
• June 14–15, 2013
Front Royal, VA
• October 4–5, 2013
Front Royal, VA
Brother Jerry Boles and Kelly Haley both filled the
Vice President Headquarter position during this reporting period. Each fulfilled their duties as Vice President
Headquarters by attending, presenting, and preparing
curriculum for General Chairman’s meetings and training:
• August 23–26, 2011
Dawson, PA
• October 4–5, 2012
Front Royal, VA
• August 6–9, 2013
Dawson, PA
I assisted with Recording-Financial Secretary training
as needed, specifically, I was responsible for the training
on the Membership Tracking database system when my
schedule permitted as follows:
• March 24–26, 2010
Front Royal, VA
• February 23–25, 2012
Front Royal, VA
• April 26–28, 2012
Front Royal, VA
• June 28–30, 2012
Front Royal, VA
• November 15–17, 2012
Front Royal, VA
• March 7–9, 2013
Front Royal, VA
• June 6–8, 2013
Front Royal, VA
• October 10–12, 2013
Front Royal, VA
I served as Trustee of Local 236, when that Local
was temporarily placed in trusteeship by the Grand
Executive Council, from March 19, 2012, until
January 20, 2013.
As Vice President Headquarters, I continue to jointly
administer, with Vice President NRAB John Bragg,
the Arbitration Department. We continuously strive to
improve the claim and grievance handling procedures.
I continue to serve on Fatality Analysis of
Maintenance-of-Way Employees and Signalmen
(FAMES) workgroup as a Labor member of the committee. More information is available on our website at
www.brs.org.
39
I continued to develop and refine the BRS
Membership Tracking, Grievance Tracking, and other
database systems for use by officers and staff at Grand
Lodge and field officers. I made various modifications
to those systems to meet our existing and changing
needs with specific focus on user accuracy and efficiency. I also maintain the office network and computer
systems at Grand Lodge Headquarters.
Union
Privilege:
The Union Privilege
Liaison duties were
reassigned from
Joe Mattingly, Vice
President Midwest, to Kelly Haley in early 2011.
I have attended the Union Privilege Liaison meetings and reviewed the various program benefits and
program modifications as needed. I also review and
approve all program mailings Union Privilege sends to
members.
A few of the programs reviewed and approved during
this reporting period include the Union Plus Credit
Card, Union Plus Program for Senior Life Insurance,
Accidental Death Insurance, Union Plus Motor Club,
Union Plus AT&T Wireless Discount Program,
Hospital Accident Protection Program, Union Plus
Mortgage Program, Union Plus Auto Insurance
Program, and others. Additional information on
Union Plus can be found on page 82 in this report and
on the Union Plus website, www.unionplus.org.
RSAC:
On October 31, 2011, President Pickett assigned Vice
President Kelly Haley, previously an alternate RSAC
member, as a member on the Railroad Safety Advisory
Committee (RSAC), replacing Vice President Joe
Mattingly, who was assigned to fill the alternate RSAC
member slot. We are currently allotted two voting
members on the RSAC; President Pickett serves as the
other voting member. During this period, I represented
the BRS at numerous RSAC meetings.
Other duties:
• Reviewed, corrected, and drafted Bylaws for Local
Lodges and General Committees, as requested.
All Bylaws require the President’s approval
before becoming effective. I worked closely with
President Pickett, and at his direction, verifying
that all Local- and General Committee-approved
Bylaw revisions submitted were in compliance
40
with the BRS Constitution and various Labor
laws.
• Served on the Job Responsibility Study
Committee as was established in the last National
Agreement.
• Fulfilled various assignments and prepared written
responses as needed and directed by the President.
• Designed workflow and process for office-wide
scanning project to archive older paper files currently in storage at Grand Lodge. Each file is
being sent through an optical character recognition process and indexed so that it is searchable.
The project is estimated to take at least a year to
complete, but the result will make huge strides in
our long-term operational efficiency when trying
to locate older documents.
• Attended Labor/Management Section 3
Committee meetings.
• Attended various IT Director meetings at the
AFL-CIO headquarters as schedule permitted.
• Performed general administrative duties as
required at Grand Lodge Headquarters. 
CONVENTION REPORT OF — Mark J. Ciurej
Vice President assigned to the Western Region
This report covers activities from October 1, 2010
through March 31, 2014.
The position of Vice President West is assigned to
work with the two largest General Committees in
the BRS, representing 43 percent of our membership: the Union Pacific General Committee (UPGC)
with 2,898 members, represented by Locals 8, 9, 19,
24, 34, 39, 43, 72, 92, 98, 99, 108, 111, 126, 130,
132, 141, 152, 153, 155, 157, 168, 174, 179, 182,
206, and 229; and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe
General Committee (BNSFGC) with 2,146 members,
represented by Locals 20, 21, 33, 87, 119, 121, 129,
154, 156, 161, 172, 173, 185, and 188. The UPGC
represents employees on the following former properties: UP, SP, MP, C&NW, SSW, D&RGW, TP, KATY,
and the Idaho and Sedalia Railroad Co., LLC (Former
Union Pacific Signal Shops in Springfield, MO).
BNSFGC represents employees on the following former properties: BN, CB&Q, ATSF, NP, GN, FW&D,
KCT, SLSF and SP&S. In addition, BNSFGC represents employees on the KCS (includes GWRR, South
Rail Corp. Mid-South and Tex-Mex), DW&P, and
Montana Rail Link, Inc.
Agreements
I served as part of the negotiating team on the last
round of National Bargaining after assuming office on
October 1, 2010, upon retirement of Vice President
West, George Jones. Negotiations began in December
2009. During the negotiations, the BRS joined a coalition of five other unions (IBB, SMWIA, BMWEDIBT, BLET-IBT, and SEIU) called the Rail Labor
Bargaining Coalition (RLBC).
After two years of little progress, the RLBC applied
for mediation with the National Mediation Board
(NMB). Those negotiations lead to an impasse, and
the NMB released the RLBC from mediation on
September 6, 2011. President Obama then established
PEB 243 before either side could engage in self-help.
Hearings were held on October 13–20, 2011. The
PEB Report included healthcare cost shifting that was
phased in and eventually increased to match the UTU
Agreement. However, we received a more generous
wage package than the UTU Agreement, that, when
compounded, added more than 20 percent in wages to
our members.
Additionally, PEB
243 recommended
a non-binding
study to address a
responsibility differential based upon
job responsibilities of BRS Signal
Maintenance and
Signal Installer
employees.
MARK J. CIUREJ
Vice President West
On November 17, 2011, the BRS and National
Carriers’ Conference Committee (NCCC) reached a
tentative six-year agreement, which was unanimously
endorsed by the negotiating team, and unanimously
ratified by the affected General Chairmen. The membership overwhelmingly approved the Agreement
on February 2, 2012. The Agreement was signed on
February 6, 2012, and shall remain in effect through
December 31, 2014, and thereafter until changed
or modified in accordance with the Railway Labor
Act (RLA). No party shall serve or progress, prior to
November 1, 2014, (not to be effective before January
1, 2015) any notice or proposal.
KCS/GWWR/Mid-South/Tex-Mex
Local Section 6 notices were served on July 14, 2010.
Negotiations for these properties are handled locally
by the General Chairman with assistance from this
office. An agreement was reached on December 16,
2011, and will follow the National Agreement in effect
subject to the provisions of Article 6, Section C, of
the BRS National Agreement through November 1,
2014. New notices may be served on/after November
1, 2014, not to be effective prior to January 1, 2015.
Provisions of the BRS National Agreement will apply
to the respective KCS, Mid-South, GWWR, and TexMex Agreements. This was a rare occasion in which
the negotiating team of General Chairman Mike Dake
and Vice General Chairman Kelly Portlock was able
to reach an agreement with this carrier prior to the
National Agreement being ratified. Due to their diligence and hard work, we were able to accomplish the
following agreement changes.
41
This agreement increased the current rates of pay for
KCS and GWWR Maintainers and Inspectors by
$0.50 per hour, and $0.25 per hour for Maintainers
and Inspectors on the Mid-South property. The KCS
agreement amended the Scope Rule to include “stationary or fixed gas switch heaters and forced air blowers.” It
also added “Detached Signalmen” classification with a
starting pay rate of $25.36 an hour plus skill pay.
A new paragraph was added to Rule 34 adding bid/
bump language to an open vacancy or new position
was amended, Rule 59 increasing travel allowance to
$22.00 per day when traveling less than 300 miles
from home, and $30.00 per day for mileage traveled
over 300 miles, subject to annual CPI adjustments. On
GWWR the minimum call increased from 2 hours to
2.7 hours.
Montana Rail Link
Section 6 notices on MRL are handled locally by the
General Chairman with assistance from this office.
Negotiations are conducted collectively with the other
non-operating crafts (BMWE, BRC, IAMAW, IBEW,
NCF&O, and TCU). All the Crafts jointly negotiate
pay, health and welfare, and quality of life issues. Each
Craft then negotiates its own craft-specific provisions
to reach a final agreement, which was accomplished on
November 1, 2012, in full settlement of the Union’s
Section 6 notice dated April 12, 2010. The next
Section 6 notice cannot be served prior to April 1,
2016, not to become effective before January 1, 2017.
This agreement provided general wage increases in line
with the National Agreement with increases becoming effective starting on January 1, 2011, except for an
additional $0.20 per hour increase to be rolled in on
January 31, 2016, before calculating in the 3 percent
increase. In addition to the pay increases, a $1,200.00
ratification payment was made to each eligible employee.
Duluth, Winnipeg and Pacific (DW&P)
Local Section 6 notice was served on June 14, 2010.
Negotiations are handled locally by the General
Chairman with assistance from this office. After more
than three years of negotiations, an agreement was
reached on November 8, 2013. The Agreement was
sent out for ratification and was approved on January
2, 2014.
This agreement provided the same general wage and
insurance benefits as the National Agreement, as well
as a 1 percent lump sum payment of straight-time
earnings for the 12-month period November 1, 2010,
through October 31, 2011, after application of the July
1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, general wage increases.
This Agreement also provided a Memorandum of
Agreement to allow BRS Wisconsin Central forces to
perform signal construction work on the DW&P from
December 31, 2013, to December 31, 2015, with a
provision for either party to cancel this agreement after
December 31, 2015, with a 30-day written notice.
This Agreement provides that the Parties may serve and
progress notices or proposals to amend the Agreement
on or after November 1, 2014, not to become effective
prior to January 1, 2015.
Responsibility Study Committee
I have attended all of the Responsibility Study
42
Committee meetings with the NCCC which began
on May 31, 2012. Once procedures were finalized, the
Committee held field visits on the CSX in Atlanta,
Georgia on April 10–11, 2013, and on the UP in St.
Louis, Missouri, on September 25–26, 2013. The field
visits included interviews of our signal craft members,
as well as supervisors. We also looked at training facilities, dispatching centers, and signal installations in the
field.
Meetings are being scheduled for other Class I properties to give the Committee a clear understanding of
the responsibility our members are faced with every
day maintaining, testing, and repairing signal systems
under their care, which will be used to support our
position at the next round of national bargaining.
Organizing Chicago, Ft. Wayne &
Eastern (CF&E)
On January 27, 2011, the National Mediation Board
(38 NMB No. 27, Case No. R-7266), certified the
BRS as the duly designated and authorized party to
represent for the purpose of the RLA, the craft or class
of Signalmen on the CF&E. This former Rail-America
property, now Genesse & Wyoming, employs five
Signal Maintainers.
On October 10, 2011, a tentative agreement was
reached, which established two classifications (Signal
Maintainer and Signal Inspector), whose monthly rate
was changed to an hourly rate. For the Maintainer, this
conversion increased the rate of pay from $19.23 to
$24.00 an hour, plus time and one-half for all hours
worked in excess of 40 hours per week. The Agreement
also established payment for noon-day meals when
working off territory, and a meal payment after working more than ten consecutive hours.
This Agreement went into effect on November 1,
2011, and remains in effect through December 31,
2016, and thereafter until changed or modified in
accordance with the RLA. No party can serve any
notice or proposal for changing the provisions of this
agreement prior to October 1, 2016.
Organizing Relco Locomotive
Relco is a locomotive and rail car repair plant located
in Albia, Iowa, with an average workforce of 100
employees. Organizing efforts started in 2009, and
the election was lost due to the unlawful firing of four
employees wanting to be organized. These dismissals from service were reported to the National Labor
Relations Board (NLRB), which in turn charged Relco
with violations of Section 8(a)(3), (4) and (1) of the
National Labor Relations Act. Those violations were
sustained by an Administrative Law Judge in March of
2011.
At this time, a total of ten employees at this plant
have been wrongfully dismissed. Relco appealed those
dismissals all the way to the United States Court
of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in Minneapolis,
Minnesota (8th Cir. Nos. 12-2111 & 12-2203). On
August 27, 2013, the Board notified Relco that the
Court sided with the NLRB. The Board ordered
Relco to comply with its orders to provide back-pay,
reinstatement, expunge from its records any reference
of the unlawful disciplines, performance reviews, discharges, and to rescind all nondisclosure agreements,
and other company rules that prohibit employees from
engaging in protected union or concerted activities.
The NLRB has notified me that Relco has failed to
follow the above orders, and has now gone back to
Court for enforcement.
Montana Western
The BNSF General Committee is still in the process
of reacquiring the signal maintenance and construction work on this former property, located on the
Copper City Subdivision. Between 1986 and 2003,
this subdivision was operated by the Montana Western
Railroad. It was returned to BNSF ownership in
2003. Employees are currently represented under a
railroader agreement by the UTU. On April 8, 2005,
the NMB issued its final ruling that the craft or class of
Signalmen applies on the entire BNSF system, including the former Montana Western property.
In an effort to resolve this dispute, on June 15,
2012, the Organization filed a claim under the UTU
Agreement stating that the Carrier violated Article
23.4. This section states, “If there is a final, authoritative
ruling that BNSF craft or class lines apply on the former
Montana Western property, this agreement will be wound
down in an orderly fashion.” The remedy asked for the
Carrier to advise when the parties may meet to determine how to wind down the UTU Agreement.
On August 21, 2013, the Carrier tried, and failed,
to establish a new and dangerous interpretation of
New York Dock (NYD), with a NYD arbitration
hearing that was held concerning this property in
Chicago, Illinois. On November 6, 2013, Chairman/
Neutral Member Marty Zusman gave his decision in
43
arbitration case: NYD: Article I, Section II Montana
Western, STB Finance Docket No. 34330, stating,
“There are many other issues raised herein by the parties
to this dispute that are beyond the right of this committee
to decide. There has not been a notice served. There is not
a coordination occurring by any process covered by NYD.
There is no implementing agreement. Article I Section 4
has not been initiated. No claims for protection have been
submitted before this committee. There is nothing to interpret, apply or enforce whose origin gains legitimacy from
the provisions of NYD. Accordingly, the questions submitted have been answered.”
This Award does not affect the NRAB process on
the claim over the “wind-down” provision, or the
Committee’s option to file a Section 6 notice on the
2004 UTU Agreement, as it applies to the craft or class
of Signalmen on the Montana Western.
Nebraska Northeastern Line (NENE)
On October 18, 2011, the STB [Docket No. FD
35644] issued a decision to allow BNSF to re-acquire
and operate a 120-mile line between Ferry Station and
O’Neill, Nebraska, formerly operated by the NENE.
The STB’s exemption for the transaction took effect
on November 17, 2012.
On November 26, 2012, Carrier notified the
Organization that it anticipated that sometime in
2013 it would serve a Section 4 notice, under New
York Dock, to integrate the former NENE operation
into the existing BNSF operation. As of this date, the
Carrier has not served a Section 4 notice, and continues to use a contractor to perform signal work on this
line. A claim for this work was filed and denied, waiting on conference.
It must be noted that the BMWED filed a complaint
in District Court (Civil Action No. 8:13-ev-249) on
August 16, 2013, as a violation of Section 2 First and
Seventh of the Railway Labor Act, asking the Court to
enjoin the Carrier from failing and refusing to apply
the CBA on this line. The Court ruled this to be a
minor dispute and subject to arbitration.
As of March 1, 2014, the Carrier has made an agreement with the BMWED to perform maintenance and
construction work on this former property. We have
requested to meet with the Carrier over this issue, but
it has not yet responded with any dates.
44
National Transportation Safety Board
Investigations
Since taking office, I have attended, as a third party
investigator representing the BRS, three accidents with
the NTSB, as follows:
• On May 24, 2011, there was a collision between
two CSXT freight trains when a northbound
train struck the rear end or a northbound train
at Mile Post SG 314.0 in Mineral Springs, North
Carolina, at 3:35 a.m., resulting in the death of
two trainmen. NTSB No: DCA 11 FR 004.
• On February 28, 2012, there was a grade crossing
accident involving an Amtrak train colliding with
a vehicle at Bissell Avenue, Granite City, Illinois at
11:58 a.m., while signal crossing maintenance was
being performed at this crossing. This accident
resulted in the death of the lone passenger of that
vehicle. NTSB No: DCA 12 FR 004.
• On November 15, 2012, there was a grade crossing accident involving a UP train and a flatbed
trailer at Garfield Street, Midland, Texas, at 4:35
p.m. The flatbed tractor trailer was carrying 24
people seated on the trailer as part of a parade
honoring Veterans. Four individuals suffered fatal
injuries, five others sustained serious injuries, and
11 others were treated and released at the scene.
AFL-CIO State Federations
At the last Convention, due to the important need of
our Locals to join the AFL-CIO State Federations due
to commuter rail expansions in Florida, and almost
every other state in this country, Grand Lodge committed to pay for half of the Locals’ monthly dues, if
they joined the AFL-CIO State Federations where their
members live.
I am proud to state that numerous BNSF and UP
General Committee Locals have joined the AFLCIO State Federation in almost every state west of
the Mississippi. I was able to attend Local meetings
where the President of the AFL-CIO State Federations
from Colorado, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska,
Oregon, and Texas, were invited to explain the benefits
of joining their Federation.
At this time, there are many high-speed/commuter
projects in the works in numerous states, and being
affiliated with the AFL-CIO State Federations is needed to preserve our work whenever possible. At the state
level, workers’ rights are under constant attack, such
as changing child labor laws, right-to-work legislation,
cuts in wages, dissolving pension funds in the private
and public sector, etc. A united front is vital to stopping this attack against all of labor in this country.
Carrier Policies
It seems that a month does not go by without the
Carriers’ implementing a new policy directly attacking our members’ rights and our collective bargaining
agreements. Both Committees have requested numerous conference calls to discuss those policies to see if
they crossed the line between a major or minor dispute.
One such policy on the UP was deemed a “major dispute” by the BRS, when on July 16, 2013, the Carrier
issued a new meal policy restricting the five rules in
the agreement that provided for actual and necessary
meal reimbursement, by limiting expenses for meals
to $30.00 a day maximum reimbursement. To put it
another way, the Carrier unilaterally created a daily perdiem rate for reimbursement of meals without negotiating this change to the CBA with the Organization.
After numerous meetings with the Carrier in an
attempt to get them to recind this policy, the
Organization, on September 25, 2013, filed with
the US District Court, District of Nevada, BRS v
UP (3:13-cv-00526) for a declaratory order that the
UP violated Section 2 Seventh and 6 of the Railway
Labor Act, 45 USC § 152 Seventh and 156. The BRS
respectfully requested the court to declare the UP’s
refusal to reimburse employees for meals in accordance
with the Agreement constitutes an abrogation and
unilateral change to the parties’ 2010 Agreement and
violates Section 2 Seventh and 6 of the Railway Labor
Act; and to preliminarily enjoin UP from ignoring its
duty to reimburse employees for meals in accordance
with the 2010 Agreement.
Again, after several meetings on this issue, the parties
were unable to resolve this dispute. On October 23,
2013, the Organization, by letter, notified the Carrier
that it was prepared to exercise self-help by engaging
in a strike, work stoppage, picketing or other self-help
against the Carrier some time on or after November
11, 2013, due to the Carrier’s unilaterally imposed
meal expense policy.
Due to this action, the Carrier immediately filed for
a preliminary injunction with the Court; and most
importantly, revised their meal policy on November 1,
2013, to allow for meals in excess of $30.00 a day. On
November 19, 2013, the Court (Chief Justice Robert
C. Jones) notified both parties that the motion hearing
for preliminary injunction was scheduled for December
9, 2013, at Reno, Nevada.
During this hearing, the Court ruled that this issue
was a minor dispute since the Carrier rescinded their
arbitrary $30.00 per day per-diem allowance. However,
following testimony and closing statements, the Judge
pointed out three areas concerning the Carrier’s existing
meal policy that were troubling to him if he was the
arbitrator assigned to this dispute. The Courts’ opinion
on this meal policy will be extremely beneficial in any
future arbitration cases concerning meal reimbursement
where an agreement states, “actual and necessary” for
meal expenses.
In closing my report, this industry has changed dramatically in the last four years. Installation of PTC is
well on its way. The Carriers have increased the monitoring of our members by installing a product called
“Tellematics” that monitors the use of the company
vehicle including seatbelt compliance, speed, location,
if tool bins are open, rail wheels down, boom in use,
etc. BNSF is also installing drive cameras that look
forward and into the cab of the vehicle. Discipline
issued to our members on the BNSF has increased to
record numbers, and even though a large percentage
of those cases have been overturned by the Board, they
continue to be heavy-handed and closed-minded to
any change. Hopefully in the future we can convince
them that they can create a better and more productive
work force if our members are allowed to work without
having to constantly worry that they will be dismissed
from service for a minor mistake or rule infraction. 
45
CONVENTION REPORT OF — John D. Bragg
Vice President assigned to the National Railroad Adjustment Board (NRAB)
The following report covers activities from April 1,
2010, through March 31, 2014, for Vice President
NRAB John D. Bragg. At the beginning of this
term, Kelly Haley held the position of Vice President
NRAB. On October 10, 2011, that changed
when Brother Haley was elected to Vice President
Headquarters and I was elected to Vice President
NRAB.
ing meetings
from 20122014. Since
2012, we have
conducted nine
Local Chairman
Training sessions.
I attended the BRS 50th Regular Convention,
July 26–30, 2010, in Orlando, Florida, where I
was appointed by President Pickett to serve as the
Brotherhood’s Director of Research. Since my election to Vice President, I have participated as the BRS
Labor Member in 27 arbitration hearings involving
various Public Law Boards (PLB), Special Boards of
Adjustment (SBA), and hearings held at the National
Railroad Adjustment Board (NRAB) in Chicago,
Illinois. I participated as Labor Member in one
arbitration hearing concerning the National Labor
Relations Act. I have attended Labor/Management
Section 3 Committee meetings and Labor’s Section 3
Sub-Committee Meetings and attended regular Labor
Member’s meeting at the NRAB. I attended meetings
with the National Mediation Board (NMB). I also
attended Railroad Organizations Arbitration Review
(ROAR) meetings.
I attended and
participated in
the following
meetings:
My regular duties as Vice President NRAB involve
overseeing and improving claim and grievance handling procedures with General Committees and
Locals. I am part of the Review Committee designated
by President Pickett to review all unsettled disputes
which have been submitted to Grand Lodge for further handling. I review and approve all submissions
which are prepared by Grand Lodge Representatives
Finnegan and Tarrant. I have provided research and
guidance for BRS Legal Counsel. I performed administrative duties, research, and preparation for presenting disputes to the NRAB, Public Law Boards, Special
Boards of Adjustment, and labor disputes under the
National Labor Relations Act.
I attended regular meetings of Local Lodges and
General Committees when requested. I attended and
participated in advanced training seminars conducted
by other Labor Organizations. I was responsible for
scheduling and conducting all Local Chairmen’s train46
JOHN D. BRAGG
Vice President NRAB
• BRS Executive Council meetings
• Local Chairmen and General Chairmen training
programs
• Orientation meetings with new referees
• NRAB Labor Member meetings
• Labor/Management Section 3 Committee meetings
• Labor’s Section 3 Sub-Committee meetings
• ROAR meetings
• NRAB meetings
• NRAB adoption sessions
• NMB meetings
• NAA meetings
• NMB Mediation Hearings
• NARR meetings
Section 3 Committee
The Section 3 Committee is comprised of Labor and
Management representatives from Class 1 freight
railroads and commuter carriers. This Committee is
charged with the responsibility to provide input to the
National Mediation Board and implement guidelines
for the handling of disputes. The Committee made
several suggestions regarding the handling of disputes
between the parties.
During several meetings with the NMB, the Section
3 Committee sought to improve procedures for case
handling that were unilaterally implemented by the
NMB. The Section 3 Committee felt that some of the
procedures set forth by the NMB potentially undermined the prompt and orderly settlement of minor
disputes.
The Committee expressed special interest on three
particular changes implemented by the NMB:
1. Approval of funding for “Further Discussion” or
“Executive Sessions” of minor disputes.
2. Monthly allocation of funding by the NMB for
Section 3 cases.
3. The unilateral change by the NMB that requires
arbitrators to render decisions on cases in three
months instead of six.
The Committee monitored six-month time limit for
arbitrators to render a decision after hearing a case.
In over 75% of the cases that were heard involving all
Labor Organizations, the arbitrators complied with
the six month rule. The Section 3 Committee felt
that it was unnecessary to put additional pressure on
arbitrators which could affect the quality of awards,
particularly in complex contract interpretation cases
that will have a long-term effect on the relationship of
the parties.
The monthly allocation of funds by the NMB turned
the case listing process into a virtual lottery as the
parties vied for the Section 3 funds that were made
artificially scarce by the NMB’s well-intentioned,
but ultimately counterproductive, allocation scheme.
The NMB predicted that two-month waiting periods
would result from its monthly allocation scheme. The
Section 3 Committee asked, “Why should the parties wait an additional two months to have an out of
service case heard when Congress has appropriated funds
to resolve such disputes?” This is particularly true with
respect to expedited discipline boards which could
result in the resolution of out of service cases in less
than two months in the absence of the NMB’s monthly allocation policy.
Also, during this reporting period, the NMB essentially stopped all arbitration activity for periods of
two to three months every year because of inadequate
funding. The result of Government shutdowns and an
ever decreasing budget required the NMB and NRAB
to work under Continuing Resolutions. During this
period of Continuing Resolution, the number of cases
presented to arbitrators was severely limited. While
a reduced number of cases were presented during
this time, the arbitrators were not allowed any travel
authority, and they were limited in the number of days
to work in a given month. 
47
BRS Designated Council
When Signalmen suffer a work-related injury or illness, BRS members or their families are encouraged to determine their
rights and benefits under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act before agreeing to any settlement with the railroad employer.
The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen has designated the attorneys listed in this directory to serve as qualified counsel for
BRS members in employee injury cases covered by FELA.
Attorneys are listed by state and are designated to serve BRS members living or working in the general region of their offices.
Designation of FELA counsel is by authority of the BRS Executive Council only.
BRS members are encouraged to provide information regarding FELA cases, including criticism or commendations regarding
the service of designated counsel, and information on injuries and settlements. This information, which will be used in the
continuing evaluation of this program, should be sent to W. Dan Pickett, President, Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, 917
Shenandoah Shores Road, Front Royal, VA 22630-6418.
ALABAMA
W.C. Tucker, Jr.
Maples, Tucker & Jacobs, LLC
2001 Park Place North
Suite 501
Birmingham, AL 35203
Tel. (205) 322-2333
www.mtandj.com
Arizona
Lloyd L. Rabb, III
Rabb & Rabb, PLLC
1575 E. River Road
Tucson, AZ 85718
Tel. (520) 888-6740
800-354-3352
www.1stinjurylaw.com
CALIFORNIA
John D. Gilbert
Law Office of John D. Gilbert
2173 Salk Avenue
Suite 250
Carlsbad, CA 92008
(760) 579-7604
800-499-9904
Jay A. Kaplan
Kaplan Law Corporation
111 W. Ocean Blvd.
Long Beach, CA 90801
Tel. (562) 435-8300
800-552-7526
www.kaplanlawcorp.com
Anthony S. Petru
Hildebrand, McLeod & Nelson
Westlake Building
350 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza
4th Floor
Oakland, CA 94612-2006
Tel. (510) 451-6732
800-447-7500
www.hmnlaw.com
COLORADO
John J. Rossi
Rossi Vucinovich PC
3801 E. Florida Avenue
Floor 4
Denver, CO 80210-2500
Tel. (303) 759-3500
800-325-4014
www.rcvpc.com
1000 Second Avenue
Suite 1610
Seattle, WA 98104
Tel. (425) 646-8004
866-357-RAIL (7245)
DISTRICT OF
COLUMBIA
Larry Mann
Alper & Mann, PC
9205 Redwood Avenue
Bethesda, MD 20817
Tel. (202) 298-9191
800-747-6266
FLORIDA
Alva A. Hollon, Jr.
Sams & Hollon, PA
9424 Baymeadows Road
Suite 160
Jacksonville, FL 32256
Tel. (904) 737-1995
800-327-4552
MASSACHUSETTS MISSOURI
TEXAS
Thornton & Naumes, LLP
100 Summer Street
30th Floor
Boston, MA 02110
Tel. (617) 720-1333
800-431-4600
www.tenlaw.com
Jones, Granger,
Tramuto, & Halstead
www.jonesgranger.com
Robert T. Naumes
P. Matthew Darby
Berman, Sobin, Gross,
Feldman & Darby LLP
32 West Road
Suite 210
Towson, MD 21204
Tel. (410) 769-5400
800-248-3352
www.bsgfdlaw.com
Bauer & Baebler, PC
1716 South Broadway
St. Louis, MO 63104-4049
Tel. (314) 241-7700
800-682-4529
www.raillaw.com
NEBRASKA
See Minnesota
MICHIGAN
Arvin J. Pearlman
Arvin J. Pearlman &
Associates, PC
24725 W. 12 Mile Road
Suite 220
Southfield, MI 48034
Tel. (248) 356-5000
Howard A. Spier
Rossman Baumberger Reboso 800-272-5400
www.pearlpi.com
Spier & Connolly, PA
9155 S. Dadeland Blvd.
Suite 1200
MINNESOTA
Miami, FL 33156
Randal W. LeNeave
Tel. (305) 373-0708
Hunegs, LeNeave
800-775-6511
& Kvas
www.rbrlaw.com
1000 Twelve Oaks
Center Drive
ILLINOIS
Suite 101
Daniel Petro
Wayzata, MN 55391
The Petro Law Firm
Tel. (612) 339-4511
180 N. Wacker Drive
800-328-4340
Suite 300
www.hlklaw.com
Chicago, IL 60606
Tel. (312) 332-9596
6035 Binney Street
800-472-5729
Omaha, NE 68104
Tel. (402) 341-2020
Daniel J. Downes
800-342-3352
Ridge & Downes
101 N. Wacker Drive
Yaeger & Weiner, PLC
Suite 200
Gregory T. Yaeger
Chicago, IL 60606
2701 University Avenue SE
Tel. (312) 372-8282
Suite 202
800-624-2121
Minneapolis, MN 55414
www.ridgedownes.com
Tel. (612) 345-9797
MARYLAND
Drew C. Baebler
MISSOURI
Gene C. Napier
Hubbell Law Firm, LLC
Union Station
30 West Pershing Road
Suite 350
Kansas City, MO
64108-2463
Tel. (816) 221-5666
800-821-5257
www.hubbellfirm.com
NEW YORK
Weldon Granger
Robert M. Tramuto
10000 Memorial Drive
Suite 888
Houston, TX 77210
Tel. (713) 668-0230
800-231-3359
Marc Wietzke
UTAH
OHIO
Hatch, James & Dodge, PC
10 West Broadway
Suite 400
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
Tel. (801) 363-6363
800-574-6310
www.hjdlaw.com
Flynn & Wietzke, PC
1205 Franklin Avenue
Garden City, NY 11530
Tel. (516) 877-1234
866-877-3352
www.felaattorney.com
Andrew J. Thompson, Esq.
Shapero | Roloff Co., LPA
U.S. Bank Centre
1350 Euclid Avenue
Suite 1550
Cleveland, OH 44115
Tel. (216) 781-1700
800-321-9199
www.shaperoroloff.com
PENNSYLVANIA
Mitchell A. Kaye
Brent O. Hatch
VIRGINIA
Willard J. Moody, Sr.
The Moody Law Firm, Inc.
500 Crawford Street
Suite 200
Portsmouth, VA 23704
Tel. (757) 393-4093
800-368-1033
www.moodyrrlaw.com
C. Richard Cranwell
Coffey, Kaye, Meyers & Olley
Two Bala Plaza
Suite 718
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
Tel. (610) 668-9800
800-334-2500
www.felaattys.com
Cranwell, Moore & Emick, PLC
111 W. Virginia Avenue
Vinton, VA 24179
Tel. (540) 904-1621
888-635-6304
www.cranwellmoorelaw.com
Michael Y. Kleeman
George A. Thornton
Kleeman & DiGiovanni, PC
1819 John F. Kennedy Blvd.
Suite 350
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Tel. (215) 963-0187
800-221-5697
www.kleemanlawfirm.com
TEXAS
Sara Youngdahl
WASHINGTON
Thornton Mostul, PLLC
1000 Second Avenue
Suite 3200
Seattle, WA 98104
Tel. (206) 621-0600
800-525-3352
www.nwrrlaw.com
See Colorado
The Youngdahl Law Firm, PC
4203 Montrose Drive
Suite 280
Houston, TX 77006
Tel. (281) 996-0750
866-996-0750
www.youngdahl.com
49
Regular Convention
Official Publications
The BRS publications have been under the direction
of two editors since the 2010 Convention. At the
beginning of this reporting period, Jerry Boles managed the day-to-day operations of the Publications’
Department along with his other duties as Vice
President Headquarters. When Brother Boles was
elected to the office of Secretary-Treasurer in October
2011, Kelly Haley took over those duties
when he was elected to fill Brother
Boles’ vacated position, Vice President
Headquarters. Brother Haley has previous
experience with The Signalman’s Journal
and other publications as he served as the
BRS Publications Editor/Communications
Director between 2001 and 2008. Brother
Haley is also responsible for the BRS website — www.brs.org.
The Signalman’s Journal
The Signalman’s Journal, the official publication of the Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen, is now in its 95th year of publication, the Journal strives to fulfill its original
mandate to “publish such information as will
be helpful and beneficial to the members of
our craft.” The Signalman’s Journal is published
quarterly.
Regular features appearing in The Signalman’s
Journal include the President’s Column, the
Officers’ Directory, the Benefits Directory,
a list of BRS-designated counsel
in the FELA Directory, a listing of Signalmen receiving
service pins in the Continuous
Membership column, Obituaries,
the AFL-CIO Do-Buy and Don’tBuy lists, and the Signalman’s Store.
The Washington Report highlights
the work and progress of the BRS
Legislative Department. The purpose
of the Washington Report is to inform
and educate BRS members regarding
political topics that are important to our
craft and the labor movement as a whole.
Feature Journal articles include photos and
50
reports from the
BRS Convention,
General
Committee meetings, Local meetings, and joint and
regional meetings.
Also included are
reports on national
KELLY A. HALEY
and local negotiaVice President Headquarters
tions, federal legislation, and court
decisions affecting Signalmen and their families,
Railroad Retirement issues, and activities related to
rail safety, especially rail safety initiatives involving
the FRA. BRS publications also feature articles on
training programs, BRS members at work, and other
activities and events concerning officers and members.
There have also been occasional Journal features highlighting the Union Plus credit card, mortgage, and
legal service programs available to members. Member
benefits regarding the Union Plus program can also
be found on the Union Plus website at www.unionplus.org.
The Signalman’s Journal Update —
Discontinued
The Committee on Laws, at the 2010 Brotherhood
of Railroad Signalmen’s 50th Regular Convention,
recommended discontinuance of The Signalman’s
Journal Update. The Update, a quarterly issued, 4
to 8-page newsletter, focused on news and events
important to the craft of signaling and other topics
important to the rail industry.
Due to the popularity and economical advantages of
using electronic communication over print publication, the delegates voted to terminate publication
of the Update. In the third quarter of 2010, the
Organization mailed its final issue of the Update to
its members.
Publishing
The BRS produces and completes the layout of The
Signalman’s Journal and other needed publications
in-house. The printing of The Signalman’s Journal is
handled by Peake DeLancey Printers, LLC., a union
printer located in Cheverly, Maryland.
Distribution
The Signalman’s Journal is mailed directly from our
printer to all active and retired BRS members, numerous members of Congress, other labor organizations,
and select railroad officials. Individuals paying a seniority retention fee are not entitled to a subscription to
The Signalman’s Journal but may purchase a subscription for $10 per year. Circulation is currently 15,539,
up from 14,014 as reported in the 2010 Officers’
Report. Past Journal issues can also be found posted on
the BRS website in the public area.
Photo Contest
The Signalman’s Journal continues to host an annual
photo contest, publishing photographs submitted
by BRS members, depicting railroad scenes of signal
equipment and Signalmen at work. With the increasing popularity of high-resolution digital cameras and
broadband internet connections, more and more
of the photo entries are coming to us in file format
over the Internet. All active and retired members are
encouraged to enter the popular contest. Prizes for the
winners of the annual contest continue to include merchandise and gift certificates to the Signalman’s Store.
For the complete rules, please see the entry form published in each fourth quarter Journal issue. All photos
submitted become the property of the BRS.
Members may send their pictures to [email protected] for
submission in the photo contest. We prefer highresolution digital files if possible. Photos that need
scanning may be mailed to BRS Grand Lodge at: 917
Shenandoah Shores Road, Front Royal, VA 22630,
Attention: Teresa Embrey.
The Website
During this reporting period, the BRS website, www.
brs.org, was completely updated and redesigned.
The website redesign began in March 2011 and was
brought online during the third quarter of 2011. The
website is updated frequently with articles affecting
Signalmen, working families, and the rail industry.
We are proud that we were able to find and use a
unionized provider to fulfill our web hosting needs.
Unions-America is a fully unionized internet service provider offering ISP services, web hosting, and
e-mail to unions and their members. Unions-America
employees are members of Teamsters Local 767-M.
Website features:
• Events Calendar
• Agreement Posting Area for General Committees
• BRS Constitution
• Document Download Area
• Members-Only Area
• Member Alerts Page
• Email Registration: All BRS members (active
and retired) may sign up for a no-cost “@brs.
org” email account
• Photo Gallery
• News Feeds Area:

UnionActive news feed

AFL-CIO news feed

Union Plus news feed
• User-Specific Location Weather Forecasts
• Signalman’s Store
• Online Store/Shopping Cart System (PayPal
friendly)
• FELA Directory Page
The website features an online registration process for
BRS members to register for access to the membersonly area and to sign up for a “brs.org” email account.
All BRS members in good standing (active and retired)
may have a “brs.org” email account at no charge so
long as they continue to be members in good standing.
Each email account is equipped with virus filtering and
spam blocking. The accounts are capped at 150 MB
total server space and individual emails are limited to
10 Megabytes.
The account can be set up as a standard POP3
account, interfacing with Microsoft Mail, Outlook, or
other POP3 or IMAP compatible email program, or it
can be accessed as web-based email using a web browser at mail.brs.org. We do not provide technical support
to set up or troubleshoot email accounts on individual
computers; however, detailed setup instructions are
available on the website for various email programs.
Of our active members, about 1900 have signed up for
the members-only area of the website, and about 300
members have signed up for their free email account. It
normally takes only one business day to have a member’s account activated. 
51
Regular Convention
BRS Conventions 1908–2014
1ST
Altoona, Pennsylvania
January 1908
27TH
Cleveland, Ohio
August 1944
2ND
New York, New York
April 1908
28TH
Jacksonville, Florida
August 1946
3RD
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
August 1908
29TH
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
August 1948
4TH
Buffalo, New York
June 1909
30TH
Hamilton, Ontario
August 1950
5TH
New York, New York
June 1910
31ST
Los Angeles, California
August 1952
6TH
Boston, Massachusetts
June 1911
32ND
Chicago, Illinois
August 1954
7TH
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
June 1912
33RD
Washington, D.C.
August 1956
8TH
Detroit, Michigan
June 1913
34TH
Miami, Florida
August 1958
9
Hazelwood, Pennsylvania
June 1914
35TH
Denver, Colorado
August 1961
10
St. Thomas, Ontario
June 1915
36TH
August 1964
11
Chicago, Illinois
Montreal, Quebec
June 1916
New Haven, Connecticut
June 1917
Chicago, Illinois
August 1967
12
37TH
13
Baltimore, Maryland
June 1918
38TH
Las Vegas, Nevada
August 1970
TH
14
Kansas City, Missouri
June 1919
39TH
New Orleans, Louisiana
15TH
Kansas City, Missouri
July 1920
40TH
Quebec City, Quebec
August 1976
16TH
Cincinnati, Ohio
41ST
Chicago, Illinois
August 1979
17TH
St. Louis, Missouri
September 1924
42ND
San Francisco, California
August 1982
18TH
New York, New York
September 1926
43RD
Las Vegas, Nevada
August 1985
19TH
Chicago, Illinois
August 1928
44TH
Lake Buena Vista, Florida
July 1988
20TH
Denver, Colorado
August 1930
45TH
Las Vegas, Nevada
July 1991
21ST
Chicago, Illinois
August 1932
46TH
Las Vegas, Nevada
July 1994
22ND
Chicago, Illinois
August 1934
47TH
Cincinnati, Ohio
July 1998
23RD
Chicago, Illinois
August 1936
48TH
Las Vegas, Nevada
July 2002
24TH
Toronto, Ontario
August 1938
49TH
Las Vegas, Nevada
July 2006
25TH
Denver, Colorado
August 1940
50TH
Orlando, Florida
July 2010
26TH
New York, New York
August 1942
51ST
Las Vegas, Nevada
July 2014
TH
TH
TH
TH
TH
52
October 1922
July 1973
Regular Convention
Grand Lodge Headquarters
The Headquarters of the Brotherhood
of Railroad Signalmen is located at
917 Shenandoah Shores Road in Front
Royal, Virginia. The office building
was built in 2004, and is approximately
13,000 sq. ft.
The BRS Headquarters office space is
divided into a large conference room, a
small conference room, ten individual
offices, three secretarial areas, a reference
library, a lunch room, a mail room, a
computer room, a membership area, an
archive room, storage rooms, and closets.
The BRS Grand Lodge Headquarters is conveniently located just 76
miles west of Washington, D.C.
The following officers and representatives occupy the Brotherhood’s offices in
Front Royal: President W. Dan Pickett,
In October 2010, BRS headquarters received a first
Secretary-Treasurer Jerry C. Boles, Vice President
place award for outstanding landscaping from the
— Headquarters Kelly A. Haley, Vice President —
Beautification of Front Royal Committee (BFRC) in
NRAB John D. Bragg, Director of Research Michael
recognition of the improvements to the landscaping
S. Baldwin, and Grand Lodge Representatives Jim M.
surrounding the headquarters building. BFRC is an
Finnegan, and Timothy M. Tarrant. The headquarters
organization dedicated to the pursuit of beautifying
staff includes Mrs. Jillian Lasky, Executive Assistant
the scenic and historic community of Front Royal,
to the President; Mrs. Teresa Embrey, Executive
Virginia.
Communications Assistant to the President; Mrs.
In January of 2013, the headquarters’ interior was
Cynthia Haley, Executive Assistant to the Secretarypainted and the carpet was replaced.
Treasurer; Mr. Gene Moore, Executive Accounting
Assistant to the Secretary-Treasurer; and four staff perThe archive room remains an attraction to visitors
sonnel whose responsibilities include arbitration, memand guests. This room contains the original 1902
bership, reception, and general office duties.
charter for the Brotherhood’s first local lodge and the
In addition to the Front Royal offices, the Brotherhood
rents office space in Washington, D.C.; Denver, North
Carolina; Trenton, Kentucky; Kansas City, Missouri;
and Centreville, Virginia. Vice President Mark Ciurej
and a part-time secretary are assigned to the Kansas
City, Missouri, office. Vice President Floyd Mason
and a part-time secretary are assigned to the Denver,
North Carolina, office. Vice President Joe Mattingly
and a part-time secretary are assigned to the Trenton,
Kentucky, office. Vice President Dennis Boston and
a part-time secretary are assigned to the Centreville,
Virginia, office and National Legislative Director
Leonard Parker is assigned to the Washington, D.C.,
office.
Brotherhood’s 1914 certificate of affiliation with the
American Federation of Labor. The BRS also displays
historical photos of BRS officers and mementos from
various conventions and meetings. Historical documents and records, including Convention records, are
maintained in this office as well.
BRS officers and staff members are always pleased to
welcome members who take time to stop by, say hello,
and see the Brotherhood’s Front Royal headquarters. We encourage the delegates of this 51st Regular
Convention to convey that message to members of
their local lodges upon returning home and while making reports on the Convention in forthcoming meetings. 
53
Regular Convention
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) was created with the passage of the
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. Its purpose
is to protect the safety and health of the men and women
in the United States workplace.
The general duty of an employer under OSHA requires
that a worker be provided a place of employment which
is “Free from recognized
hazards that are causing or
are likely to cause death
or serious physical harm.”
If the workplace is unsafe,
OSHA is violated.
1978 and, instead, a Policy Statement was issued. That
document explained what the FRA considered to be
within its jurisdiction, and what would continue to be
enforced by the Department of Labor. OSHA should
have jurisdiction over safety regulations and supply coverage where FRA regulations fail to address a subject
matter. In general, where the subject matter relates to
operation safety (i.e. safe movement of equipment over
rails), the FRA will exercise
its jurisdiction. All other
aspects are enforceable by
the Department of Labor
where the conditions are
similar to those in any
other U.S. industry.
In addition to the federal
The general duty of an employer under
railroad safety laws and
regulations, railroad workOSHA requires that a worker be proers are covered under
vided a place of employment which is
the various occupational
safety and health laws.
“Free from recognized hazards that are
The OSHA law covers
causing or are likely to cause death or
railroad workers where
serious physical harm.” If the workanother Federal Agency
has not exercised authority
place is unsafe, OSHA is violated.
over the particular working condition involved.
Therefore, it is necessary
to determine whether the FRA issued a rule or regulation
over a specific working condition. If not, the OSHA laws
are applicable.
It should always be kept in mind that all of the working
conditions of a railroad worker are subject either to the
railroad safety laws or the OSHA law. The intent is that
there should be no gaps in safety law coverage.
Amendments to the Federal Rail Safety Act (FRSA)
transferred authority for rail carrier employee whistleblower protections to OSHA, and now include new
rights and remedies. These amendments include whistleblower protection for rail carrier employees who request
medical attention.
In the early 1970s, the Nation’s railroads challenged
OSHA’s right to enforce any of its safety regulations in
the railroad industry. During the middle 1970s, the FRA
considered adopting the federal OSHA standards as FRA
standards. However, that rulemaking was terminated in
54
For more information on
OSHA, FRSA, or other
employee whistleblower
protection provisions,
including copies of the
statutes and regulations, go
to www.osha.gov. 
FactSheet
Whistleblower Protection for
Railroad Workers
Individuals working for railroad carriers are protected from retaliation for reporting potential
safety or security violations to their employers or to the government.
On August 3, 2007, the Federal Railroad Safety Act
(FRSA), 49 U.S.C. §20109, was amended by The
Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11
Commission Act (Public Law 110-53) to transfer
authority for railroad carrier worker whistleblower
protections to OSHA and to include new rights,
remedies and procedures. On October 16, 2008, the
Rail Safety Improvement Act (Public Law 110-432)
again amended FRSA, to specifically prohibit discipline of employees for requesting medical treatment or for following medical treatment orders.
requesting medical or first-aid treatment, or for
following orders or a treatment plan of a treating
physician.
Covered Employees
• Demoting
Under FRSA, an employee of a railroad carrier or a
contractor or subcontractor is protected from retaliation for reporting certain safety and security violations.
• Denying overtime or promotion
Protected Activity
• Intimidation
If your employer is covered under FRSA, it may not
discharge you or in any other manner retaliate
against you because you provided information to,
caused information to be provided to, or assisted
in an investigation by a federal regulatory or law
enforcement agency, a member or committee of
Congress, or your company about an alleged violation of federal laws and regulations related to railroad safety and security, or about gross fraud,
waste or abuse of funds intended for railroad safety or security. Your employer may not discharge or
in any other manner retaliate against you because
you filed, caused to be filed, participated in, or
assisted in a proceeding under one of these laws
or regulations. In addition, you are protected from
retaliation for reporting hazardous safety or security conditions, reporting a work-related injury or illness, refusing to work under certain conditions, or
refusing to authorize the use of any safety- or security-related equipment, track or structures. You may
also be covered if you were perceived as having
engaged in the activities described above.
In addition, you are also protected from retaliation
(including being brought up on charges in a disciplinary proceeding) or threatened retaliation for
Adverse Actions
Your employer may be found to have violated
FRSA if your protected activity was a contributing
factor in its decision to take adverse action against
you. Such actions may include:
• Firing or laying off
• Blacklisting
• Disciplining
• Denying benefits
• Failing to hire or rehire
• Making threats
• Reassignment affecting promotion prospects
• Reducing pay or hours
• Disciplining an employee for requesting medical
or first-aid treatment
• Disciplining an employee for following orders or
a treatment plan of a treating physician
• Forcing an employee to work against medical
advice
Deadline for Filing a Complaint
Complaints must be filed within 180 days after the
alleged adverse action occurred.
How to File a Complaint
A worker, or his or her representative, who believes
that he or she has been retaliated against in violation
of this statute may file a complaint with OSHA. The
complaint should be filed with the OSHA office
responsible for enforcement activities in the geographic area where the worker lives or was employed,
but may be filed with any OSHA officer or employee.
For more information, call your nearest OSHA
Regional Office:
continued on page 56
55
• Boston
(617) 565-9860
• Payment of backpay with interest.
• New York
(212) 337-2378
• Philadelphia
(215) 861-4900
• Atlanta
(404) 562-2300
• Compensatory damages, including compensation for special damages, expert witness fees
and reasonable attorney’s fees.
• Chicago
(312) 353-2220
• Dallas
(972) 850-4145
• Kansas City
(816) 283-8745
• Denver
(720) 264-6550
• San Francisco
(415) 625-2547
• Seattle
(206) 553-5930
• Punitive damages of up to $250,000.
OSHA’s findings and preliminary order become a
final order of the Secretary of Labor, unless a party
objects within 30 days.
Addresses, fax numbers and other contact information for these offices can be found on the
Whistleblower Protection Program’s website,
www.whistleblowers.gov, and in local directories.
Complaints may be filed orally or in writing, by
mail (we recommend certified mail), e-mail, fax, or
hand-delivery during business hours. The date of
postmark, delivery to a third party carrier, fax, email, phone call, or hand-delivery is considered the
date filed. If the worker or his or her representative
is unable to file the complaint in English, OSHA
will accept the complaint in any language.
Results of the Investigation
If the evidence supports your claim of retaliation
and a settlement cannot be reached, OSHA will
issue a preliminary order requiring the appropriate
relief to make you whole. Ordered relief may
include:
• Reinstatement with the same seniority and
benefits.
Hearings and Review
After OSHA issues its findings and preliminary
order, either party may request a hearing before an
administrative law judge of the U.S. Department of
Labor. A party may seek review of the administrative law judge’s decision and order before the
Department’s Administrative Review Board. Under
FRSA, if there is no final order issued by the
Secretary of Labor within 210 days after the filing
of the complaint, then you may be able to file a
civil action in the appropriate U.S. district court.
To Get Further Information
For a copy of the statutes, the regulations and
other whistleblower information, go to www.
whistleblowers.gov. For information on the Office of
Administrative Law Judges procedures, decisions
and research materials, go to www.oalj.dol.gov and
click on the link for “Whistleblower.”
This is one in a series of informational fact sheets highlighting OSHA programs, policies or
standards. It does not impose any new compliance requirements. For a comprehensive list of
compliance requirements of OSHA standards or regulations, refer to Title 29 of the Code of Federal
Regulations. This information will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request.
The voice phone is (202) 693-1999; teletypewriter (TTY) number: (877) 889-5627.
For more complete information:
U.S. Department of Labor
www.osha.gov
(800) 321-OSHA
DEP 8/2010
56
Regular Convention
BRS Membership 2010–2014
After a four-year, 8.7 percent increase that started in
2006, BRS membership grew during all years of the
four-year reporting period. For the four years following
the 2010 Convention total membership, including fee
paying officials and dues exempt, grew from 10,254 to
11,836, an increase of 1,582. The chart below graphs
the membership numbers by full dues paying members,
fee payers, and dues exempt. The growth of full dues
paying members is 1,377 members over the four-year
period or a 15.1 percent increase.
Membership Per Capita Audits
To further improve membership reporting, audits
on local per capita reports were continued and are
performed upon receipt of each per capita tax report.
We have continued our annual audits of membership
records using seniority rosters. Audits have proven to
be very valuable and are a necessary part of resolving
underpayment or overpayment of per-capita tax to
Grand Lodge.
Communication Between Members
and Financial Secretaries
While computer programs and auditing have improved
reporting, there is still concern that new signalmen are
being employed without being contacted and joining
the BRS. We have uncovered unreported membership
changes with our roster audits. While the local secretary
is charged with tracking and reporting the status of
members in the local lodge, this responsibility cannot be done by one person. It
requires effort on the part of each member of the local lodge. Lack of communication is the foundation of most membership reporting problems. Members do not
inform the local secretary when a change
in his status occurs. This is especially true
when transfers take place.
10254
work on signal construction gangs. It has been strongly
recommended that signal gang foremen be contacted
by the financial secretary and encouraged to report new
employees to the financial secretary, providing, at the
very least, the new employee’s name, home address, and
social security number.
Membership transfers remain a problem. With
increased construction territories, BRS members are
more mobile and, as a result, membership transfers
from one local lodge to another have increased. The
Constitution provides for the transfer of members
from one local lodge to another to occur on the first
day of the calendar quarter following such a transfer.
The transfer provision of the Constitution does not
eliminate the need for communication from a member
when he or she transfers to the jurisdiction of another
local lodge. It remains the member’s obligation to start
the transfer process through notification to his or her
local financial secretary.
While we look for ways to improve membership
reporting, good lines of communication between members and the financial secretary are necessary.
Each delegate needs to report back to his or her local
lodge on the need for better communication between
officers, local chairmen, and members of the local
lodge. Only in this way will we stay better informed on
the status of each BRS member. 
11836
11517
11361
11485
11201
11034
10520
10502
10275
10173
10128
9896
Local officers and local chairmen are
encouraged to work to ensure that communications are improved and the local
financial secretary is made aware of membership status changes. One important
aspect of this communication need concerns new members. In most instances,
new signal employees are hired and go to
9361
9143
Apr-10
Apr-11
Apr-12
Apr-13
Apr-14
Dues Exempt Members, Fee Payers, & Regular Members
Active Full Dues & Fee Payers
Active Full Dues
57
In Memoriam
JOHN TRUETT BASS  1922–2011
Retired BRS Vice President West, and member of Local 176, John T. Bass.
Brother Bass began his signaling career in 1941 as a Signal Helper for the
Louisville & Nashville Railroad. Brother Bass was elected as full-time General
Chairman of the L&N General Committee in 1960. In 1967, Brother Bass
was appointed Grand Lodge Representative. Brother Bass was appointed Vice
President, filling the unexpired term of former Vice President R. T. Bates, in
1970. Brother Bass served as Vice President of the West until his retirement in
April of 1984.
W.D. “DINK” BEST  1923–2011
Retired BRS Secretary-Treasurer, W. D. “Dink” Best. Brother Best began his
railroad career in December 1941 as a Signal Helper on the Pennsylvania
Railroad. Brother Best was elected Local Chairman of Local 146 in 1957. He
also served as Vice General Chairman on the Pennsylvania General Committee.
In 1963, he was appointed as Grand Lodge Representative. In 1969, he
became Director of Research; in 1972 he became Vice President Midwest; and
Secretary-Treasurer in 1977. Brother Best served as Secretary-Treasurer for 11
years and retired in 1988.
JOHN E. HANSEN, JR.  1931–2011
Retired member of Local 43. Brother Hansen began his railroad career
in 1949 as a Signal Helper. In 1973, Brother Hansen was appointed to
the position of Director of Research at BRS Grand Lodge; he was also
appointed Vice President of the Northeast Corridor. At the 44th Regular
Convention, Brother Hansen elected not to run for office, and in 1988 he
returned to Boone, Iowa, where he resumed working for the C&NW until
his retirement in 1992.
RICHARD C. “DICK” HOWARD  1916–2012
Brother Howard began his railroad career as a Maintainer on the Pittsburgh
division of the Pennsylvania Railroad and member of Local 62 in
September of 1941. In 1947, Brother Howard came to Grand Lodge headquarters to work as the Office Manager. He later became the editor and
manager of The Signalman’s Journal in October of 1948. On September 1,
1958, Brother Howard became Secretary-Treasurer of LABOR newspaper.
58
ROBERT W. MCKNIGHT  1923–2012
Brother McKnight was The Signalman’s Journal Editor from 1973–1981.
During Brother McKnight’s tenure as editor, The Signalman’s Journal received
awards of outstanding achievement in the field of labor journalism (1978)
and an award for general excellence (1980) from the International Labor Press
Association. In 1981, Brother McKnight moved on to be the Manager of C&S
Engineering at the Association of American Railroads.
HARRY BRITTON SYKES  1925–2012
Retired member of Local 198. Brother Sykes began his 50-year career on
the Clinchfield Railroad (CSX Transportation) in 1942. In 1950, he transferred to the Signal Department as a Helper, becoming a Maintainer in
1953. Brother Sykes served as the Clinchfield General Chairman for 35
years, from 1955-1990.
EDGAR GUY MCGRIFF  1928–2012
Retired member of Local 16. Brother McGriff retired in 1991, completing 44
years of service, as a Signal Maintainer for CSX Transportation. Brother McGriff
served as Local Chairman of Local 16 (Seaboard Coast Line). Brother McGriff
was elected Vice General Chairman, under General Chairman G. G. Gross, of the
Southeast General Committee. Brother McGriff acted as General Chairman for a
couple of years when Brother Gross became sick and unable to fulfill his post.
ARTHUR L. STRADER, JR.  1942–2013
Retired member of Local 138. Brother Strader began his career as an
Assistant Signalman for the Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac
Railroad in 1969. Brother Strader retired in 2002 as a Signalman for CSX
Transportation headquartered at Doswell, Virginia. Brother Strader served as
General Chairman for the RF&P General Committee.
WILLIAM H. “COOKIE” KEEBLER  1949–2013
Known to his Union Brothers and Sisters as “Cookie,” Brother Keebler was well
respected by the members he represented, as well as railroad carriers under his
jurisdiction. Brother Keebler began his signaling career as a Signal Trainee in
1968. Brother Keebler was elected Trustee at the United General Committee’s
Triennial meeting in 1987. Brother Keebler also served as Local Chairman for
Local 53 before his election to Assistant General Chairman.
59
Regular Convention
Railroad Retirement Board
The Railroad Retirement Board (RRB)
is an independent agency in the
executive branch of the Federal
Government. The RRB’s primary
function is to administer comprehensive retirement-survivor and
unemployment-sickness benefit
programs for the nation’s railroad
workers and their families, under
the Railroad Retirement and Railroad
Unemployment Insurance Acts. As part
of the retirement program, the RRB also
has administrative responsibilities under the Social
Security Act for certain benefit payments and railroad workers’ Medicare coverage.
In fiscal year 2013, the RRB paid retirement-survivor benefits of some $11.6 billion to about 568,000
beneficiaries. The RRB also paid net unemployment-sickness benefits of $91 million (including
almost $7 million in temporary extended unemployment benefits under the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Worker,
Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of
2009, and subsequent reauthorizing legislation) to
more than 26,000 claimants. At the end of fiscal
year 2013, the average annuity paid to retired rail
employees was nearly $2,450 a month, spouse benefits averaged $915 a month, and benefits for aged
widow(er)s averaged $1,475 a month. The maximum biweekly rate for unemployment and sickness
benefits was $680.
Development of the Railroad
Retirement and Unemployment
Insurance Systems
The RRB was created in the 1930s by legislation
establishing a retirement benefit program for the
Nation’s railroad workers. The railroad industry had
pioneered private industrial pension plans, with the
first industrial pension plan in North America established by a railroad in 1874. By the 1930s, railroad
pension plans were far more developed than in most
other businesses or industries, but these plans had
serious defects which the Great Depression magnified.
60
Retirement
Program
The economic
conditions of the
1930s demonstrated the need for
retirement plans
on a national basis,
Walter A. Barrows
because few of the
Labor Member — RRB
Nation’s elderly
were covered under
any type of retirement program. While the social
security system was in the planning stage, railroad
workers sought a separate railroad retirement system
which would continue and broaden the existing railroad programs under a uniform national plan. The
proposed social security system was not scheduled
to begin monthly benefit payments for several years
and would not give credit for service performed
before 1937, while conditions in the railroad industry called for immediate benefit payments based on
prior service.
Legislation enacted in 1934, 1935, and 1937 established a railroad retirement system separate from the
social security program legislated in 1935. Such legislation, taking into account particular circumstances
of the rail industry, had some precedent. Many laws
pertaining to rail operations and safety had already
been enacted since the Interstate Commerce Act of
1887. Since passage of the Railroad Retirement Acts
of the 1930s, several other railroad laws have subsequently been enacted.
While the railroad retirement system has remained
separate from the social security system, the two
systems are closely coordinated with regard to earnings credits, benefit payments, and taxes. A financial interchange links financing of the two systems
by coordinating the portion of railroad retirement
annuities that is equivalent to social security benefits
with the social security system. The purpose of this
financial coordination is to place the social security
trust funds in the same position they would be in if
the social security program covered railroad service
instead of the railroad retirement program.
Legislation enacted in 1974 restructured railroad
retirement benefits into two tiers to coordinate them
more fully with social security benefits. The first tier
is based on combined railroad retirement and social
security credits, using social security benefit formulas. The second tier is based on railroad service only
and compares with private pensions paid over and
above social security benefits in other industries.
Unemployment Insurance Program
The railroad unemployment insurance system was
also established in the 1930s. The Great Depression
demonstrated the need for unemployment compensation programs, and the Social Security Act of
1935 created State unemployment programs. While
the State unemployment programs generally covered
railroad workers, railroad operations which crossed
State lines caused special problems. In some instances, one State denied compensation for unemployed
railroad workers because their employers had paid
unemployment taxes in another State. Although
there were cases where employees appeared to be
covered in more than one State, they often did not
qualify in any.
A Federal study commission, which reported on
the nationwide State plans for unemployment
insurance, recommended that a separate plan cover
railroad workers because of complications with the
State plans. Congress then enacted the Railroad
Unemployment Insurance Act in June 1938. The
Act established a system of benefits for unemployed
railroaders, financed entirely by railroad employers
and administered by the RRB. Legislation added
sickness benefits in 1946.
Railroad Retirement Act
Under the Railroad Retirement Act, railroad workers
with at least 10 years of service can receive retirement and disability annuities. Such annuities are
also payable to workers with 5 years of service if performed after 1995.
Provisions
Full age annuities are payable at age 60 to workers
with 30 years of service. For those with less than
30 years of service, reduced annuities are payable at
age 62 and unreduced annuities are payable at full
retirement age, which is gradually rising from 65 to
67, depending on the year of birth. Disability annuities can be paid on the basis of total or occupational
disability. Annuities are also payable to spouses and
divorced spouses of retired workers, widow(er)s,
surviving divorced spouses, remarried widow(er)s,
children, and parents of deceased railroad workers.
Qualified railroad retirement beneficiaries receive
Medicare coverage just like social security beneficiaries.
As noted, the RRB pays retirement annuities to
employees, as well as their spouses and/or divorced
spouses, if the employee had at least 10 years of
railroad service, or 5 years if performed after 1995.
However, for survivor benefits, there is an additional
requirement that the employee’s last regular employment before retirement or death was in the railroad
industry. If a railroad employee or his or her survivors do not qualify for railroad retirement benefits,
the RRB transfers the employee’s railroad retirement
credits to the Social Security Administration, which
treats them as social security credits.
Financing
Payroll taxes paid by railroad employers and their
employees are the primary source of funding for
the railroad retirement-survivor benefit programs.
Railroad retirement taxes, which have historically
been higher than social security taxes, are calculated,
like benefit payments, on a two-tier basis. Railroad
retirement tier I payroll taxes are coordinated with
social security taxes so employees and employers pay
tier I taxes at the same rate as social security taxes. In
addition, both employees and employers pay tier II
taxes to finance railroad retirement benefit payments
beyond social security levels. The ratio of certain
asset balances to the sum of benefit payments and
administrative expenses determines tier II tax rates.
Revenues in excess of benefit payments are invested
to provide additional trust fund income. The
National Railroad Retirement Investment Trust
manages and invests railroad retirement assets. It
invests these funds in non-governmental assets, as
well as in governmental securities.
Additional trust fund income derives from the
financial interchange with the social security trust
funds, revenues from Federal income taxes on railroad retirement benefits, and appropriations from
general treasury revenues provided after 1974 as part
of a phase-out of certain vested dual benefits.
Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act
Under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act,
unemployment insurance benefits are paid to rail-
61
road workers who are unemployed but ready, willing, and able to work, and sickness benefits to railroad workers unable to work because of illness or
injury. The RRB also operates a placement service
to help unemployed railroaders secure employment.
Benefit year — A new unemployment-sickness
benefit year begins every July 1, with eligibility
generally based on railroad service and earnings
in the preceding calendar year. Up to 26 weeks of
normal unemployment or sickness benefits are payable to an individual in a benefit year. Additional
extended benefits are payable to persons with 10 or
more years of service.
Financing — Taxes on railroad employers under an experience-rating system
finance the railroad unemploymentsickness benefits program. The
RRB calculates each employer’s
payroll tax rate annually on
the basis of benefit payments
to the railroad’s employees.
Railroad Medicare
The Medicare program covers
railroad workers just like workers covered under social security.
The Medicare program provides
health insurance to persons ages 65
and older, as well as persons under age 65
who have been entitled to monthly benefits based
on total disability for at least 24 months or who
suffer from chronic kidney disease requiring hemodialysis or transplant. In addition to basic hospital
insurance (Part A) financed by payroll taxes, there
is an elective supplementary medical insurance
(Part B) that covers many other medical services,
such as doctor visits, durable medical equipment,
and outpatient services that hospital insurance does
not cover.
Eligible railroad retirement annuitants and social
security beneficiaries whose benefits are payable
by the RRB are automatically enrolled under both
plans, but the annuitant or beneficiary can decline
Medicare Part B. Eligible non-retired persons must
apply in order to obtain Medicare coverage. The
RRB automatically enrolled some 27,000 beneficiaries for Medicare during fiscal year 2013. As of the
end of that fiscal year, more than 468,800 persons
were enrolled in the Part A plan, and over 449,600
62
(96 percent) of them were also enrolled in Part B.
Palmetto GBA, a subsidiary of Blue Cross and Blue
Shield, processes medical insurance (Part B) claims
for railroad retirement Medicare beneficiaries.
RRB Organization and Functions
A three-member Board appointed by the President
of the United States, with the advice and consent of the Senate, leads the RRB. The President
appoints one member upon the recommendation
of railroad employers, another upon the recommendation of railroad labor organizations, and the
third, who is the Chairman, to represent the public interest. The Board Members’ terms of office
are 5 years and expire in different years. The
President also appoints an Inspector
General for the RRB. Walt Barrows,
former BRS Secretary-Treasurer,
serves as the Labor Member on
the Board.
The primary function of the
RRB is the determination and
payment of benefits under the
retirement-survivor and unemployment-sickness programs.
To this end, the RRB employs
field representatives to help railroad personnel and their families in
filing claims for benefits, examiners to
adjudicate the claims, and information technology staff, equipment and programs to maintain
earnings records, calculate benefits, and process
payments.
The RRB also employs actuaries to predict the
future income and outlays of the railroad retirement system, statisticians to analyze and provide
data, and attorneys to interpret legislation and represent the RRB in litigation. The Inspector General
employs auditors and investigators to detect waste,
fraud, or abuse in the benefit programs.
The RRB and the Federal Government
As an independent agency in the executive branch
of the Federal Government, the RRB reports on its
operations to the President and the Congress. RRB
officials also may testify at congressional hearings
on issues related to the Railroad Retirement and
Railroad Unemployment Insurance Acts. Congress
has jurisdiction over the amounts available to the
railroad retirement system for benefit payments and
administrative expenses.
The RRB works closely with other Federal agencies and with some State agencies. Its dealings
with some of these agencies, such as the President’s
Office of Management and Budget, the Office
of Personnel Management, the Government
Accountability Office, and the Department of
Treasury, are similar to those of other executive
branch agencies. Interactions with some others principally the Social Security Administration, the
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, State
employment security departments and, on a smaller
scale, the Department of Labor — are specifically
related to the RRB’s various benefit programs.
The RRB and the National Railroad
Retirement Investment Trust
The Railroad Retirement and Survivors’
Improvement Act of 2001 established the National
Railroad Retirement Investment Trust. The sole
purpose of the Trust is to manage and invest railroad retirement assets. The Trust is a tax-exempt
entity independent from the Federal Government.
The Act authorizes the Trust to invest the assets of
the Railroad Retirement Account in a diversified
investment portfolio in the same manner as those
of private sector retirement plans. Before the Act,
the law limited investment of Railroad Retirement
Account assets to U.S. government securities.
The Trust has seven trustees, with railroad labor
unions and railroad companies each selecting three.
These six trustees then select a seventh independent
trustee. In turn, they hire professional staff to manage investment of the assets. While the Act does
not delegate any authority to the RRB with respect
to day-to-day activities of the Trust, the Act does
provide that the RRB may bring a civil action to
enjoin any act or practice of the Trust that violates
the provisions of the Act or to enforce any provision of the Act. The Trust has no powers or authority over the administration of benefits under the
Railroad Retirement Act.
The RRB and the Railroad Industry
The administrative organization of the RRB fosters
close relations with railroad employers, employees,
and their representatives. Two of the three Board
Members are appointed on the recommendations
of railway labor and management associations and
labor and management officials have been active
in the development of the railroad retirement and
unemployment insurance programs since their
inception.
In addition, the RRB relies on railroad employers
and labor groups for help in keeping railroad personnel informed about the benefit programs.
The RRB conducts informational programs for
railroad management and labor officials to acquaint
them with the details of the benefit programs.
These officials, in turn, educate railroad workers as
to their benefit rights and responsibilities.
Railroad employers and railway labor groups also
assist the RRB with a joint placement program to
find jobs for unemployed personnel. These joint
placement efforts help to reduce the costs of the
unemployment insurance program.
The RRB has direct contact with individual railroad employees, in person or by phone, through its
national network of 53 field offices. Field personnel explain benefit rights and responsibilities, help
employees apply for benefits, provide related services for annuitants, and answer any questions related
to the benefit programs. The RRB maintains field
offices in railroad locales across the United States. 
RRB toll-free number
(1-877-772-5772)
The RRB also provides
RRB customers with easy access to
the agency’s field offices.
The RRB’s headquarters
is located at:
844 North Rush Street
Chicago, Illinois 60611-2092
Information on the RRB is also
available on the
RRB’s website at: www.rrb.gov
63
Regular Convention
Agreement Status
The following summary reflects the status of working Agreements, as of March 1, 2014, between employers and
their BRS-represented employees. This report notes whether there were any changes in the Agreements other than
changes in the wage and fringe benefit provisions. Wage and fringe benefit negotiations are covered in other sections of this report. The date cited for each Agreement is the original date of the working Agreement.
RAILROAD
Alton & Southern
Amtrak (Northern District)
Amtrak (Pacific Division)
Amtrak (Southern & Western Districts)
Balfour Beatty Rail Systems Inc.
Baltimore & Ohio (CSX)
Baltimore & Ohio - Chicago Terminal (CSX)
Belt Railway Company of Chicago
Bessemer & Lake Erie
Burlington Northern Santa Fe
Central of Georgia (NS)
Chesapeake & Ohio (CSX)
Chesapeake & Ohio - Pere Marquette (CSX)
Chicago, Central & Pacific
Chicago, Fort Wayne & Eastern
Clinchfield (CSX)
Conrail (Shared Assets)
CSX Northern
Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern
Delaware & Hudson
Duluth, Winnipeg & Pacific
Evansville Western
Gateway Western
Grand Trunk Western
Idaho & Sedalia
Illinois Central
Indiana Harbor Belt
Invensys Rail
Kansas City Southern
Long Island
64
DATEREMARKS
11-01-70
No revisions
09-13-99
Minor revisions
09-13-99
Obsolete
09-13-99
Minor revisions
08-15-04
Major revisions
05-01-69
Major revisions
05-01-69
Major revisions
08-08-96
Minor revisions
11-17-58
Minor revisions
01-01-01
Minor revisions
05-01-88
Obsolete
03-01-81
Major revisions
09-01-82
Major revisions
01-01-06
Obsolete
11-01-11
New Agreement
07-01-50
Major revisions
09-01-81
No revisions
12-14-98
Major revisions
08-01-11
New Agreement
07-17-91
Major revisions
04-21-81
No revisions
12-30-05
No revisions
12-31-89
Minor revisions
11-30-92
Major revisions
11-18-04
Minor revisions
09-01-76
Major revisions
05-14-94
Minor revisions
05-01-10
Major revisions
08-01-92
Minor revisions
12-05-89
PEB report issued
RAILROAD
Louisville & Nashville (CSX)
L & N - C&EI (CSX)
Massachusetts Bay Commuter (MBCR)
Midsouth
Montana Rail Link
Monon (CSX)
New Orleans Public Belt
New Jersey Transit
Norfolk & Western (NS)
Northeast Illinois Regional Commuter Rail Corporation (Metra)
Paducah & Louisville
Peoria & Pekins Union
Port Authority Trans Hudson (PATH)
Providence and Worcester
Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac (RF&P)
Saint Lawrence & Atlantic
Seaboard Coast Line (CSX)
Soo Line
Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA)
Southern (NS)
Southern Eastern Region North (NS)
Springfield Terminal
Summit Signal
Transit America Services, Inc.
Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis
Texas Mexican
Union
Union Pacific Railroad
UP (MP-Communications)
Wheeling & Lake Erie (Signal/Communications)
Wheeling & Lake Erie (MofW)
Wheeling & Lake Erie (Locomotive/Mech)
Wisconsin Central
Worldwide Signal Systems Intl. Inc. (Posey)
DATEREMARKS
02-01-67
Major revisions
05-01-45
Major revisions
07-01-03
Minor revisions
05-02-86
Major revisions
10-20-87
Major revisions
09-01-49
Major revisions
01-16-63
No revisions
01-16-83
Minor revisions
10-01-57
Major revisions
03-01-84
Major revisions
09-01-89
No revisions
07-01-60
Obsolete
01-28-00
Minor revisions
06-12-74
Minor revisions
10-01-72
Major revisions
05-19-89
Major revisions
07-01-95
Major revisions
01-01-86
Major revisions
05-05-02
Major revisions
02-16-48
Major revisions
12-14-98
Major revisions
11-01-02
Minor revisions
09-01-12
New Agreement
01-18-12
New Agreement
07-13-50
Minor revisions
07-01-78
Major revisions
10-01-50
Major revisions
02-01-00
Major revisions
06-15-99
No revisions
10-08-03
Major revisions
10-08-03
Major revisions
10-08-03
Major revisions
01-24-06
Major revisions
07-11-00
Obsolete
65
Regular Convention
National Railroad Adjustment Board
The National Railroad Adjustment Board (NRAB)
was established in 1934 when Congress amended the
Railway Labor Act to establish a federally funded system for resolving minor disputes in the railroad industry. The NRAB, established under Section 3 of the Act,
was assigned as the final arbiter of “disputes between an
employee or group of employees and a carrier or carriers growing out of grievances or out of interpretation or
application of agreements concerning rates of pay, rules,
or working conditions.”
Third Division
The Board consists of four divisions, which have jurisdiction over disputes involving employees from the specific crafts assigned to each respective division. Disputes
involving Signalmen are assigned to the Third Division.
The four divisions of the NRAB consist of 34 Board
members, 17 selected by the carriers, and 17 selected by
the rail labor organizations. The Third Division consists
of Designated Labor Representatives from the various
Labor Organizations and Carrier Representatives usually assigned from Labor Relations Department from
the various Carriers under the division jurisdiction. The
Third Division’s labor members include the BRS Vice
President assigned to the NRAB.
The Railway Labor Act provides for the carrier and
labor members to be compensated by the parties they
represent. The administrative functions of the Board are
funded through the National Mediation Board (NMB)
and funding is subject to the Federal government budgeting process through the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB).
The NMB also compensates individuals assigned as
referees or neutral members of the Board. While carrier
and labor members of the Board have authority to issue
awards without the participation of a neutral member,
there are very few exceptions to the regular process of
cases becoming deadlocked and requiring a referee decision.
NRAB Jurisdiction
In accordance with the Railway Labor Act, the NRAB
has jurisdiction only in disputes which have been
handled through the normal claim and grievance
procedures at the local level. The “Uniform Rules of
66
Procedure” adopted by the NRAB
along with the
Rules of Procedure
“Circular No.
1” require that
the Board accept
jurisdiction only
when a case has
been progressed
through the
regular appeals
process on the
property involved.
JOHN D. BRAGG
This includes the
Vice President NRAB
requirement for
the parties to conduct a conference
on the dispute and the employees to appeal to the highest officer designated by the carrier.
The Board functions as an appellate body, whereby
no new evidence or testimony can be presented. The
Board is limited to addressing only arguments that have
been raised on the property. However, the members of
the Board have an obligation to consider any procedural issues that may be contrary to the Railway Labor
Act or the Board’s Rules and Procedures. The Board is
barred from addressing the merits of a case if it finds
that the petitioning party has failed to comply with
the Rules and Procedures of the Board. These cases
typically receive an award indicating that the claim has
been dismissed.
Unsettled disputes referred to the Board must include
a full statement of facts and any other supporting arguments and evidence pertaining to the case. Statements
are limited to matters that were addressed during the
local handling of the dispute. New arguments or evidence not discussed and presented during local handling are barred from consideration.
As a result of the Board being considered an appellate
body, the Railway Labor Act stipulates that the awards
of the Board are considered final and binding upon the
parties.
Public Law Boards
In 1966, Congress passed Public Law 89456 amending
the Railway Labor Act in an effort to resolve an increasing backlog of undecided cases at the NRAB. This law
provided for the use of Special Boards of Adjustment
on individual railroads, commonly referred to as Public
Law Boards, to resolve disputes otherwise referable to
the NRAB. The objective of establishing Public Law
Boards was to provide either party the means of withdrawing a dispute, which had been pending before the
Adjustment Board for 12 months from the date the
dispute (claim) was received by the Board.
Public Law Boards, which are established at the request
of either party in a dispute, include one member
assigned by the carrier and one assigned by the union.
Public Law Board matters involving BRS members
are handled through the office of the President, in
accordance with Article III, Section 27, of the BRS
Constitution. The Vice President assigned to the
NRAB serves as the BRS member on most Public Law
Boards involving Signalmen.
Public Law Boards, which are established by written agreement between the parties, generally operate
without the rigid rules and formal procedures required
for handling cases at the NRAB. While the carrier
member and labor member of a Public Law Board are
empowered to make an award in a dispute, the Board is
typically joined by a referee who sits as the third member and renders decisions based on the information
presented. As with awards from the National Railroad
Adjustment Board, Public Law Board awards are final
and binding when approved by not less than two members of that Board.
The carrier and labor members are compensated by the
parties they represent and the referee is compensated
by the NMB. Cases referred to Public Law Boards are
usually adjudicated on the line of road of the particular
carrier.
Special Boards of Adjustment
There are other disputes that do not fall under the
direct jurisdiction of the NRAB or PLBs, and therefore,
Special Boards of Adjustment (SBA) are established
for the adjudication of disputes involving numerous employee protective provisions, i.e., the February
7, 1965 Agreement, the Washington Job Protection
Agreement, New York Dock Conditions, Oregon Short
Line Conditions, and Mendocino Coast Conditions.
Disputes arising from these provisions are adjudicated
at Arbitration Boards or Special Boards of Arbitration.
Unlike disputes that are handled at the NRAB or
Public Law Boards, the parties are required to equally
finance the cost of adjudicating those disputes, including salary and expenses of the referee.
Appointment of Arbitrators
The appointment of arbitrators to adjudicate railroad
disputes in PLBs, SBAs, or at the NRAB is normally
accomplished by agreement between labor and management. The NMB, however, provides special regulations for appointment to these positions as arbitrators
are considered Special Government Employees. If the
parties cannot agree to a referee, the Railway Labor Act
provides a procedure for the NMB to appoint a referee.
The Railway Labor Act provides that if the parties so
agree, and the arbitrator named by the parties fulfills
the NMB’s requirements, the NMB authorizes the
referee to adjudicate the disputes. The referee’s expenses
are paid by the NMB based on government standards;
the compensation for such service is currently $300.00
per day.
To be eligible for placement on the NMB’s roster of
arbitrators, an individual must have personally adjudicated and issued at least five written arbitration awards,
have 10 years of substantive experience in connection
with collective bargaining or labor agreement administration in the railroad and/or airline industries, or
demonstrated an exceptional understanding of labormanagement relations for at least 10 years.
The NMB recognizes arbitrators that are currently members in good standing with the “National
Academy of Arbitrators.” The Academy is an organization comprised of arbitrators, whose principal goal
is administering rules of conduct for arbitrators, and
providing a forum for addressing new issues in the arbitration industry.
The NMB also requires that any individual designated
as an arbitrator must be “wholly disinterested in the
controversy to be arbitrated and impartial and without bias as between the parties” and must follow the
required code of ethics established under Subsection III
(a) of the NMB’s “Uniform Guidelines.”
There are several organizations that represent arbitrators: the American Arbitration Association (AAA),
the Society of Professionals in Dispute Resolution
(SPIDR), the National Academy of Arbitrators, and
the Association of Railroad Referees. These organizations provide a forum for arbitrators to review current
continued on page 79
67
Regular Convention
Amendments to the Railway Labor Act in 1966
authorized the use of Special Boards of Adjustment to
handle disputes that would otherwise be referred to
the National Railroad Adjustment Board. The amendments provided for employees and individual carriers
or groups of carriers to establish such boards on an
individual craft basis. Such boards are generally referred
to as Public Law Boards.
Special Boards of Adjustment/Arbitration have also
been established to handle more specialized disputes.
A number of agreements and Interstate Commerce
Commission/Surface Transportation Board orders
Referee
Public Law Boards
Referee
SBA 596 (BRS vs. KCS)
Sinclair Kossoff
PLB 7313 (BRS vs. LIRR)
Margo Newman
PLB 7486 (BRS vs. Grand Trunk) Peter Meyers
SBA 605 (Open Board)
68
resulting from carrier
transactions such as
line sales, mergers,
and abandonments
include employee
protective conditions
and provisions for
establishing committees to adjudicate
disputes involving
application of those agreements and orders. The following summaries outline special board activities during this reporting period:
SBA 954 (BRS vs. NJT)
Gayle Gavin
PLB 7499 (BRS vs. BNSF)
Roger MacDougall
Public Law Boards
Referee
PLB 7546 (BRS vs. IC)
Ed Benn
PLB 5622 (BRS vs. NS)
Charlotte Gold
PLB 7549 (BRS vs. CSX)
David Twomey
PLB 6459 (BRS vs. UP)
Margo Newman
PLB 7561 (BRS vs. WC)
Peter Meyers
PLB 6785 (BRS vs. IC)
Andrea Knapp
PLB 7584 (BRS vs. CSX)
Roger MacDougall
PLB 7188 (BRS vs. Metra)
Ann Kenis
Special Boards of Arbitration
PLB 7270 (BRS vs. UP)
Rodney Dennis
BRS vs. SafeTran
Regular Convention
Case Handling Status
During the reporting period from January 1, 2010,
through December 31, 2013, the NRAB Third
Division issued 1560 final awards on disputes involving Signalmen and the other crafts under the Division’s
jurisdiction. During the previous reporting period, the
Third Division had issued 2569 awards.
During this reporting period, 454 BRS cases were
added to the Third Division docket. During the previous reporting period, 599 BRS cases were submitted to
the Board. The Board issued 434 final awards in BRS
AWARDREFEREE
40254
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40255
Elizabeth C. Wesman
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40256
40257
Jacalyn J. Zimmerman
40258
40259
40260
40261
40262
40297
James E. Conway
40298
James E. Conway
40299
James E. Conway
James E. Conway
40300
40301
James E. Conway
40302
James E. Conway
40303
James E. Conway
40304
James E. Conway
40305
James E. Conway
40306
James E. Conway
40307
James E. Conway
40308
James E. Conway
40309
Ann S. Kenis
40310
Ann S. Kenis
40312
Ann S. Kenis
40313
Ann S. Kenis
Ann S. Kenis
40314
RAILROAD
UP
UP
UP
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(N)
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
A&S
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
cases during the 2010–2013 reporting period. Those
awards closed the record on cases docketed both before
and during the past four years.
The following summary lists NRAB awards issued
in final resolution of BRS cases during this reporting
period:
Key to Decisions:
S — Sustained, S/P — Sustained in part, DS —
Dismissed, DN — Denied, WD — Withdrawn
ISSUE
Half time — off territory
Medical disqualification
Dishonesty
Dishonesty
Denied hearing (accused)
Excessive discipline
Injury/accident (report)
Dishonesty
Affect of FELA settlements
Agreement to be applied
Falsifying records/reports
Dishonesty
Safety/carrier rules violation
Failure of employee to comply with agreement
Dishonesty
Burden of proof, on carrier to prove charges
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Contracting, signal work
Other crafts — doing signal work
DECISION
DN
DN
DS
DN
DN
DN
S/P
S
DN
DS
DN
S/P
S/P
S/P
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
69
AWARDREFEREE
40315
Ann S. Kenis
40316
Ann S. Kenis
40349
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40350
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40351
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40352
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40353
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40354
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40355
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40408
Edwin Benn
40420
James E. Conway
40421
James E. Conway
40422
James E. Conway
40423
James E. Conway
40424
James E. Conway
40425
James E. Conway
40426
James E. Conway
William Miller
40443
40444
William Miller
40445
William Miller
40446
William Miller
40447
William Miller
William Miller
40448
40449
William Miller
40450
William Miller
40451
William Miller
40452
William Miller
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40472
40473
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40474
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40476
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40477
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40478
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40479
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40480
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40481
Elizabeth C. Wesman
40482
Gerald E. Wallin
40483
Marty E. Zusman
40484
Marty E. Zusman
40485
Marty E. Zusman
40518
Marty E. Zusman
40519
Marty E. Zusman
40520
Marty E. Zusman
70
RAILROAD
BNSF
BNSF
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
NIRC(METRA)
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
SCL (CSXT)
UP
UP
UP
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
ISSUE
DECISION
Carrier permitting outside parties to install equipment DN
Change shift
DN
Proper employee not called
DN
Proper rate of pay
DN
Carrier determines fitness and ability
DN
Overcoming disqualification
DN
S
DN
DN
Based on seniority
S
Washington Job Protection Agreement
DN
DN
DN
Absenteeism
DN
Failure of proof by Carrier
DN
S/P
DN
Absenteeism
S
Absenteeism
S/P
Absenteeism
DN
Absenteeism
DN
Disproportionate/Equal discipline
S/P
Absenteeism
S
Absenteeism
DN
Absenteeism
DS
Absenteeism
S
Absenteeism
DN
Seniority, used for assignment to position
DN
Compensation for service
S/P
Taking company physicals
DS
Failed to make proper assignment
DN
Physical condition
DN
Assignment (when it is effective)
DN
Proper rate of pay
S
Proper rate of pay
S
S/P
DN
S/P
S/P
S/P
Change shift
DN
Change shift
S/P
Failure of employee to report
DS
AWARDREFEREE
40521
Marty E. Zusman
40522
Marty E. Zusman
40523
Marty E. Zusman
40524
Marty E. Zusman
40525
Marty E. Zusman
40526
Marty E. Zusman
40527
Marty E. Zusman
40528
Marty E. Zusman
40529
Marty E. Zusman
40530
Marty E. Zusman
40531
Marty E. Zusman
40532
Marty E. Zusman
40533
Marty E. Zusman
40534
Marty E. Zusman
40535
Marty E. Zusman
40536
Marty E. Zusman
40537
Marty E. Zusman
William Miller
40568
40569
William Miller
40570
William Miller
40571
William Miller
40572
William Miller
William Miller
40573
40574
William Miller
40575
James E. Conway
40576
Martin W. Fingerhut
40578
William Miller
William Miller
40579
40584
Margo R. Newman
40585
Margo R. Newman
40586
Margo R. Newman
40587
Margo R. Newman
40588
Margo R. Newman
40589
Margo R. Newman
40599
Margo R. Newman
40600
Margo R. Newman
40601
Margo R. Newman
40602
Margo R. Newman
40603
Margo R. Newman
40604
Margo R. Newman
40605
Margo R. Newman
40606
Margo R. Newman
40607
Margo R. Newman
RAILROAD
NRPC(S)
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
UP
P&W
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
ISSUE
Insubordination
Actual Expenses
Holiday pay
Holiday pay
Proper rate of pay
Absenteeism
Mitigating circumstances
Falsifying employment application
Dishonesty
Dishonesty
Vehicle accident
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Responsibility of employee
Vehicle accident
Prejudgment by carrier
Absenteeism
Vehicle accident
Proper rate of pay
Absenteeism
Arbitrary, capricious and unreasonable
Overcoming disqualification
Overtime vs. straight time
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Failure to qualify
DECISION
S
DN
DN
DN
S/P
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
S/P
DN
DN
S/P
S/P
DN
DN
DN
DN
S/P
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
71
AWARDREFEREE
40608
Margo R. Newman
40609
Margo R. Newman
Margo R. Newman
40610
40611
Margo R. Newman
40612
Margo R. Newman
Margo R. Newman
40613
40615
Marty E. Zusman
Marty E. Zusman
40616
40617
Marty E. Zusman
40618
Marty E. Zusman
Marty E. Zusman
40619
40620
Marty E. Zusman
Marty E. Zusman
40621
40622
Marty E. Zusman
40623
Marty E. Zusman
40624
Marty E. Zusman
40625
Marty E. Zusman
Marty E. Zusman
40626
40627
Marty E. Zusman
40628
Marty E. Zusman
40629
Marty E. Zusman
40630
Marty E. Zusman
Marty E. Zusman
40631
40632
Marty E. Zusman
40633
Marty E. Zusman
40634
Marty E. Zusman
40635
Marty E. Zusman
Marty E. Zusman
40636
40637
Marty E. Zusman
40638
Marty E. Zusman
40639
Marty E. Zusman
40640
Marty E. Zusman
40641
Marty E. Zusman
Marty E. Zusman
40642
40643
Marty E. Zusman
40644
Marty E. Zusman
40645
40653
40654
Steven M. Bierig
40655
Steven M. Bierig
40656
Martin W. Fingerhut
40657
Martin W. Fingerhut
40659
Martin W. Fingerhut
72
RAILROAD
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
BNSF
UP
KCS
KCS
CR(SA)
CR(SA)
PanAm
ISSUE
DECISION
DN
Establishing other than Sat/Sun rest days
DN
Seniority, used for assignment to work
S/P
Based on seniority
DN
Based on seniority
DN
Based on seniority
DN
S/P
Failure to pass test
DN
Burden on Carrier to prove call made
DN
DN
S/P
S/P
DN
Availability
S/P
Availability
S/P
Availability
S/P
Availability
S/P
Officers, carrier doing signal work
DN
DN
Proper rate of pay
DN
DN
DN
Apply — if parties don’t like it, recourse is to bargain DN
Insubordination
S
Vacation, begins — ends
DN
Error in computation of vacation days
S/P
Officials — supervision
S/P
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
Officers, carrier doing signal work
S/P
Regular assignee
DN
Based requirements of rule
S/P
DN
WD
Transportation
WD
Insubordination
DN
Vehicle accident
S/P
Seniority lines/districts, restriction
DS
Protest seniority roster, time limits/etc.
DS
Drug test — Positive
DN
AWARDREFEREE
40683
Steven M. Bierig
40684
Steven M. Bierig
40685
Steven M. Bierig
40686
Steven M. Bierig
Steven M. Bierig
40687
40825
Steven M. Bierig
40828
Lisa S. Kohn
40829
Lisa S. Kohn
40830
Lisa S. Kohn
Lisa S. Kohn
40831
40832
Lisa S. Kohn
40833
Lisa S. Kohn
Lisa S. Kohn
40834
40835
Lisa S. Kohn
40836
Margo R. Newman
40837
Margo R. Newman
40838
Margo R. Newman
Margo R. Newman
40839
40840
Margo R. Newman
40841
Margo R. Newman
40842
Margo R. Newman
40843
Margo R. Newman
Margo R. Newman
40844
40845
Margo R. Newman
40846
Margo R. Newman
40847
Margo R. Newman
40848
Margo R. Newman
Margo R. Newman
40849
40850
Margo R. Newman
40851
Margo R. Newman
40852
Margo R. Newman
40853
Margo R. Newman
40854
Margo R. Newman
40855
Margo R. Newman
40856
Lisa S. Kohn
40897
Lisa S. Kohn
40898
Lisa S. Kohn
40899
Lisa S. Kohn
40900
Lisa S. Kohn
40901
Lisa S. Kohn
40902
Lisa S. Kohn
40903
Lisa S. Kohn
40904
Lisa S. Kohn
RAILROAD
KCS
KCS
KCS
KCS
KCS
TexMex (KCS)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
A&S (UP)
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
ISSUE
DECISION
Insubordination
DN
S/P
DN
S
DN
Vehicle accident
S/P
Carrier permitting outside parties to install equipment DN
DN
Availability
DN
DN
Based on seniority
DN
Based on seniority
DN
DN
5-day notice
DN
DN
S/P
Washington Job Protection Agreement
DN
S/P
DN
Proper rate of pay
DN
Expenses — Meals
S/P
Based on seniority
S
DN
Microwave — code transmitting equipment
DN
DS
S/P
DN
Work off assignment
DN
Based on seniority
DN
DN
DN
Based on seniority
DN
Establishment of seniority date
DN
DN
Painting
WD
DN
DN
Proper rate of pay
DN
Monthly rate
DN
S
Monthly rate
DN
Monthly rate
DN
Based on seniority
DN
73
AWARDREFEREE
40905
Lisa S. Kohn
40906
Lisa S. Kohn
40907
Gerald E. Wallin
40908
Gerald E. Wallin
40909
Gerald E. Wallin
40910
Gerald E. Wallin
40911
Gerald E. Wallin
40912
Gerald E. Wallin
40913
Gerald E. Wallin
40914
Gerald E. Wallin
40915
Gerald E. Wallin
40916
Gerald E. Wallin
Gerald E. Wallin
40945
40946
Gerald E. Wallin
40947
Gerald E. Wallin
40948
Gerald E. Wallin
40949
Gerald E. Wallin
40950
Gerald E. Wallin
40951
Gerald E. Wallin
40952
Gerald E. Wallin
40953
Gerald E. Wallin
40954
Gerald E. Wallin
40955
Gerald E. Wallin
40956
Gerald E. Wallin
40976
Marty E. Zusman
40977
Marty E. Zusman
40978
Marty E. Zusman
40979
Marty E. Zusman
40980
Marty E. Zusman
Ann S. Kenis
41008
41017
Lisa S. Kohn
41018
Ann S. Kenis
41019
Ann S. Kenis
41020
Ann S. Kenis
41021
Ann S. Kenis
41022
Ann S. Kenis
41023
Ann S. Kenis
41024
Ann S. Kenis
41025
Ann S. Kenis
41026
Ann S. Kenis
41027
Ann S. Kenis
41028
Ann S. Kenis
41081
Lisa S. Kohn
74
RAILROAD
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
BELT
BELT
BELT
BELT
GTW (CN)
IC (CN)
IC (CN)
IC (CN)
IC (CN)
KCS
GTW (CN)
IC (CN)
GWWR (KCS)
GWWR (KCS)
KCS
KCS
KCS
KCS
MRL
MRL
MRL
MRL
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
SOO (CP)
NIRC(METRA)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
SOO (CP)
UP
ISSUE
DECISION
Based on seniority
DN
5-day notice
DN
Agreement to be applied
DN
DN
DN
Refusal to take alcohol/drug test
DN
Apply — if parties don’t like it, recourse is to bargain
DS
DN
S
Failure to qualify — other licenses
S
DS
Absenteeism
S
Profanity/abusive language
S
S
S/P
S/P
Violation of state and federal laws
S
DN
DN
Hearing in absentia
DN
Insubordination
DN
S/P
DN
DN
S/P
Based on seniority
S/P
Proper rate of pay
S
Proper rate of pay
S
S/P
Dishonesty
DN
WD
WD
WD
Based on seniority
WD
25% of work load (Article 10B)
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
AWARDREFEREE
41109
Patrick Halter
41110
Patrick Halter
41111
Patrick Halter
41112
Patrick Halter
41113
Patrick Halter
41114
Patrick Halter
41115
Patrick Halter
41116
Patrick Halter
41117
Lisa S. Kohn
41118
Lisa S. Kohn
41119
Lisa S. Kohn
41120
Lisa S. Kohn
Lisa S. Kohn
41121
41122
Lisa S. Kohn
41123
Lisa S. Kohn
41124
Lisa S. Kohn
41125
Lisa S. Kohn
41126
Lisa S. Kohn
41127
Lisa S. Kohn
41128
Lisa S. Kohn
41129
Lisa S. Kohn
41130
Lisa S. Kohn
41131
Lisa S. Kohn
41132
Lisa S. Kohn
41133
Lisa S. Kohn
41134
Lisa S. Kohn
41135
Lisa S. Kohn
41136
Lisa S. Kohn
41137
Lisa S. Kohn
Patrick Halter
41138
41172
41188
Edwin Benn
41189
Edwin Benn
41190
Edwin Benn
41191
Edwin Benn
41192
Edwin Benn
41193
Edwin Benn
41194
Edwin Benn
41195
Edwin Benn
41196
Edwin Benn
41197
Edwin Benn
41198
Edwin Benn
41199
Edwin Benn
RAILROAD
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
NRPC(S)
L&N (CSXT)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
NIRC(METRA)
ISSUE
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Carrier officers performing signal work
Based on seniority
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Microwave — code transmitting equipment
Improper displacement
Burden on Carrier to prove call made
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
DECISION
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DS
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
WD
S/P
S/P
DN
S/P
S/P
DN
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
75
AWARDREFEREE
41200
Edwin Benn
41201
Edwin Benn
41202
Edwin Benn
Edwin Benn
41203
41204
Edwin Benn
41205
Edwin Benn
41206
Edwin Benn
41207
Edwin Benn
Edwin Benn
41208
41209
Edwin Benn
41210
Edwin Benn
41211
Edwin Benn
Edwin Benn
41212
41213
Edwin Benn
41214
Edwin Benn
41215
Edwin Benn
Edwin Benn
41216
41219
Patrick Halter
41224
Andria S. Knapp
41225
Andria S. Knapp
41226
Andria S. Knapp
Andria S. Knapp
41227
41354
Andria S. Knapp
41379
James E. Conway
41383
Andria S. Knapp
41384
Andria S. Knapp
Andria S. Knapp
41385
41386
Andria S. Knapp
41387
Andria S. Knapp
41388
Andria S. Knapp
41389
Andria S. Knapp
41390
Andria S. Knapp
41391
Andria S. Knapp
41392
Andria S. Knapp
41393
Andria S. Knapp
41394
Andria S. Knapp
41395
Andria S. Knapp
41403
Margo R. Newman
41404
Margo R. Newman
41426
Andria S. Knapp
41427
Andria S. Knapp
41428
Andria S. Knapp
41442
76
RAILROAD
ISSUE
NIRC(METRA) Seniority, used for overtime
NIRC(METRA) Based on seniority
NIRC(METRA) Proper employee not called
NIRC(METRA) Failed to make proper assignment
NIRC(METRA) Proper employee not called
KCS
BNSF
Dishonesty
BNSF
Dishonesty
BNSF
Dishonesty
BNSF
Dishonesty
BNSF
Conduct (on duty improper)
SCL (CSXT)
Protest seniority roster, time limits/etc.
BNSF
Absenteeism
BNSF
Profanity/abusive language
BNSF
BNSF
Work under the control of the carrier
BNSF
Work under the control of the carrier
BNSF
BNSF
Dishonesty
BNSF
BNSF
Dishonesty
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
Drug test — Positive
UP
UP
Call — O.T.–D.T. rules
BNSF
BNSF
Violation of state and federal laws
BNSF
Carrier officers performing signal work
B&O(CT) (CSXT)Compensation for service
DECISION
S/P
S/P
S/P
DN
DN
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
S/P
DN
S
S
S
S
DN
DS
DN
DN
S
DN
DN
S/P
S
S/P
S
DN
S/P
DN
DN
DN
DN
DN
S/P
DN
WD
AWARDREFEREE
41450
Roger MacDougall
41451
Roger MacDougall
41452
Roger MacDougall
41453
Roger MacDougall
Roger MacDougall
41454
41455
Roger MacDougall
41460
41461
41462
41463
41464
41482
Andria S. Knapp
41515
Roger MacDougall
41516
Roger MacDougall
41517
Roger MacDougall
41518
Roger MacDougall
41519
Roger MacDougall
41520
Roger MacDougall
41521
Roger MacDougall
41522
Roger MacDougall
41558
Michael Capone
41559
Michael Capone
41560
Michael Capone
41561
Michael Capone
41562
Michael Capone
41609
Marty E. Zusman
41610
Marty E. Zusman
41611
Marty E. Zusman
41612
Marty E. Zusman
41613
Marty E. Zusman
41614
Marty E. Zusman
41615
Marty E. Zusman
41616
Marty E. Zusman
41617
Marty E. Zusman
41618
Marty E. Zusman
41619
Marty E. Zusman
41620
Marty E. Zusman
41621
Marty E. Zusman
41622
Marty E. Zusman
41623
Marty E. Zusman
41624
Marty E. Zusman
41625
Marty E. Zusman
41626
Marty E. Zusman
RAILROAD
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
PATH
PATH
PATH
L&N (CSXT)
L&N (CSXT)
L&N (CSXT)
L&N (CSXT)
L&N (CSXT)
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
MBCR
MBCR
MBCR
MBCR
MBCR
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
ISSUE
Vehicle accident
Fair and impartial, entitled to
Absenteeism
Outside employment
Carrier failed to allow
Conduct (on duty improper)
Change in rest days
Change in rest days
Vacation — Emergency (Article 5)
Work, under the control of the carrier
Change in rest days
Based on seniority
Based on seniority
Call — O.T. - D.T. rules
Regular assignee
Based on seniority
Agreement Violation
Based on seniority
Seniority, used for assignment to work
DECISION
S/P
DN
S/P
DN
DN
DN
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
DN
S/P
DN
DN
DN
S/P
DN
S/P
DN
DN
DN
DS
S/P
S/P
DN
S/P
DN
DN
DN
DN
S/P
DN
S
DN
DN
DN
S/P
DN
DS
DN
S/P
DN
77
AWARDREFEREE
41627
Marty E. Zusman
41628
Marty E. Zusman
41629
Marty E. Zusman
41630
Marty E. Zusman
Marty E. Zusman
41631
41632
Marty E. Zusman
41633
Marty E. Zusman
41634
Marty E. Zusman
41635
Marty E. Zusman
Roger MacDougall
41682
41683
Roger MacDougall
41684
Roger MacDougall
Roger MacDougall
41685
41686
Roger MacDougall
41699
Margo R. Newman
41700
Margo R. Newman
41701
Margo R. Newman
Margo R. Newman
41702
41703
Margo R. Newman
41704
Margo R. Newman
41724
41725
41726
41727
41728
41729
41730
41731
41732
41747
41748
41749
41750
41751
41752
41753
41754
41755
41756
41757
41758
41759
41760
78
RAILROAD
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
BNSF
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(S)
NRPC(N)
I&S
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
UP
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
ISSUE
Proper rate of pay
Transportation
Transportation
Transportation
Transportation
Employees exclusive rights
Change in rest days
Proper rate of pay
Seniority, used for assignment to position
Employees exclusive rights
Proper rate of pay
Assignment denotes classification
Helper
Proper rate of pay
Classification — Leading Signalman/Maintainer
DECISION
DN
DN
S
DN
DN
DN
DS
DN
DN
S
S/P
S/P
S
DN
S
S/P
S/P
S/P
DN
S/P
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
AWARDREFEREE
41761
41762
41763
41764
41765
41767
Patrick Halter
41768
Patrick Halter
41769
Patrick Halter
Margo R. Newman
41778
41779
Margo R. Newman
41780
Margo R. Newman
41781
Margo R. Newman
41782
Margo R. Newman
41788
Patrick Halter
41789
41791
Margo R. Newman
Margo R. Newman
41799
41800
Margo R. Newman
Barry E. Simon
41801
Barry E. Simon
41802
41803
Barry E. Simon
RAILROAD
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
I&S
GWWR (KCS)
Midsouth (KCS)
Midsouth (KCS)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(N)
NRPC(S)
UP
KCS
NRPC(S)
PanAm
ST (PanAm)
P&W
W&LE(MofW)
W&LE(MofW)
ISSUE
Dishonesty
Proper rate of pay
Proper rate of pay
Insubordination
DECISION
WD
WD
WD
WD
WD
DN
DN
DS
DN
DN
DS
S/P
S/P
WD
S/P
DN
S
S/P
DN
S/P
DN
continued from page 67
trends in arbitration and provide training for referees
and labor and management representatives involved in
dispute resolution.
Currently there are approximately 363 individual
arbitrators listed on the National Mediation Board’s
roster. However, a number of these individuals only
handle airline disputes. During this reporting period,
the NRAB Third Division utilized the services of
approximately 115 arbitrators. Because of the number
of available arbitrators compared to the work available,
a number of arbitrators also have careers as college
professors, practicing attorneys, or lecturers, and many
hold permanent assignments on private and public
arbitration panels.
Section 3 Committee
The Section 3 Committee is comprised of labor and
management representatives from Class 1 freight
railroads and commuter carriers. This Committee is
charged with the responsibility to provide input to the
National Mediation Board and implement guidelines
for the handling of disputes. The Committee made
several suggestions regarding the handling of disputes
between the parties. The Committee reviewed the
handling of cases at the NRAB and established revised
guidelines for case progression. Instead of filing written submissions to the Board, the parties file electronic
submissions. The arbitrator is required to submit his/
her decision electronically. This process reduces the
total cost of copying thousands and thousands of pages
and also eliminated the cost of mailing.
The Committee additionally established a six-month
time limit for arbitrators to render a decision after
hearing the case. In most instances the arbitrators have
complied with this rule, however, the NMB, during
this reporting period, essentially stopped all arbitration
activity for three to four months every year because
of inadequate funding. The result of this shutdown
required the NMB and NRAB to work under a
Continuing Resolution until Congress passed a federal
budget. During this period of Continuing Resolution,
the number of cases presented to arbitrators was
severely limited. While a reduced number of cases were
presented during this time, the arbitrators were not
allowed any travel authority, and were limited in the
number of days to work during a given month. 
79
Regular Convention
Minor Disputes
Article I, Section 64, of the Constitution outlines
the provisions for the handling of unsettled disputes
growing out of the interpretation and application of
BRS agreements. Section 64 provides that when a
General Committee (or in the absence of a General
Committee, the Local Grievance Committee) desires
to pursue further handling of a claim or grievance
that is not settled on the property, such case is
referred to the President’s office for review.
In accordance with the Constitution, the Review
Committee includes the affected General Chairman
and at least two others designated by the Grand
Executive Council. During this reporting period, the
Vice President Headquarters and the Vice President
NRAB have served as the second and third member of the Committee, which includes four different officers: Charlie McGraw, Jerry Boles, Kelly
Haley, and John Bragg. Brother Boles served with
Charlie McGraw until Brother McGraw retired in
September of 2010. Kelly Haley served with Jerry
Boles until Brother Boles was elected to SecretaryTreasurer on October 10, 2011. Since that time,
Kelly Haley, Vice President Headquarters, and
John Bragg,
Vice President
NRAB, have
served on
the Review
Committee.
During the
last four years,
639 unsettled
disputes were
referred to
the President’s
office and
the Review
Committee.
During the
previous reporting period, 814
cases were forwarded to the
review committee. 
80
The 639 cases received during this reporting period
were handled in the following manner:
Total cases designated for further handling �� 430
Cases docketed with NRAB ............................. 104
Cases docketed with PLBs ................................ 166
Cases docketed with SBAs .................................... 7
Cases handled under NLRA ................................. 1
Cases unassigned ................................................. 49
Cases held in abeyance ......................................... 0
Cases pending docketing .................................. 103
Third party cases .......................................................... 5
Total cases returned .................................................. 101
Cases settled ................................................................ 81
Cases withdrawn ......................................................... 21
Cases combined with other case .................................. 1
CONTRACT
201020112012 2013
Amtrak(New England) (NRPC)
7
4
1
Balfour Beatty (BB)
1
Baltimore & Ohio (CSXT)
1
3
6 11
BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) 11 40
34 29
C&O, Pere Marquette (CSXT)
11
1
2
(CSXT)
2
1
CSXT Northern (CSXT)
1
Railroad (CP)
Gateway Western (KCS)
1
Grand Trunk Western (CN)
1
Idaho & Sedalia (I&S)
C&O, Chesapeake District
Illinois Central (CN)
Indiana Harbor Belt (IHB)
Invensys Rail (Invensys)
Kansas City Southern (KCS)
Long Island Rail Road (LIRR)
Louisville & Nashville (CSXT)
2
Norfolk & Western (NS)
3
1
Norfolk Southern (NS)
1
4
4
35 15
27
7
Northeast Illinois Regional
Commuter Railroad
Corp. (METRA)
NS Eastern Region North (NS)
Pan Am Railways (PanAm)
1
& Potomac (CSXT)
Seaboard Coast Line (CSXT)
7
Soo Line (CP)
1
3
1
3
1
4
1
of St. Louis (TRRA)
3
2
2
Union Pacific Railroad (UP)
4
Midsouth Rail Corp. (KCS)
1
2
Montana Rail Link (MRL)
4
Southern (NS)
Springfield Terminal (PanAm)
1
National Railroad Passenger
2 13
3
1
3
4
2
2
1
2
1
3
3
1
3
Transportation Authority (SEPTA) 1
6
3
8
1
1
2
Terminal Railroad Association
Union Railroad (UR)
4
2
Southeastern Pennsylvania
8
11
18 14
1
Richmond, Fredericksburg
10
3
Corp. (NRPC)
3
Providence & Worcester (P&W)
Massachusetts Bay Commuter
Railroad (MBCR)
Auth (NJT)
Port Auth. Trans-Hudson (PATH)
Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern
28
201020112012 2013
New Jersey Rail Transit
Baltimore & Ohio
(Chgo Term.) (CSXT)
CONTRACT
42 46
29 37
1
W&LE(Mech) (W&LE)
1
W&LE(MofW) (W&LE)
1
W&LE(S&C) (W&LE)
2
Wisconsin Central (CN)
1
1
1
1
164147 179149
81
Regular Convention
Resolutions — 2010 Convention
In accordance with the provisions of Article I, Section 65, of
the BRS Constitution, the 2010 Convention acted on resolutions pertaining to national negotiations, including proposals
on working conditions, fringe benefits, employment security,
and other collective bargaining issues.
The Convention also addressed proposals for action on legislative matters and administration of Brotherhood services. The
Convention, in consideration of the report of the Committee
on Resolutions, acted on a total of five resolutions. The following is a summary of the resolutions (listed by the numbers
assigned at the 2010 Convention) which were adopted by the
Convention and the action taken on these matters:
Resolution 1 — This Resolution addressed a moving
policy for Grand Lodge Officers and Representatives. The
Resolution suggested that moving expenses be allowed to
return Officers and Representatives to their home upon
retirement. This Resolution was rejected because the
Resolution Committee noted, and the delegates agreed,
that a similar benefit is not available to the membership
upon their retirement and a policy is not needed.
Resolution 2 — This Resolution sought to require
the knowledge and consent of the General Committee
before making changes to the list of designated legal
counsel. While the Resolution Committee agreed with
the intent of the resolution, it believed that it went too far
and suggested that Grand Lodge should notify General
Chairmen in the area affected prior to changes in the
designated legal counsel list. The Resolution was not
adopted. This matter remains on the agenda for further
handling.
Resolution 3 — This Resolution sought to establish a
limitation to the number of consecutive days signalmen
may be required to work. This Resolution was rejected
because the Resolution Committee noted, and the delegates agreed, that this matter is best addressed by each
General Committee consistent with its own needs.
Resolution 4 — This Resolution sought to improve
personal leave and vacation for our members. This
Resolution was adopted and remains on the agenda for
further handling.
Resolution 5 — This Resolution sought to improve
bereavement leave available to our membership. This
Resolution was adopted and remains on the agenda for
further handling. 
Union-Made for Union Members
The Union Plus benefits are brought to you by Union Privilege through the AFL-CIO
Union Plus exists through the Union Privilege organization. In 1986, the AFL-CIO created Union Privilege to
provide consumer benefits programs to union members.
Union Privilege uses the collective purchasing power of
millions of union members to develop the Union Plus
programs, which provide more quality, value, and service
than comparable programs available to the general public.
Kelly Haley, Vice President Headquarters, is currently
assigned by President Pickett to monitor and offer direction on the Union Plus benefit programs on behalf of the
Organization.
Active and retired BRS members are automatically eligible
for Union Plus benefits. Family members — including
spouses, parents, and children — are often eligible for
these exclusive benefits too, see the Union Plus website
for eligibility details — www.unionplus.org.
82
In addition to the various
benefit programs, Union Plus offers special assistance to
union members who face financial hardship due to a layoff, strike, disability, or natural disaster. Union Plus programs are not just about savings, but also about the extra
service and value available to union members.
Union leaders are encouraged to share Union Plus discount and benefit information with members about the
various programs. Handouts and flyers for posting and
distributing at Local and General Committee meetings
are easily downloaded from the Union Plus website —
www.unionplus.org. Union leaders can also receive assistance by calling the Union Leader Line: (800) 472-2005
or (202) 293-5330 or emailing Leaders@UnionPrivilege.
org. 
Regular Convention
Legal Aid Program
Federal Employers’ Liability Act — When on-thejob injuries or job-related illnesses occur in the railroad industry, employees are protected by the Federal
Employers’ Liability Act (FELA). This law, enacted
in 1908, gives railroad employees the right to recover
damages from their employer for such injuries or illnesses. In many instances, damages for job-related
injury or illness can be recovered through an informal
settlement process. However, in many cases, employees
have found it necessary to take legal action under the
provisions of FELA in order to secure just compensation.
While our Nation’s railroads have an obligation to
provide a safe working environment and are liable for
any injuries and illnesses caused in part by their negligence, securing proper compensation for job-related
injuries and illnesses has always been a challenge
for Signalmen and other railroad workers. Meeting
this challenge often requires professional assistance.
Providing such assistance is the continuing purpose of
the Brotherhood’s legal aid program.
Primary Goal — The legal aid program was initiated
many years ago by the Grand Executive Council. The
primary goal of the program is assisting BRS members
and their families in protecting their rights in on-duty,
job-related injury and illness cases. The Supreme Court
has ruled that labor unions have the right to advise
their members on obtaining legal help in FELA cases.
Legal Aid Directory — The legal aid program provides a directory of experienced and qualified attorneys
who are recommended by the BRS for assistance in
handling railroad injury and illness cases. Since most
individuals seldom utilize the services of legal counsel,
especially in the highly specialized field of railroad injury compensation, the BRS has developed this directory
of legal counsel. The directory, which is printed in each
issue of The Signalman’s Journal and is available on the
BRS website, lists strategically located BRS-designated
legal counsel to assist members and their families in
obtaining professional help. These attorneys are listed
by state and are designated to provide services in the
general regions of their offices.
Designated Counsel Listing — The attorneys listed
in the BRS directory are designated by sole authority
of the Grand Executive Council and recommended
as qualified counsel for members and their families in
employee injury cases covered under FELA. For a current list of the Brotherhood’s designated FELA counsel
please consult the BRS Designated Counsel section
contained on page 49 of this report.
Free Consultations — Designated FELA attorneys
provide initial consultations for BRS members free of
charge. They also provide advice on obtaining medical treatment, working with railroad claim agents,
and other critical questions involved in any injury
case. Designated FELA attorneys have further agreed
to provide advice on such matters as wage continuation programs, “light duty” work programs, and other
important considerations involved in the handling of
employee injury and illness cases.
FELA Education — In addition to providing assistance in injury and illness cases, BRS-designated
counsel work to educate railroad employees on their
rights and responsibilities under FELA. These designated attorneys and their representatives welcome the
opportunity to address members at Local Lodge and
General Committee meetings. Meetings attended by
FELA counsel provide an excellent forum for answering members’ questions on injury and illness cases and
for distributing other informational material concerning FELA rights.
Whistleblower — The BRS Designated Counsel
provide assistance and education regarding the
Whistleblower laws, which are designed to protect
employees and provide damage recovery when a rail
carrier violates a “protected activity.” A Railroad commits a violation when it performs an “adverse action”
against an employee because of an employee’s protected
activity. Protected activities include reporting a workrelated injury, accurately reporting hours of service,
requesting medical treatment for an on-duty injury,
and others. For more details on Whistleblower, see the
OSHA report on pages 54, 55, and 56. 
83
Regular Convention
CONVENTION REPORT OF — Leonard Parker, Jr.
National Legislative Director
Economic Stimulus
December 9, 2011 — H.R. 3630: Middle Class
Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 was introduced by Representative Dave Camp (R-MI) and
referred to committee. The bill passed the House of
Representatives on December 13, 2011, and passed
the Senate with amendments on January 23, 2012.
The President signed the Act into law February 22,
2012. The Act provided an extension of the payroll
tax reduction, extension, and reformation of federally
funded benefits under the Emergency Unemployment
Compensation (EUC) program for the remainder of
2012, and a freeze on Medicare Physician payment
rates through December 31, 2012.
Hurricane Sandy Relief Bill
January 4, 2013 — H.R. 152: Disaster Relief
Appropriations Act, 2013 was introduced by
Representative Harold “Hal” Rogers (R-KY) and
referred to committee. On January 15, the bill passed
the House by a vote of 241–180, and passed the
Senate on January 28, 2013, by a vote of 62–36.
Signed into law by President Obama on January 29,
2013, the bill provided $51 billion for victims of the
hurricane that battered the Northeast in late October
2012. The bill included: $16 billion in Community
Development Block Grant money critical for rebuilding, $10.9 billion for public transportation projects, $13 billion to safeguard the Northeast against
another catastrophic storm, $11.5 billion for FEMA’s
disaster relief fund, $780 million for Small Business
Administration disaster loans, and $118 million for
Amtrak.
National Mediation Board
February 11, 2011 — H.R. 658: FAA Modernization
and Reform Act of 2012 was introduced by
Representative John Mica (R-FL) and referred to committee. The FAA Ruling passed February 6, 2012,
when the Senate agreed to the Conference Report by
a vote of 75–20. President Obama signed it into law
February 14, 2012. The bill began as a funding reauthorization and directive of safety standards for the
aviation industry and ended with the tacking on of
amendments to the Railway Labor Act and tug of war
over the shutdown of the aviation industry until the
84
bill became law.
The law amends
75-year old labor
practices, requiring the support of
at least 50 percent
of an employee
group before a
union representaLEONARD PARKER, JR.
tion election can
National Legislative Director
be held, where
previously there
was no statutory requirement. A rewrite of a longstanding labor law deserves proper and due consideration through the normal deliberative process; attaching an unrelated and controversial labor provision in
a much-needed aviation safety and security bill sets a
dangerous precedent.
OSHA
April 6, 2011 — S. 743: Whistleblower Protection
Enhancement Act of 2012 was introduced by Senator
Daniel Akaka (D-HI) and referred to committee.
The bill passed the Senate on May 8, 2012, and the
House on September 28, 2012. The President signed
the Act into law November 27, 2012. Ten critical
areas were strengthened: broadened the definition of
disclosure, deters retaliation through strengthened ability to impose disciplinary action, allows for “full and
fair” relief for victims, holds agencies accountable for
retaliatory investigations, extends whistleblower protection to TSA employees, promotes scientific integrity,
allows OSC to file friend of the court briefs, ensures
that whistleblower protections supersede agency NonDisclosure Agreements (NDAs), expands courts to
which whistleblower claims can be brought, requires
creation of Whistleblower Ombudsman in each Office
of the Inspector General. The passage of this bill has
had a significant positive impact on our members
when an accident/injury occurs on the job.
Transportation Appropriations
Fiscal Year 2011 — H.R. 1473: Department of
Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act,
2011 was introduced by Representative Harold “Hal”
Rogers (R-KY) on April 11, 2011, and referred to
committee. Approved by the House of Representatives
by a vote of 260–167 and by the Senate by vote
of 81–19, the bill was signed into law by President
Obama on April 15, 2011. The bill included no funding for high-speed rail in fiscal year 2011 and rescinded
$400 million from the previous year’s funds for a total
reduction of $2.9 from fiscal year 2010 levels.
Fiscal Year 2012 — H.R.2112: Consolidated and
Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012 was
introduced by Representative Jack Kingston (R-GA) on
June 3, 2011, and reported by the committee on the
same day. The House of Representatives agreed to the
Conference Report on November 17, 2011, by a vote
of 298–121 and the Senate agreed to the Conference
Report by a vote of 70–30 on the same day. It was
signed into law by President Obama on November
18, 2011. It provided $1.6 billion in funding for FRA
programs; the TIGER program received $500 million
for grants to support significant transportation projects
including highways and bridges, public transportation,
passenger and freight railroads, and port infrastructure;
$1.4 billion for Amtrak; and $0 for high-speed and
intercity rail grants.
Fiscal Year 2013–14 — H.R. 4348: Moving Ahead
for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) was
introduced by Representative John Mica (R-FL) on
April 16, 2012, and referred to committee. On June
29, 2012, the House of Representatives agreed to the
Conference Report by a vote of 373–52; the Senate
agreed to the Conference Report on the same day
by a vote of 74–19. The bill was signed into law by
President Obama on July 6, 2012. It is the first longterm authorization enacted since 2005 and funded
surface transportation programs at over $105 billion
for fiscal year 2013–14. MAP-21 created a streamlined
and performance-based surface transportation program
and builds on many of the existing highway, transit,
and bike programs and policies.
H.R. 3547: Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014,
was introduced by Representative Lamar Smith (R-TX)
on November 20, 2013, and referred to committee.
Signed by the President on January 17, 2014, it was
approved by the House on January 15, 2014, by a vote
of 359–67 and by the Senate on January 16, 2014,
by a vote of 72–26. The bill provides $1.39 billion
for Amtrak capital and operating grants, $47 million
more than under sequestration. It also allows $81 million from the Hurricane Sandy Disaster Supplemental
bill to be used to support Amtrak’s efforts to improve
the safety and resiliency of its tunnels and ensure the
reliability of passenger rail services in the Northeast
Corridor. It does not provide any funds, beyond
Amtrak funding, for intercity or high-speed passenger
rail development. The bill provides no additional funding for the congressionally mandated implementation
of Positive Train Control (PTC).
The bill provides $600 million for the USDOT
TIGER program; $126 million higher than what was
provided last year and is enough to reverse all of last
year’s sequester cuts and adds $100 million in new
funding compared to last year’s pre-sequester levels.
TIGER is a program that supports nationally significant transportation projects in a wide variety of modes,
including highways and bridges, public transportation,
passenger and freight railroads, and port infrastructure. While most federal transportation funding is
doled out based on a preset formula, TIGER grants
are competitively awarded based on the benefits a
project offers to its region and the nation. The TIGER
program was first created by the American Recovery
and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Expanding TIGER is
a major victory that will improve our transportation
infrastructure and grow the economy. 
85
Regular Convention
General Counsel’s Report
CONVENTION REPORT OF — William L. Phillips
Following are the Organization’s principal court and
government agency cases during the Reporting Period.
The affected General Committee is shown in parentheses. Case status is as of March 31, 2014.
Some courts require, when BRS lead counsel is from
out-of-state, that a local attorney also participate. Special
thanks to Andy Thompson and Bob Tramuto for their
volunteer service as Local Counsel during the reporting
period.
Duty of Fair Representation
Among the best traditions of the Organization is providing fair, good-faith, and nondiscriminatory representation to each and every BRS-represented employee.
Within the Reporting Period, there were no lawsuits
alleging that the BRS had breached the Duty of Fair
Representation (DFR). The Grand Lodge Officers and
General Counsel congratulate all Local and General
Committee Officers for their continued success in
avoiding DFR exposure.
Major-Minor lawsuits arise from
actual or threatened
Carrier action that
the Organization
believes would
WILLIAM L. PHILLIPS
change the
BRS General Counsel
Agreement. The
Organization argues
that the parties have
a “major dispute,” therefore the court should enjoin the
Carrier from changing the Agreement. The Carrier
argues that the parties have a “minor dispute” subject
to mandatory arbitration, therefore the court should
enjoin the Organization from taking self-help measures
such as a strike.
Claims-Related Cases
BRS and BMWED v. BNSF and New Mexico DOT
(BNSFGC). Complaint filed by the Organizations in
Albuquerque federal court seeking an injunction against
NMDOT’s plan to lease BNSF lines for commuter
operations. The court ruled against the Organizations,
the federal appeals court in Denver did likewise, and
the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case. Case
closed.
BRS v. BNSF (BNSFGC). Petition filed by the BRS in
Kansas City, Kansas, federal court to enforce three backto-work awards. The Carrier refused to include overtime
in one claimant’s back pay and was late in returning two
employees to service. Case pending.
BRS v. CN-IC (ICGC). Complaint filed by the BRS
in Chicago federal court seeking an injunction against
unilateral changes to overtime for Traveling Maintainers
and conversion of Signal Maintainer positions to
Traveling Maintainer positions. The Carrier reversed the
changes and agreed to expedited arbitration. Case closed.
Claims-related cases arise when an employer refuses
to arbitrate a claim or to comply with an arbitration
award, or when either party seeks to have an award set
aside.
BRS v. CSX (L&NGC). Petition filed by the BRS in
Chicago federal court to enforce driver compensation
award on held-in-abeyance claims. The parties agreed to
send unresolved cases back to the Board. Case closed.
BRS v. Invensys (Safetran GC). Complaint filed by
the BRS in Louisville federal court to compel Company
to arbitrate grievance over contracting-out of inventory handling. The court did compel arbitration, but
imposed conditions that were unacceptable to the BRS.
The BRS filed an appeal with the federal appeals court
in Cincinnati. The parties settled the matter. Case closed.
86
Major-Minor
Lawsuits
BRS v. UP (UPGC). Complaint filed by the BRS in
Chicago federal court seeking an injunction against
unilateral changes to travel allowance procedures. The
parties agreed to expedited arbitration. Case closed.
BRS v. UP (UPGC). Complaint filed by the BRS in
Reno federal court seeking an injunction against unilateral changes to reimbursement of meal expenses.
The Carrier counterclaimed for an injunction against
the BRS. The court ruled in favor of the Carrier and
enjoined the BRS from taking self-help. Case closed.
Other Cases
Anderson v. BRS (UPGC). Charge filed by a former
Signalman with Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC) Chicago office, alleging racial
and age discrimination in the BRS’s handling of his
discharge claim. The EEOC found no violation. Case
closed.
County state court. The Carrier removed the case to
Albany federal court. The BRS moved to dismiss all
charges against the BRS. Case pending.
DeHoyos v. BRS (UGC). Charge filed by a former
Signalman with EEOC Chicago office, alleging national
origin discrimination in the BRS’s handling of his dismissal claim. Case pending.
BRS v. Edwards (UPGC). Complaint filed by the
BRS in Robertson County, Texas state court, seeking
recovery of around $70,000 embezzled from the former
SWGC and Local Lodge 99. Judgment was entered
against Edwards, who also served a prison term on federal criminal charges. After Edwards died, Bob Tramuto
filed a Proof of Claim in probate court and negotiated a
settlement. Case closed.
Joint Ownership Cases (SEGC, UGC). The
Massachusetts and Florida Departments of
Transportation and CSX sought separate rulings from
the Surface Transportation Board (STB) that proposed
joint ownership transactions would not constitute acquisition of a railroad. The BRS unsuccessfully opposed
the DOTs and CSX before the STB and federal appeals
courts in Washington, D.C., and Boston. Cases closed.
BRS v. Florida DOT (SEGC). Complaint filed by the
BRS in Tallahassee state court over FDOT’s failure to
honor an agreement involving signal maintenance and
construction on SunRail commuter line. FDOT confirmed that Transit America, a rail carrier, will perform
the maintenance. Case closed.
KCS v. BRS (BNSFGC). Complaint filed by the
Carrier in Shreveport, Louisiana, federal court seeking
injunction against allegedly threatened BRS work stoppage over Carrier’s use of contractors to install PTC
infrastructure. The parties agreed to expedited arbitration. Case closed.
BRS v. Relco Locomotive. Unfair Labor Practice charges filed by the BRS with National Labor Relations Board
(NLRB) Minneapolis Office, arising from discharge of
four employees involved in BRS organizing campaign at
locomotive repair shop. An Administrative Law Judge
ruled against the Company on all counts. The NLRB
issued a Cease and Desist Order, ordered reinstatement
of all four employees with full back pay and benefits,
and required the Company to post a notice informing
all employees of their rights. The federal appeals court in
St. Louis affirmed the NLRB. Case in enforcement stage.
Local 231 v. K.D. Gerber (NSGC). Complaint filed
by the BRS in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, state court
seeking recovery of around $25,000 embezzled from the
Local. Judgment was entered against the member, who
repaid the money plus interest in installment payments.
Andrew Thompson served as Local Counsel. Case closed.
Campbell v. Amtrak (AEGC). Class action filed in
D.C. federal court by a Signalman, 73 other employees,
and the BMWED, alleging racial discrimination by
Amtrak. The BRS and 14 other Amtrak organizations
are not accused of discrimination, but were named
as defendants because the outcome of the case might
impact agreement provisions, such as seniority. Case
pending.
Clark v. CSX and BRS (UGC). Charges filed by a
Signalman alleging racial and disability discrimination
when he was removed from service. The Carrier had
found an unopened 30-pack of beer in his company
truck on company property during working hours. The
N.Y. Department of Human Rights Syracuse office dismissed the charges for lack of sufficient evidence. The
EEOC New York, New York, office did likewise. The
employee sued the Carrier and the BRS in Onondaga
Miller v. BRS (UPGC). Charge filed by a former
Signalman with Illinois Department of Human Rights
(IDHR) Chicago office, alleging the BRS mishandled
his dismissal claim in retaliation for his having allegedly
filed an earlier discrimination charge. The IDHR dismissed the charge for lack of substantial evidence. Case
closed.
Rail Labor Organizations v. BNSF (BNSFGC).
Charges filed by the BRS and nine other Organizations
with EEOC Minneapolis office, alleging that policy
requiring self-reporting of broad range of medical
information violates the Americans With Disabilities
Act, Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, and
pregnancy-related provisions of the Civil Rights Act.
Cases pending.
Thompson v. BRS (L&NGC). Charge filed by a
Signalman with EEOC Atlanta office, alleging racial discrimination when the Committee filed a claim that the
Carrier disregarded seniority by offering him training
and testing for advancement to Signal Tech. The EEOC
found no violation. Case closed. 
87
Regular Convention
CONVENTION REPORT OF — Michael S. Baldwin
The Director of Research Office has been under the direction of two Grand Lodge Representatives since the last
Convention. Mike Baldwin, who had been working in the
arbitration department as a Grand Lodge Representative,
was appointed by President Pickett in October of 2011 to
take over as Director of Research when John Bragg vacated
that position. Bragg was elected to the position of Vice
President — NRAB.
Federal Railroad Administration — Created by the
Department of Transportation Act of 1966, the Federal
Railroad Administration (FRA) is an agency under the
jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Transportation
(DOT). The FRA’s mission is to enable the safe, reliable,
and efficient movement of people and goods for a strong
America, now and in the future. The FRA employs a total
staff of about 800.
FRA Administrator — On April 29, 2009, the United
States Senate confirmed President Obama’s nomination
of Joe Szabo as FRA Administrator. Szabo is the first FRA
Administrator to be chosen from the ranks of railroad
employment. Szabo began his railroad career in 1976
with the Illinois Central Railroad as a switchman; he most
recently served as Illinois state legislative director for the
United Transportation Union (UTU).
FRA Emergency Orders 2010–2013 — Emergency
Order No. 29, Notice No. 1 — The FRA is issuing this
emergency order (EO or Order) to require that the New
York State Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s MetroNorth Commuter Railroad Company (Metro-North)
take certain actions to control passenger train speed at any
location on main track where there is a reduction of more
than 20 miles per hour (mph) in the maximum authorized
passenger train speed. Under the EO, Metro-North must
create and comply with an FRA-approved action plan that
institutes modifications to its existing Automatic Train
Control System or other signal systems. Until Metro-North
completes the necessary modifications, the EO requires that
two qualified railroad employees be present in the control
compartment of Metro-North’s passenger trains when those
trains operate over locations on main track where there is a
required reduction of more than 20-mph in the maximum
authorized passenger train speed.
Emergency Order No. 28, Notice No. 1 — The FRA
has determined that public safety compels issuance of this
EO, which requires railroads operating on the general
88
system to implement
additional processes and
procedures to ensure
that certain unattended
trains and vehicles on
mainline track or mainline siding outside of
a yard or terminal are
properly secured against
MICHAEL S. BALDWIN
unintended movement.
The FRA re-examined
its regulations governing
the securement of such equipment in light of the July 6,
2013, derailment in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, Canada, which
demonstrated the terrible consequences that can arise when
a railroad accident results in a sudden release of flammable
liquids. The FRA’s inspection data since January 2010
shows significant non-compliance with the FRA securement
regulation. 49 CFR 232.103(n), with nearly 4,950 recorded
defects in that time. Moreover, the FRA has seen a number
of serious accidents during rail transportation of flammable
liquids since 2009, and there has been significant growth in
these types of rail shipments since 2011. These factors led
the FRA to the conclusion that additional action is necessary to eliminate an immediate hazard of death, personal
injury, or significant harm to the environment, particularly
in instances where certain hazardous materials are involved.
Emergency Order No. 27, Notice No. 1 — The FRA has
determined that public safety compels issuance of this EO
requiring the Gulf, Colorado & San Saba Railway (GCSR)
of Brady, Texas, to discontinue operation of any train or
rail vehicle under any circumstances over the highway-rail
grade crossing at U.S. Highway 87 (DOT Crossing No.
024816B, milepost 66.65) on the GCSR rail line until
GCSR implements and complies with procedures for safe
operation over the crossing as approved by the FRA, or
restores the proper functioning of the grade crossing warning system at U.S. Highway 87 and brings the grade crossing warning system into full compliance with FRA regulations, as determined by the FRA.
FRA Safety Advisories 2010–2013: 2013–07 — Safety
and Security Plans for Class 3 Hazardous Materials
Transported by Rail. In this safety advisory, the Pipeline
and Hazardous Material Safety Administration (PHMSA)
and the FRA are reinforcing the importance of proper characterization, classification, and selection of a packing group
for Class 3 materials, and the corresponding requirements
in the Federal hazardous materials regulations for safety and
security planning.
2013–06 — Preventing Unintended Movement of
Freight Trains and Vehicles on Mainline Track or
Mainline Siding Outside of a Yard or Terminal. A recent
catastrophic railroad accident occurred in Canada when
an unattended freight train containing hazardous materials
rolled down a descending grade and subsequently derailed.
It is currently estimated that this accident resulted in 47
fatalities. In response, the FRA issued Emergency Order
No. 28 regarding the securement of trains, and the FRA
and PHMSA (collectively, DOT) are also issuing this safety
advisory. This safety advisory discusses the circumstances
surrounding the accident and makes certain safety-related
recommendations to railroads operating in the United
States.
2013–05 — Joint Failure on Continuous Welded Rail
(CWR) Track. The FRA is issuing Safety Advisory 2013–
05 to remind railroad track owners about the importance
of reviewing current, internal continuous welded rail plans
and properly inspecting CWR joints to identify and correct
locations that indicate potential joint failure that may cause
a derailment.
2013–04 — Importance of Clear Safety Procedures for
Temporary Removal From Service of Highway-Rail
Grade Crossing Warning Systems and Wayside Signal
Systems: The FRA is issuing this Safety Advisory 2013–04
to reemphasize the importance of clear and precise railroad
safety procedures to ensure the safety of the traveling public
and railroad employees when highway-rail grade crossing
warning systems and wayside signal systems are temporarily removed from service for the purposes of testing,
inspection, maintenance, or repair. The FRA previously
made related recommendations to railroads regarding the
importance of clear safety procedures to ensure the safety of
highway-rail grade crossing warning systems and wayside
signal systems in Safety Advisory 2002–01.
2013–03 — A fatality occurred during a railroad
switching operation that involved a railroad employee
kicking cars and subsequently going between rolling
equipment. In response, the FRA is publishing this Safety
Advisory 2013–03 to make recommendations to railroads
regarding the adoption of car-handling procedures during flat switching operations at certain locations and to
re-emphasize the importance of following procedures
when going between rolling equipment due to the hazards
involved. The FRA previously made related recommendations to railroads and their employees regarding going
between rolling equipment in Safety Advisory 2011–02.
2013–02 — Low-Speed, Wheel-Climb Derailments of
Passenger Equipment With “Stiff” Suspension Systems.
The FRA is issuing Safety Advisory 2013–02 to alert railroads and other industry members about lowspeed, wheelclimb derailments of certain passenger equipment designs
having “stiff” suspension systems.
2013–01 — Passing Stop Signals Protecting Movable
Bridges. This safety advisory was issued to remind track
owners, railroads, and their employees of the importance of
ensuring that rails are properly aligned and movable spans
are secured before permitting a train to pass a signal that
is displaying a stop indication and protecting a movable
bridge. This advisory was issued in response to an accident
involving a derailment at an unsecured swing span bridge
that moved while the train was on the bridge.
2012–03 — Buckling-Prone Conditions in Continuous
Welded Rail Track. The FRA is issuing Safety Advisory
2012–03 to remind track owners, railroads, and their
employees of the importance of complying with their continuous welded rail (CWR) plan procedures and reviewing
their current internal engineering instructions that address
inspecting CWR track to identify buckling-prone conditions.
2012–02 — Restricted Speed. The FRA is issuing Safety
Advisory 2012–02 to remind railroads and their employees
of the importance of compliance with relevant railroad
operating rules when trains and locomotives are to be
operated at restricted speed. This safety advisory contains a
preliminary discussion of recent train accidents involving a
failure to operate at restricted speed and makes recommendations to railroads to ensure employee compliance with
the requirements of restricted speed operating rules.
2012–01 — Odorant Fade in Railroad Tank Cars. The
FRA is issuing Safety Advisory 2012–01 to remind shippers and consignees of railroad tank cars containing odorized liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) of the importance of
taking actions to ensure that a sufficient level of odorant
remains in the LPG throughout the entire transportation
cycle.
2011–03 — Bridge Walkway Hazards. This safety advisory was issued to remind each railroad bridge worker,
railroad, and contractor or subcontractor to a railroad of
the dangers posed by walking on unsecured sections of
walkway and platform gratings, especially without fall
protection. The safety advisory contained recommendations to the employers of bridge workers to ensure that this
issue is addressed by appropriate policies, procedures, and
employee compliance.
89
2011–02 — Following Procedures When Going
between Rolling Equipment. This safety advisory was
issued to remind railroads and their employees of the
importance of following procedures when moving between
rolling equipment. This safety advisory contains various
recommendations to railroads to ensure that these issues
are addressed by appropriate railroad operating policies and
procedures, and to ensure that those policies and procedures are effectively implemented.
2011–01 — Equipment Fouling Adjacent Tracks. This
safety advisory was issued to remind each railroad and
railroad employee of the importance of compliance with
Federal regulations and railroad operating rules regarding
rolling equipment being left in a location that is clear of
any adjacent tracks. This safety advisory contained various recommendations to railroads to ensure that this issue
was addressed by appropriate policies and procedures, and
received employee compliance.
2010–03 — Staying alert and situational awareness.
This safety advisory was issued to remind railroads and
their employees of the importance of situational awareness
and the need to stay alert whenever the job that is being
performed changes, particularly in main track territory.
This safety advisory contains various recommendations to
railroads to ensure that these issues are addressed by appropriate policies and procedures.
2010–02 — Signal Recording Devices for HighwayRail Grade Crossing Active Warning Systems that are
Interconnected with Highway Traffic Signal Systems.
This safety advisory addresses “Safety Recommendations”
issued by the National Transportation Safety Board
(NTSB) that relate to railroad and highway signal recording devices at highway-rail grade crossings equipped with
active warning systems that are interconnected with highway traffic signal systems. This safety advisory recommends
that states, local highway authorities, and railroads install,
maintain, and upgrade railroad and highway traffic signal
recording devices at these types of grade crossings. This
safety advisory also recommends that states, local highway
authorities, and railroads conduct comprehensive periodic
joint inspections of highway traffic signal pre-emption
interconnections and use information obtained from any
railroad and highway traffic signal recording devices during
those inspections.
2010–01 — Safety Appliance Securement, Potential
Failure of Welded and/or Notched Vertical Hand Brake
Supports on FTTX Flatcars. The FRA is issuing Safety
Advisory 2010–01 in order to provide guidance to interested parties concerning the inspection and repair of FTTX
series flatcars that have welded vertical hand brake supports
90
that have been modified to accommodate a 10-inch wide
hand brake step.
FRA Railroad Safety Advisory Committee — In
1996, the FRA established the Railroad Safety Advisory
Committee (RSAC) to develop new regulatory standards,
through a collaborative process, with all segments of the
rail community working together to fashion mutually satisfactory solutions on safety regulatory issues.
Today, the full RSAC is represented by 39 organizations
including Labor, railroads, suppliers, states, chemical
suppliers, and passenger advocates. In addition, advisors from the Federal Transit Administration, National
Transportation Safety Board, Transportation Security
Administration, Canada, Mexico, and other diverse groups
participate.
The RSAC provides advice and recommendations to the
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) regarding the
development of the railroad safety regulatory program,
including issuance of new regulations, review and revision
of existing regulations, and identification of non-regulatory
alternatives for improvement of railroad safety.
It is the FRA’s policy to utilize consensus recommendations
of the RSAC as the basis of proposed and final agency
action, whenever possible, consistent with applicable
law, including guidance from the President. In considering whether to adopt RSAC recommendations, the
Administrator weighs the interests of the public at large
and the ability of the agency to administer, and, if necessary, to enforce, any requirements that would result from
final agency action.
The FRA will consult with the RSAC on a periodic basis
regarding the development of its regulatory program, advising the RSAC of emerging issues, statutory requirements,
and other identified needs. It is the intent of the FRA to
consider the views of RSAC members in determining regulatory priorities.
RSAC Tasks — Since its first meeting in April of 1996,
the RSAC has accepted 44 tasks. The status for each of the
tasks accepted between 2010–2013 are provided below:
2013–05 — Appropriate Train Crew Size. Evaluate
whether and how crew redundancy affects railroad safety.
Evaluate whether there are any types of railroad services or
operations requiring redundant crew members. Evaluate
whether there are acceptable methods to provide crew
redundancy if redundancy is deemed necessary. Evaluate
whether there is an appropriate train crew size for both
passenger and freight operations necessary to ensure railroad safety.
2013–04 — Operational Testing for Securement of
Rolling Equipment. To enhance safety by confirming that
appropriate processes and procedures are in place to ensure
that unattended trains and vehicles on mainline tracks or
mainline sidings outside of yards or terminals are properly
secured against unintended movement by ensuring that
proper operational testing is conducted regarding securement of unattended equipment.
2013–03 — Securement Requirements. To ensure appropriate processes and procedures are in place to ensure that
any unattended trains and vehicles on mainline track or
mainline sidings outside of a yard or terminal are properly
secured against unintended movement, and as appropriate,
such securement is properly confirmed and verified.
2013–02 — Hazardous Materials Issues. Given the risk
presented by the rail transportation of the various classes of
regulated hazardous materials, ensure that appropriate processes and procedures are in place for such transportation
by taking into consideration the differing hazards presented
by different types and amounts of the materials and recommend, as appropriate, special handling and/or operational
controls of trains and vehicles transporting such materials.
Special handling and operational controls may include, but
are not limited to, the classification of materials, identification of materials, route planning, movement, attendance, or
any other recommended handling measure or operational
control of trains and on-track vehicles transporting hazardous materials.
2010–01 — Minimum Training Standards and Plans.
To establish minimum training standards for each class and
craft of safety-related railroad employee and their railroad
contractor and subcontractor equivalents, as required by the
RSIA.
Hours of Service — The FRA issued its Final Rule, and
Interim Statement of Agency Policy and Interpretation on
the Hours of Service Laws as Amended in 2008, which
left Signalmen covered under two hours of service laws just
as they were before. This interpretation defined a Signal
Employee as, “…an individual who is ‘engaged’ in installing, repairing, or maintaining signal systems.” If a signalman
did not perform any covered service, he or she would still
be required to comply with Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration (FMCSA) regulations. This language was
copied verbatim in the FMCSA rule which further clouded
the issue.
Both the Association of American Railroads (AAR) and the
BRS met with the FRA asking that it clarify the confusion
surrounding what HOS records are required to be filled
out by Railroad Signalmen who operate CMV’s. The positions taken by the AAR and the BRS were that Signalmen
should fall under only one HOS Law and that should be
the FRA’s HOS Laws.
2011–04 — Risk Reduction Program. To develop
requirements for certain railroads to develop a Risk
Reduction Program as mandated by the Rail Safety
Improvement Act of 2008 (RSIA).
The FRA issued its Second Interim Statement of Agency
Policy and Interpretation on the Hours of Service Laws as
Amended in 2008. The FRA has taken the position that
operating a vehicle for the purpose of “installing, repairing,
or maintaining signal systems” whether or not the operation
of that vehicle is separated by a 10-hour rest period from performing covered service will be considered “on-duty time,” and
therefore, will be covered by FRA HOS only.
2011–03 — Fatigue Management Plans. Provide advice
regarding the development and implementation of regulations for Fatigue Management Plans and their deployment
under the RSIA.
Positive Train Control — In general, PTC limits incidents
caused by human error. PTC’s predictive technology monitors a train’s current conditions against its speed and end-ofauthority limits.
2011–02 — Track Inspection Time Study. To consider
specific improvements to the Track Safety Standards or
other responsive actions related to the Track Inspection
Time Study required by section 403 (a)-(c) of the of the
RSIA and other relevant studies and resources.
PTC Core Functions:
2011–01 — Electronic Device Distraction. To prescribe
mitigation strategies, programs, and processes for governing
the use of electronic devices which could cause distractions
to railroad employees engaged in safety-critical activities.
2010–02 — Safety Technology in Dark Territory. To
prescribe standards, guidance, regulations, or orders governing the development, use, and implementation of rail safety
technology in dark territory, as required by SEC. 406 of the
RSIA.
• Prevent train-to-train collisions;
• Prevent overspeed derailments (Speed enforcement
is part of the protection afforded by PTC. The
regulation also mandates the enforcement of stop
and flag orders that have been issued to protect
malfunctioning highway-rail grade crossing warning
systems.);
• Prevent incursion into roadway worker work zones;
and
• Prevent movement through switches not properly
lined.
91
The BRS continues to push for the installation of PTC
by the required deadline of December 31, 2015; however,
many railroads are stating that they will not make the
deadline. The FRA gave a report to Congress in 2012 that
stated that it also believes that many railroads will not be
able to meet the current deadline. Railroads have been
looking at PTC technology for many years from a business
standpoint and have even tested PTC-type systems on certain railroad lines to determine its benefits. Installing PTC
and eventually using this technology on the entire railroad
system is the right thing to do for the safe operation of rail
traffic.
Signal Employee Fatalities — Since the last Officers’
Report, which was presented at the 2010 BRS Convention,
there have been no roadway worker fatalities involving
our members. However, we did lose two of our brothers
in work-related accidents. One fatality occurred when the
truck a BRS member was driving collided head-on with
a passing semi-truck while returning to the headquarters. And the second fatality occurred when a member’s
truck was struck by a cut of empty flatcars. Even though
these two incidents were not related to Roadway Worker
Protection, they are a reminder that we must be alert at all
times.
Fall Protection — At the 2010 BRS Convention, it was
reported that in a 1978 policy statement published in the
Federal Register, the FRA established its jurisdiction over
fall protection on signal structures. The statement essentially says that OSHA does not apply and that the FRA has
jurisdiction. President Pickett previously asked the FRA to
give jurisdiction back to OSHA or establish fall protection
standards under FRA regulations for signal structures.
It has been more than three decades since the FRA established that policy. During that time, the FRA has established fall protection on railroad bridges and ignored all
other structures. While the FRA has not taken any tangible
action on this subject outside of the agency, it has recently
assigned fall protection for signal structures internally for
review. In private conversations, the FRA has indicated
that a rulemaking on fall protection will be forthcoming,
but it has not indicated formally or informally when this
will rise to the top of the FRA’s to-do list. With the agency
still being overwhelmed by issues contained in the 2008
Rail Safety bill, it may be a while before we see any positive
movement on fall protection.
Signalmen Certification and Training — The RSIA
established minimum training standards for railroad workers and provides for the certification of train conductors.
In addition, within six months after promulgating conductor certification rules, the Department of Transportation
Secretary must report to Congress on whether the certifica92
tion of other specified crafts and classes (including Carmen
and Signal employees) is necessary to reduce the number
and rate of accidents and incidents or to improve railroad
safety. The final rule for Conductor Certification was in
the Federal Register on November 9, 2011, and the rule
became effective on January 1, 2012. As of yet, there has
been no recommendation by the DOT Secretary about
certification of other crafts. The FRA reached out to the
BRS, along with other non-certified crafts, and posed the
question of whether or not we would support the certification of Signalmen. The GEC met and by letter from
President Pickett’s office, informed the FRA that if they
chose to certify Signalmen, the BRS would expect to be
involved in the writing of any regulation related to certification. Any action by the FRA on this topic will be delayed
until the publication of the Training Standards final rule.
Monthly Test Interval Waiver — It was reported at the
2010 BRS Convention that on January 4, 2010, the
FRA published a waiver request from the Association of
American Railroads (AAR) asking the FRA to expand the
minimum monthly testing interval to a maximum of 35
days for various tests required under 49 CFR parts 234 and
236.
The FRA in its response to the AAR request stated that
it: “appreciates and understands the desire of AAR member
railroads to receive additional flexibility in performing the
required inspections and tests, after careful consideration of
AAR’s petition, comments submitted to the docket, as well
as evidence presented at the public hearing, the Board has
concluded that granting the requested relief to AAR member
railroads would not be in the public interest or consistent with
railroad safety. Accordingly, the Board denies AAR’s request.
In denying the request, the Board notes FRA’s well-established
practice of exercising enforcement discretion when extenuating
circumstances make it unduly burdensome for a railroad to
perform the required inspection or test within the required 30
or 31 day period. The Board further notes that FRA Technical
Bulletin S-04-01 reaffirmed FRA’s policy of exercising enforcement discretion in this context. The Board further notes that
although the railroads’ stated intention in the context of this
waiver petition is to continue to “target” completion within the
30-day timeframe (while having an additional 5 days of leeway to complete the required inspections and tests), the Board
believes that providing an additional grace period by waiver to
certain railroads, absent any unique safety circumstances, is not
an appropriate use of FRA’s waiver authority.”
The FRA’s response closes the books on this particular
matter, and to date there have been no further waiver
requests submitted by either the AAR or any of its member
railroads requesting any expansion to the monthly testing
intervals. 
Regular Convention
Signalmen’s Political League
Participation in the political process is at
the forefront of everyone’s minds these
days, and continues to be a fundamental
tradition of the Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen. Throughout our 111-year
history, Signalmen have recognized the
great importance of supporting political
candidates for public office. The BRS,
now more than ever, understands the
importance of continued support by the
candidates of working men and women,
both at home and in the workplace.
In 1972, the Brotherhood of Railroad
Signalmen established a political action
committee called the Signalmen’s Political
League (SPL) in an effort to coordinate
and expand the participation of individual
members in political activities.
Awards Program
The BRS SPL awards program currently has four levels of
contribution. Also, the quality and style of SPL gifts has
been updated.
President’s Club — This is the highest level of the
Signalmen’s Political League program for members
contributing $75 or more per month. This entitles
the member to an SPL Watch, SPL Jacket, SPL Shirt,
SPL Hat, and/or SPL Gold Pin with stone.
Vice President’s Club — This level of the
Signalmen’s Political League program is for members contributing in the range of $50 to $74 per
month. This contribution entitles the member to
an SPL Jacket, SPL Hat, and/or SPL Gold Pin.
Senator’s Club — Members who contribute
between $25 to $49 per month are entitled to
an SPL Shirt, SPL Hat, and/or SPL Silver Pin.
Representative’s Club — This is the lowest level of contribution to the Signalmen’s
Political League that ranges between $10 to
$24 per month. Members who contribute
are entitled to an SPL Hat and/or SPL
Silver Pin.
To sign-up for the Signalmen’s Political
League go to www.brs.org. The SPL
sign-up form is located in the Member
Resources Menu. An online account
is needed to sign in to this members-only area.
Members may also call Grand Lodge at (540) 622-6522 for an
application form. 
93
Mini
Maglite
Key Chain
Mug
10
POINTS
20
POINTS
Hat
Glasses - Set of Six
New contributors of at least $5 per month
and current contributors who increase their
monthly contributions by at least $10 qualify
for recognition points. For each $1 increase
you will receive 10 recognition points.
You can redeem your points toward
a single item or combinations of items
where the points equal those you have been awarded.
EXAMPLE #1: Joe Signalman’s pledge to SPL is $10 per month. For
each $1 pledged in his monthly SPL contribution, he receives 10
SPL points, s o Joe has 100 r ecognition points to redeem toward
SPL g ifts. J oe s elects a M ini-Magite for 20 points, a l ong sleeve
shirt for 30 points, and Klein pliers for 50 points.
Mag-Lite
Flashlight
30
POINTS
EXAMPLE #2: J oe S ignalman has been c ontributing $10 per
month to SPL. Joe will receive 1 0 points per $ 1 of t he $ 10
increase, so he will receive 100 recogition points to redeem.
Polo Shirts
Navy Polo
Gray Polo
Jacket
Twill Shirt - Navy
Wrist
Watch
100
POINTS
Maglite and
Leatherman
Denim Shirt
Maglite and
Buck Knife
40
POINTS
Twill Shirt - Khaki
Tan Polo
50
POINTS
Duffel Bag
5-inch
Lock-Blade Knife
w/Sheath
9-inch Klein Pliers
Pocket Watch
200
POINTS
Wool/Leather
Coat

REGULAR CONVENTION - Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen

Transcription

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