Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers
| Dennis R. Pierce |
GENERAL COMMITTEE OF ADJUSTMENT |
VICE
CHAIRMEN |
|
| General Chairman |
801 CHERRY ST., SUITE 1010 Unit 8 |
J.H. NELSON SECRETARY-TREASURER GALESBURG, IL 61401 |
| ALL LOCAL CHAIRMAN | March 5, 2004 |
| BNSF NORTHLINES AND MRL | File: Proposed Agreements Foot of the Board/ No Call List |
Dear Sirs and Brothers:
Enclosed for review and determination are
three proposals that would establish new methods for the management of manpower.
The first two proposals are “Foot of the Board” agreements each with a
slight variation from the other. The third agreement is identified as the “No
Call List”. I will briefly describe both agreements.
The Foot of the Board agreements are a new
concept to the former BN property, but are widely used by our Brothers on the
former Santa Fe property. Under both proposals, employees in pool service are
allowed to drop to the foot of the board one time during each lay over and there
are two ways to accomplish that drop. Under the first method (FOB), employees
can manually notify that they wish to drop while laying in, and, when they do,
they will take their assigned turn with them assuming the last out position.
Depending on when the move is initiated, an engineer could drop just a few turns
or drop several turns, allowing the involved employee to have some control over
the length of time that they are home. Under the second method (NFB), the
engineer can designate his/;her turn to be “pending foot of the board” and
they will then drop when they reach a predetermined number of times out or
threshold specific to each pool. This drop will occur with no further action
necessary by the employee. Using both methods, a predetermined threshold or cut
off point will be in place for each pool and the intention is to retain some
predictability for those close to getting called. For instance, if a pool
averages one train called per hour, we would suggest that the threshold be set
at eight to ten times out. If the trains were then called consistent with the
average, no employee could drop back in the pool when they were within eight
hours of being called.
There are slight differences between the
two Foot of the Board agreements, one is called the “Full” version
and the other is the “Abridged” version. Under the Abridged
version, an employee will take their turn with them when they FOB/NFB, but if
they lay off for any reason, their turn will remain in rotation for the extra
board to fill. Under the Full version, pool lay offs will be treated like
existing extra board lay offs and the turn will be removed from the rotation
while the engineer is off. This “chain gang” style of pool management will
obviously have a more dramatic affect on extra boards as the pool in essence
becomes self supporting.
The Abridged version also allows for a 7/3
Overlay to be incorporated, while the “Full” version does not. In addition,
Attendance Guidelines are suspended for those pool engineers working under the
Full version. Both agreements allow engineers to exercise the foot of the board
option with no offset to protective guarantees.
We know that these proposals present a departure from our current pool management methods, but we do feel that they are worthy of your consideration. Our efforts have long been to find a way to accommodate the varied desires of the membership regarding how much they will work. Under these proposals, those that never take FOB will work more than they do today, those that exercise FOB occasionally can work at the same pace as today, while those that exercise the option every trip to the maximum allowable can work substantially less than they do today. Exercising FOB is not counted against any Attendance Guidelines formula so that more time off can be obtained without coming under attendance criticism. This is largely possible because the next engineer in the pool works the job when any engineer drops to the foot.
We are aware that there are predictability
concerns that come with people dropping to the foot. The threshold language was
added to minimize the real impact, but there is no doubt that employees in FOB
pools will need to vigilantly monitor their standing. We have been advised that
the NFB designation is visible in TSS and those behind you can see in advance
that you have opted for NFB and plan to drop when you reach the threshold. The
total impact of these items is hard to determine, until we actually test the
agreements by trying them for a period. On the positive side, if an overlay is
also in place with the abridged FOB, employees might actually be able to speed
up their work cycle enough by not taking the foot to be able to afford to take
all of their overlay days. Conversely, overlay days would still be available
over and above the additional time off created by dropping to the foot for those
that opt to work less.
Again, we know that the proposals
represent a departure from what we are currently used to, but we would like to
see several locations try them if even for 90 days to see if the involved
engineers enjoy the change.
The third proposal in the packet is a “No Call List” agreement. While the Foot of the Board agreements are to be considered pool by pool, the No Call List is location based for all road engineers. The intent of the agreement is to allow those that only wish to protect their own permanent assignment to avoid calls for step up or emergency work. Both the employees and the Carrier benefit under these conditions as the Carrier is not obligated to call those employees who indicate that they wish to be left out of the canvassing order for emergency calls. If no action is taken by the employee, the Carrier remains obligated to call them as they are today, but those that wish to get a good nights sleep and only be called for their own turn will be able to accomplish that. Similar agreements are currently in place at a few locations on the Nebraska Division and they are generally viewed as an improvement. While an attempt was made to include language precluding the Carrier from “paper deadheading” as part of this proposal, that language was not available. Even so, we do view this proposal as a positive step in the right direction and are confident that you will too.
Therefore, in accordance with Section 41(b) — GENERAL COMMITTEE RULES OF THE BYLAWS of the BROTHERHOOD OF LOCOMOTIVE ENGINEERS AND TRAINMEN, it is requested that the enclosed be discussed and acted on at the next regular (or special) meeting of your Division. Please indicate on the enclosed ballot if you are “FOR” or “AGAINST” the proposals. You will note that the ballot also includes a space for you to identify the pools that desire to try the FOB agreement. If you have any questions concerning the proposed agreement, please contact the Office. Return of your ballot as soon as possible would be appreciated, but it must be returned to this Office on or before April 16, 2004.
Fraternally
yours,
/s/ Dennis R. Pierce
General Chairman
Enclosures
cc:
J.H. Nelson, Sec./Treasurer
BLET
General Chairmen, BNSF
DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT
(Full Version)
MEMORANDUM
OF AGREEMENT
Between
The
Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company
And
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers
As part of the Safety Summit process, this
Agreement is designed to enhance employees’ work/rest schedules as well as
provide the manpower necessary to meet our customers’ expectations.
FOB/NFB
1.
An employee assigned to the ___________________ pool at _________________
may, at anytime before reaching ___________ times out, request to move his turn
to the foot of the board (FOB). Upon receipt of the request, crew management
shall immediately move that turn to the bottom of that board.
2.
An employee assigned to this pool may at anytime before reaching _____
times out, request that his turn be marked pending foot of board (NFB). Upon
such election, the turn will remain in rotation until reaching ______ times out,
at which time the NFB will change to a FOB designation and the turn moved to the
foot of the board. The employee may, at his option, remove the designation NFB
from his turn at any time before it reaches the predetermined position and the
turn will be called in normal rotation.
3.
An employee may make a request to mark his turn FOB/NFB only once during
a layover at his home terminal.
4.
Pools covered by this Agreement shall be regulated in accordance with
existing Agreements.
5.
Boards under the jurisdiction of this General Committee that
currently have an FOB/NFB agreement in force my choose to retain the original
agreement in place of the provisions for FOB/NFB contained in this Agreement
provided that the pool freight concept of removing turns as described in
Paragraph 6 is contained in the preexisting FOB/NFB.
6.
An employee who is absent from his assignment for less than seven days
will have his turn removed from the pool during that absence without creating a
vacancy. The turn will be restored to the foot of the board upon the
employee’s return unless other agreement provisions apply. Vacancies of seven
days or longer shall be filled by standing bid or other pre-existing agreement.
7.
With the positive effects that the FOB/NFB provisions will have with
regard to more flexibility and time off at the home terminal while at the same
time not causing a detriment to individuals desiring a higher earning
opportunity, it is envisioned that the traditional attendance issues such as
chronic weekend absenteeism and part-time employment will be resolved. While the
full-time employment obligation of the 2002 TYE Attendance Guidelines will
stand, the lay-off tracking and accounting process will not be applied to
permanently assigned employees in this pool. In the event that trains protected
by this pool are delayed account of the FOB/NFB and/or lay-off privileges, the
parties representing those attesting to this agreement will immediately meet to
review all pertinent work records and develop an action plan that corrects the
problem.
8. Employees working under this Agreement who are covered by a protective agreement will not have their guarantee offset when utilizing FOB/NFB.
Signed this______ day
of
, ____, and effective on ________________
FOR THE BROTHERHOOD OF
FOR THE BURLINGTON NORTHERN
LOCOMOTIVE ENGINEERS:
AND SANTA FE RAILWAY COMPANY:
_____________________________________ ___________________________________
| K. J. McGinn | |
| General Chairman Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers |
Asst. Vice President Labor Relations Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company |
DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT
(Abridged Version)
MEMORANDUM
OF AGREEMENT
Between
The
Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company
And
Brotherhood
of Locomotive Engineers
As part of the Safety Summit process, this Agreement is designed to enhance employees’ work/rest schedules as well as provide the manpower necessary to meet our customers’ expectations.
2.
An employee assigned to this pool may at anytime before reaching _____
times out, request that his turn be marked pending foot of board (NFB). Upon
such election, the turn will remain in rotation until reaching ______ times out,
at which time the NFB will change to a FOB designation and the turn moved to the
foot of the board. The employee may, at his option, remove the designation NFB
from his turn at any time before it reaches the predetermined position and the
turn will be called in normal rotation.
3.
An employee may make a request to mark his turn FOB/NFB only once during
a layover at his home terminal.
4.
Pools covered by this Agreement shall be regulated in accordance with
existing agreements.
5. Fatigue countermeasure programs such as the 7 & 3 overlay may be incorporated with FOB arrangements where applicable.
8. This Agreement is made on a without prejudice basis and either party may cancel the Agreement by serving ten days’ written notice on the other party.
Signed this_______ day
of
, _____, and effective on _________________
FOR THE BROTHERHOOD OF
FOR THE BURLINGTON NORTHERN
LOCOMOTIVE ENGINEERS:
AND SANTA FE RAILWAY COMPANY:
APPROVED:
_____________________________________
_______________________________________
| K. J. McGinn | |
| General Chairman Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers |
Asst. Vice President Labor Relations Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company |
DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT DRAFT
MEMORANDUM
OF AGREEMENT
Between
The
Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company
And
The
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers
1.
Engineers in road service with the home terminal of____________________
have the option of protecting, or not protecting, extra service.
2.
Remaining in the calling order for extra service requires no action on
the employee’s behalf and the employee will remain in the established calling
orders until Crew Support receives notification under the provisions of Section
3 of the Agreement.
2.1. Employees
who elect to protect extra service will continue to receive calls for extra
service in compliance with their schedule agreements.
2.2. Failure to protect calls for extra service will not result in
discipline.
3.
Employees who take the option to not protect extra service will notify
the Crew Support Center electronically on their tie up screen. If notification
takes place between trips, the employee will provide the electronic notification
through the Voice Response Unit (VRU) or their employee information screen.
3.1. Employees
who elect to not protect extra service will forfeit all rights to claims or
penalties for not receiving extra service calls.
4.
This Agreement does not apply to employees assigned to extra boards,
demoted engineers, temporary transfers, reserve boards, yard service or
activities employees must perform to maintain service qualifications.
5.
Either party may cancel this Agreement by serving ten (10) days’
written notice upon the other.
Signed this_______ day
of
, _____, and effective on _________________
FOR THE
BROTHERHOOD
FOR THE BURLINGTON NORTHERN
OF LOCOMOTIVE ENGINEERS:
AND SANTA FE RAILWAY COMPANY:
APPROVED:
__________________________
________________________________
| K. J. McGinn | |
| General Chairman Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers |
Asst. Vice President Labor Relations Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Company |