Bhd. Signalmen v. CSX Transp., Inc.

BROTHERHOOD OF RAILROAD SIGNALMEN, Plaintiff v. CSX TRANSPORTATION, INC., Defendant

Civil No. 5:20-CV-00016

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA HARRISONBURG DIVISION

December 8, 2020

By: Michael F. Urbanski Chief United States District Judge

MEMORANDUM OPINION

This matter is before the court on plaintiff Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen's ("BRS") and defendant CSX Transportation, Inc.'s ("CSX") cross motions for summary judgment. ECF Nos. 9, 20. The labor dispute focuses on CSX's decision to abolish all positions at the Savannah Signal Shop related to refurbishing signal equipment that could not be fixed onsite, and to instead purchase new or refurbished equipment from third parties. BRS argues it is entitled to summary judgment because CSX's decision abrogates the plain terms of the collective bargaining agreements, giving rise to a "major dispute" under the terms of the Railway Labor Act ("RLA"). CSX argues in the first instance that the court does not have jurisdiction to resolve the labor dispute because it constitutes a "minor dispute" under the RLA, subject to mandatory and binding arbitration. In the alternative, CSX argues that even if the court finds it does have jurisdiction, that it did not violate the terms of its agreements with BRS because the express and implied terms permit CSX to purchase refurbished equipment from third parties. The issues have been fully briefed, the court heard argument on July 28, 2020, and the matters are ripe for resolution.

I. FACTUAL SUMMARY

This dispute arises out of an alleged violation of a collective bargaining agreement entered between the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen ("BRS") and CSX Transportation, Inc. ("CSX"). BRS is the designated collective bargaining representative for railroad employees working in the signalman class under Section 1, Sixth of the Railway Labor Act ("RLA"). Complaint, ECF No. 1, at 1; 45 U.S.C. §151, Sixth. CSX is a rail carrier as defined by Section 1, First of the RLA, which comprises various regional carriers and operates throughout the eastern half of the United States. Id.; 45 U.S.C. §151, First. CSX employs BRS signalmen to perform installation, maintenance, and repair of railroad signal systems and highway-rail crossing warning systems on CSX railways as well as to refurbish and reclaim CSX's signal equipment. ECF No. 1, at 2. A series of collective bargaining agreements governed this employment relationship, establishing rates of pay, rules, and working conditions for signalmen employees. Id. The signalmen had maintained separate collective bargaining agreements with each of the formerly independent regional carriers as well as a consolidated collective bargaining agreement with CSX, the parent company. Id.

The parties agree that at issue in this case are the terms of one of these regional collective bargaining contracts, the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad Agreement ("SCL Agreement"), which governs the pay, rules, and working conditions for Signalmen working in the Savannah Signal Shop. Id at 3; Resp. to Pl. Mot. for Sum. J. and Cross Mot. for Sum. J., ECF No. 21, at 2. The relevant sections are reproduced below:

SCOPE

Section 1—former Seaboard Coast Line Railroad. Clinchfield. and Richmond Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad

(a) This Agreement governs the rales of pay, hours of service and working conditions of all employees engaged in the construction, installation, reclaiming, renewal, repair, inspecting, testing and maintenance, either in the shop or in the field, of all interlocking systems and devices; signals and signaling systems; wayside devices and equipment for train stop and train control systems; car retarders and car retarder systems; highway grade crossing warning devices and systems; defect detector systems including hot box, acoustic, wheel impact, skewed wheel, broken flange, broken wheel, dragging equipment, slide, high and wide load, and flood; electrical, hydraulic, air, and spring switch mechanisms when protected by signals or indicators; electrically lighted switch lamps; train order signals; blower, gas, electric or other types of automatic snow removing systems installed on power-operated switches; power or signal lighting; batteries and associated charging and switching equipment; solar panels, sub-station, current generating and compressed air plants, their pipe lines and connections; all relays, printed circuit board and modules of electronic devices, used in systems covered by this agreement; bonding of track; painting; carpenter, concrete and form work in connection with the systems and devices covered by this agreement (except that required in building, towers and signal bridges); together with all appurtenances pertaining to the above-named systems and devices, as well as any other work recognized as signal work.

(b) No employee of other than those classified herein will be required or permitted to perform any of the work covered by the scope of this agreement.

(c) All kind of welding and cutting on or in connection with the installation or maintenance of signal equipment or apparatus will be the work of the employees covered by this agreement.

(d) When signal circuits are superimposed or handled on systems not covered by this agreement, the employees covered by this agreement shall install and maintain the signal circuits leading to and from common terminals where signal circuits are superimposed on other circuits...

The parties also agree that the signalmen at issue in this case are governed by the Implementing Agreement signed by all the formerly independent railroads when they merged into CSX on April 14, 1987, which was subsequently incorporated into the SCL agreement.Id. The terms of the Implementing Agreement have been amended over time by the parties through memoranda of understanding, addendums, among other things, to reflect changes in shifts, seniority, and staffing issues. Id. ECF No. 10, at 14. The relevant sections are reproduced below:

all Signal Shop work currently being performed for the C&O at Barboursville, West Virginia; for the B&O at Cumberland, Maryland; and for the C&O Pere Marquette District (PM) at Saginaw, Michigan; as well as similar work presently being performed for the former Western Maryland Railway Company (B&O-WM) at Hagerstown, Maryland; and for B&OCT at Chicago, Illinois, and to coordinate such work with previously coordinated SCL/L&N Signal Shop functions presently being performed for SCL, L&N, A&WP and CRR at Savannah, Georgia where such will thereafter be performed on a coordinated CSXT basis under the terms and conditions of the schedule agreement between former SCL and BRS, and...

coordinated with work presently being performed in the coordinated SCL/L&N/A&WP/CRR Signal Shop facility at Savannah, Georgia (which was previously coordinated pursuant to provisions of Memorandum Agreement of March 13, 1986) where all such work will thereafter be performed on a coordinated CSXT basis by Carrier employees represented by BRS under the scope of the Schedule Agreement between former SCL and BRS as amended in Appendix "A", attached hereto. It is further understood that the work referred to herein will not be sent off the Carriers' properties.

(emphasis added).

ECF No. 1, at 3-4. The Savannah Signal Shop performed all refurbishment and reclaiming of signal equipment for the entire CSX system until February 14, 2020, when all positions within the Shop Refurbishment Section were abolished. ECF No. 1, at 5. This change was communicated by CSX Labor Relations to Gus Demott, BRS Southeast General Committee Chairman in an email sent February 7, 2020. Id.; see also Demott Decl. Ex. 4, ECF No. 10-1, at 32. The change resulted in the termination of sixteen contractor positions, one clerical position, and one position that was scheduled to be abolished upon the retirement of the employee. Demott Decl. Ex. 6, ECF No. 10-1, at 53. On February 13, 2020 BRS PresidentJerry Boles sent a letter by email and overnight delivery to CSX Labor Relations that if CSX had refurbishing/reclaiming work done by contractors or otherwise sent off CSX property, then BRS will consider that to be an abrogation of the Implementing Agreement. ECF No. 1, at 5; see also Demott Decl. Ex. 7, ECF No. 10-1, at 55. CSX has not responded. ECF No. 10, at 7. At the time the positions were abolished, the Savannah Signal Shop was in possession of CSX equipment ready to be refurbished. Id.

BRS states that because CSX has equipment ready for refurbishment on its properties, including at the Savannah Signal Shop, and because CSX no longer employs signalmen, it must rely on persons other than BRS signalmen to do work off of the Carrier's property, in violation of the agreement. Id. CSX argues that it has historically either (1) repaired signal equipment on site, (2) sent equipment to be refurbished/reclaimed to the Savannah Signal Shop, or (3) purchased replacement equipment, either new or refurbished, by outside companies. ECF No. 21, at 5. It claims that its decision to shut down the Shop Refurbishment Section of the Savannah Signal Shop does not mean it will be employing contractors to refurbish its equipment, but that it would be expanding its existing practice of purchasing third party refurbished equipment as replacements for parts it cannot fix on site. Id. at 5-6. In short, CSX claims it will continue with options (1) and (3) in dealing with equipment in need of repair, but not option (2), which involved the Savannah Signal Shop.

James Purl, Assistant Chief Engineer of Signal Construction at CSX, stated in his declaration that the company began considering whether it would be "more efficient and cost effective to cease refurbishing signal equipment at the Savannah Signal Shop that could not be repaired in the field" and to instead "purchase replacement equipment." Purl Decl., ECFNo. 21-2, at 3. Michael Skipper, Senior Director of Labor Operations at CSX, stated in his declaration that he...