Mr. J.J. Fleps                                                             June 19, 1996

Vice President, Labor Relations
Burlington Northern Santa Fe
3000 Continental Plaza
777 Main St.
Fort Worth, TX 76102-5384

Dear Mr. Fleps:

This will confirm. our understanding reached concerning a trial period for fourteen hours rest at the home terminal.

Without diminishing any existing rules concerning engineers requesting additional rest at the home terminal, the following provisions will apply to engineers in pool service.

1. An engineer m pool service tieing up at the home terminal, who has accumulated eight or more consecutive hours chargeable to the Hours of Service Law, including continuous time trips of eight hours or more, may elect to have fourteen hours rest at the home terminal, and upon notification to the crew caller the rest period must be granted.

2. An engineer desiring fourteen hours rest under this agreement must notify the crew caller at the time the engineer ties up.

3. The fourteen hour rest period granted pursuant to this agreement cannot later be revoked by the engineer or taken away by the Carrier.

4. It is understood that engineers taking fourteen hours rest pursuant to this agreement may be run around by following engineers without penalty during the fourteen hour period.

The parties agree that the terms of this agreement may be implemented on a trial basis during the ratification period. Upon ratification by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers this agreement will become effective August 20, 1996 and will remain in effect subject to cancellation by either party signatory hereto giving thirty (30) days notice to the other.

J.R. Carroll   
Local Chairman
BLE Div. 642
1433 HWY 34
Creston, IA 50901

Dew Sir and Brother:

This is in reference to your letter, dated January 24, 1997, concerning the June 19, 1996 agreement allowing 14 hours rest at the home terminal and it's proper application to your blueprinted pool.

From our understanding of your local agreement for blueprinting of the Creston/Lincoln ID pool, Engineers are to be called in numeric order as hours of service permit. The agreement then goes on to allow restoration at both ends of the road to accomplish this blueprinting if Engineers are called in other than numeric order while obtaining legal rest. The right to request and be granted 14 hours rest at the home terminal in no way affects rest provisions as contemplated under the Hours of Service Act. Instead, it is voluntary rest that Engineers in pool service can now obtain by agreement. This same agreement also states that Engineers who have taken 14 hours rest may be run around without penalty while obtaining the additional rest. For that reason, run arounds that occur after the involved Engineer has obtained legal rest, but before the expiration of 14 hours when requested, would not be run arounds that incur a penalty or benefits of restoration.

Any other interpretation would allow Engineer A to voluntarily request 14 hours rest, requiring Engineer B, behind him in the pool, to be called in his place, and, then, after obtaining 14 hours at home, allow Engineer A to go to Lincoln and penalize Engineer B who went to work earlier at the home terminal, by restoring to his original numeric placement. This was not the intent of the 14 hour rest agreement and Article 4 was included for this reason. It is our opinion that the 14 hour rest provision cannot be used to expand or diminish restoration benefits, currently based on legal rest, that are provided under various local agreements.

The other concerns that are raised in your letter in regards to changing current hours of service restoration are governed by your local agreement For that reason, the parties involved should meet locally and resolve or modify the portions of the local agreement that are no longer deemed acceptable. As in the past, this office continues to request that all local agreements or modifications be forwarded to this office. If we may be of assistance to you in obtaining resolution or modifications please advise.

Trusting this answers your letters I remain.

Fraternally yours,

s/ DL McPherson
General Chairman

DRP/pp

cc: R.J. Helm, LC Division 98
J.H. Nelson, GST/GCA