Southern Ry. Co. v. American Train Dispatchers Ass'n

• Decision Date: 01 November 1991
• Docket Number: Nos. 90-2013,90-2018,s. 90-2013
• Citation: 948 F.2d 887
• Parties: 138 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2784, 120 Lab.Cas. P 10,990 SOUTHERN RAILWAY COMPANY, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. AMERICAN TRAIN DISPATCHERS ASSOCIATION, Defendant-Appellant, Railway Labor Executives Association, Amicus Curiae. (Two Cases).
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fourth Circuit

Page 887

948 F.2d 887

138 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2784, 120 Lab.Cas. P 10,990

SOUTHERN RAILWAY COMPANY, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. AMERICAN TRAIN DISPATCHERS ASSOCIATION, Defendant-Appellant Railway Labor Executives Association, Amicus Curiae. (Two Cases).

Nos. 90-2013, 90-2018.

United States Court of Appeals Fourth Circuit.

Argued Oct. 30, 1990.

Decided Nov. 1, 1991.

Gordon Pier MacDougall, Washington, D.C., argued (Jefferson V. Smith, Jr., Carter, Smith, Merriam, Rogers & Traxler, Greenville, S.C., on brief), for defendant-appellant.

Richard Edelman, Highsaw, Mahoney & Clarke, P.C., Washington, D.C., argued (John O'B. Clark, Jr., on brief), for amicus curiae.

Jeffrey Stephen Berlin, Richardson, Berlin & Morvillo, Washington, D.C., argued (Gregory W. Stevens, Frank H. Gibbes, III, Rainey, Britton, Gibbes & Clarkson, P.A., Greenville, S.C., William P. Stallsmith, Jr., Norfolk, Va., on brief), for plaintiff-appellee.

Before RUSSELL and MURNAGHAN, Circuit Judges, and YOUNG, Senior District Judge for the District of Maryland, sitting by designation.

OPINION

DONALD RUSSELL, Circuit Judge:

This suit was filed by appellee Southern Railway Company ("Southern") to enjoin the American Train Dispatchers' Association ("Union") from pursuing resolution of a dispute before the National Railroad Adjustment Board ("Adjustment Board"). Southern asserted that, under the Railway Labor Act ("RLA") the matter submitted to the Adjustment Board had been committed to the exclusive jurisdiction of another board, the National Mediation Board ("Mediation Board"). The district court held in favor of Southern, concluding that the Adjustment Board was without statutory authority to decide the dispute submitted to it by the Union. The court issued a permanent injunction requiring the Union to withdraw the matter from the Adjustment Board. We affirm.

I.

This case arises at a time in the railroad industry when railroad labor unions are seeing, on a nation-wide basis, continually decreasing memberships. One of these unions, the American Train Dispatchers' Association, has decided to assert a claim that certain management positions at the Atlanta, Georgia, station of Southern Railway have been wrongly classified. ¹ These positions, designated "Superintendents, Transportation-Locomotive" ("STL"), had been classified as management positions for nearly a quarter of a century by the time the Union brought its reclassification request. As managers, the STLs are not represented by any labor organization, and their work is not subject to a collective bargaining agreement. The Union, however, now seeks to have the classification of these positions changed to dispatcher. The result would be that the current STLs, to continue performing the same work, would be required to become dispatchers. The eligibility of these employees to continue working in the STL positions would be determined according to their seniority as established under a collective bargaining agreement known as the "Schedule Agreement." ²

In attempting to have the positions reclassified, the Union has exercised rights and procedures set forth in another collective bargaining agreement, entitled the "National Agreement of May 27, 1937, as revised May 30, 1979." The agreement, to which both the Union and Southern are parties, ³ is generally known as the "37/79 Agreement." Certain provisions of the 37/79 Agreement provide a framework whereby railroad employees can seek resolution of matters relating to their working conditions. Specifically, paragraph four of the Agreement provides that "[a]ny Train Dispatcher shall have the right to bring to the attention of the management, directly or through his designated and authorized representative, any conditions or practices ... involving working conditions of train dispatchers." Under the Agreement, the dispatchers are to make their initial complaints directly to their employers. If a dispatcher is unsatisfied with the result of this direct complaint, the Agreement provides a procedure under which the dispatcher can appeal the complaint to a joint labor-management committee ("the Joint Committee"). The Joint Committee consists of three train dispatcher representatives and three railroad representatives, each with equal voting power.

Consistent with the procedures set forth in the 37/79 Agreement, the Union first submitted its request for reclassification directly to Southern. In its complaint, the Union quoted paragraph three of the Agreement, which provides: "Positions, the duties of which fall within the scope of the Train Dispatcher Group, as the duties of that group are described by the Interstate Commerce Commission in its Order ... shall be properly classified." The Union's complaint stated, "Pursuant to the provisions of such paragraph (3), this is to request that the following positions be properly classified: 'Superintendent, Transportation-Locomotive, Atlanta Control Center.' " ⁴ Southern reviewed the complaint, but refused to reclassify the STL positions.

The Union then proceeded to the next step outlined in the 37/79 Agreement, submission of an appeal of Southern's decision to the Joint Committee. Southern objected to submission of the appeal to the Committee on grounds that the Committee lacked jurisdiction to decide the appeal. Under the 37/79 Agreement, the Committee has jurisdiction only to decide disputes brought by or on behalf of dispatchers. Southern argued that the dispute raised by the Union, however, was on behalf of the STLs, who are not dispatchers. Southern sent a letter to the Chairman of the Joint Committee, stating that "Southern has never agreed, in the National Agreement or elsewhere, to empower the Joint Committee to resolve any questions pertaining to Southern's employment of STLs." ⁵

Rather than await a determination by the Joint Committee on Southern's jurisdictional challenge, the Union withdrew its complaint, "without prejudice," and submitted the question of the Joint Committee's jurisdiction to the National Railroad Adjustment Board. The action with the Adjustment Board was initiated by the Union's filing of a "notice of intent to file an ex parte submission," pursuant to Section 3, First, of the Railway Labor Act, 45 U.S.C. § 153, First. Southern then filed this civil action in district court, seeking to enjoin the Union from going forward in the Adjustment Board proceeding on the grounds that the Adjustment Board was without statutory authorization to decide the matter.

Unlike other labor statutes, such as the National Labor Relations Act, the Railway Labor Act divides authority for resolving disputes between two different national Boards. ⁶ Those disputes classified as "representation disputes" are to be decided by the National Mediation Board, 45 U.S.C. § 152, Ninth, while those disputes classified as "minor disputes" are to be decided by the National Railroad Adjustment Board. See 45 U.S.C. § 153, First, (i). By specifically assigning certain types of disputes to different Boards, the Act grants authority which is separate and exclusive. Neither Board is granted authority in the Act to decide disputes that have been committed to the jurisdiction of the other Board. Southern asserted before the district court that the matter submitted by the Union to the Adjustment Board is a representation dispute, the type of dispute which only the National Mediation Board has authority to decide. Thus, Southern argued, the Adjustment Board is without jurisdiction to hear the matter.

In characterizing the matter as a representation dispute, Southern asserted in its complaint that, to have standing to bring an action affecting the STLs, the Union must be found to be a representative of the STLs. Deciding this question, whether the Union is the representative of the STLs, would obviously involve the Adjustment Board in a representation dispute. The Union's response to this argument was that it was bringing the action on behalf of existing dispatchers. Thus, the Union argued, deciding whether the Joint Committee has jurisdiction merely required that provisions of the 37/79 Agreement be interpreted and enforced, making the dispute a "minor dispute," one properly before the Adjustment Board.

The parties filed cross-motions for summary judgment. After hearing oral argument on the motions, the district court found that the matter which the Union had submitted to the Adjustment Board was a representation dispute. The court so concluded for two reasons. First, and most obvious, if the Union is successful in having the thirteen STL positions reclassified as dispatcher positions, the Union will have added those thirteen positions to the reach of its representation. Based on evidence offered by Southern, the district court concluded that the newly reclassified STL positions would be filled by Southern, meaning that Southern would be free to allow the current STLs to remain in their original positions. These thirteen incumbents would become, upon reclassification, train dispatchers, subject to the requirement of paying Union dues and subject to the procedure for bidding for jobs under the seniority provisions of the Schedule Agreement.

Second, the 37/79 Agreement allows the Committee to decide only those complaints involving the "working conditions of train dispatchers." Thus, to resolve the question of the Joint Committee's jurisdiction, the Adjustment Board would be required to decide whether the complaint regarding the STLs stated a claim regarding the "working conditions of dispatchers." In deciding this question, the Adjustment Board would be determining whether the STLs are dispatchers and so within the scope of the Union's representation. Therefore, the court held, the dispute was outside the jurisdiction of the Adjustment Board because the dispute was a representation dispute, one that the Railway Labor Act required to be resolved by the National Mediation Board. The court permanently enjoined the Union from...