QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
AGREEMENT BETWEEN M&NA RAILROAD AND
BLE
Q1. Under Article 2, Section 4, what is meant by the term “highest rate of pay for which they are qualified”?
A1. Employee will receive the compensation at the highest level of service for which he/she qualifies. Should an employee fail to maintain his/her qualification, they will be paid at the level for which they are thereafter qualified. Employees must protect jobs of their highest qualification in order to retain the higher pay classification. Employees will be selected in reverse order of seniority to fill vacancies of higher service class when such higher-class jobs become vacant.
Q2. How will the M&NA determine what pay rate employees will receive?
A2. Every Transportation Specialist is required to promote to achieve the highest class of service. Employees pursuant to Article 2 section 3 shall be given 3 opportunities for promotion. If an employee fails to qualify or pursue these opportunities, s/he will be discharged. Employees must complete a certifying trip annually to retain their qualification.
Q3. What is meant by the language in Article 1, Section 1 permitting employees other than Transportation Specialists from performing work on a “non-regular” basis or on the same basis as in the past?
A3. First, the clause is intended to preserve the M&NA’s existing practice of using employees other than Transportation Specialists to move locomotives or trains. For example, qualified shop personnel may move locomotives to or from shop, between Carthage and Joplin (sometimes with cars attached), and may road test power on the main tracks. Maintenance of Way personnel may operate work trains. These practices will continue going forward on the same basis as they have in the past. Second, the clause is intended to permit the M&NA to use management employees to operate trains in situations to meet business needs, provided it is not a regular occurrence (i.e. a manager makes a certain every Saturday, displacing a crew). Such needs may include responding quickly to customer requests made on short notice, handling trains when a crew dies and no other crews are available, assisting crews with switching operations, operating passenger specials or other non-revenue trains, deadheading, or repositioning power between terminals.
M&NA RAILROAD AND
BLE
Q4. How will holiday pay under Article 8, Section 2 be applied?
Q.4(a):If an employee is credited with 40 hours worked in the first four days of the week, and then on the fifth day of the week he works 10 hours on a holiday?
A 4(a): The employee would be due 40 hours at the straight time rate, plus 10 hours at time and half, plus 5 hours at straight time rate for working on the holiday.
Q.4(b):If an employee is credited with 30 hours worked in the first four days of the week, and then on the 5th day of the week he works 10 hours on a holiday?
A.4(b): The employee would be due 30 hours at the straight time rate, plus 10 hours at time and one-half for the time worked on the holiday; or the equivalent of 45 hours at the straight time rate.
Q.4(c) If an employee is credited with 20 hours worked in the first four days of the week, and then on the fifth day of the week he works 10 hours on a holiday?
A.4(c): Since the employee’s pay for this time would not exceed forty-hour weekly guarantee, the employee would receive his forty-hour weekly guarantee plus 5 hours at straight time rate for working the holiday.