RAILROAD WORK RULES DISPUTE

WEDNESDAY, JULY 24, 1963

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

COMMITTEE ON INTERSTATE AND FOREIGN COMMERCE,

Washington, D.C.

The committee met at 10 a.m., pursuant to call, in room 1334, Longworth Building, Hon. Oren Harris (chairman of the committee) presiding.

The CHAIRMAN. The committee will be in order.

The committee this morning is initiating hearings on House Joint Resolution 565, which is the resolution proposed by the President in his message to the Congress to provide for the settlement of the labor dispute between certain carriers by railroad and certain of their employees.

(The document referred to follows:)

[H.J. Res. 565, 88th Cong., 1st sess.]

JOINT RESOLUTION To provide for the settlement of the labor dispute between certain carriers by railroad and certain of their employees

Whereas the labor dispute between the carriers represented by the Eastern, Western, and Southeastern Carriers' Conference Committees and certain of their employees represented by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen, Order of Railway Conductors and Brakemen, Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen, and the Switchmen's Union of North America, labor organizations, threatens essential transportation services of the Nation; and

Whereas it is essential to the national interest, including the national health and defense, that transportation services of these carriers be maintained; and Whereas all the procedures for resolving such dispute provided for in the Railway Labor Act have been exhausted and have not resulted in settlement of the dispute; and

Whereas the Congress finds that emergency measures are essential to secure the continuity of transportation services by such carriers; and

Whereas it is desirable to achieve the above objectives in a manner which preserves and prefers solutions reached through collective bargaining, and preserves the carriers' right to initiate work rules changes under procedures to which they are accustomed and assures reasonable conditions of employee security: Therefore be it

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That changes in work rules involving the manning of train or engine crews and the protection of the interests of employees affected thereby, which changes come within the area of those proposed by a carrier in the notices of November 2, 1959, or by a labor organization in the notices of September 7, 1960, shall become effective upon application to and approval or modification by the Interstate Commerce Commission in accordance with the procedures and provisions of section 5 of the Interstate Commerce Act, such rules to be operative only as interim rules and until the current controversy regarding such rules is resolved by the parties through continued collective bargaining; and no provision in this joint resolution shall be construed as limiting the right and responsibility of the carriers and organizations to reach agreement regarding such rules.

SEC. 2. An application filed under section 1 shall be given priority over all other matters pending before the Commission, and shall be acted upon within one hundred and twenty days after it is filed or as soon thereafter as is praeticable. The Commission may consider as evidence before it the evidence introduced before the Presidential Railroad Commission, created by Executive Order 10891, of November 1, 1960, and before Emergency Board 154, created by Executive Order 11101, of April 3, 1963, and shall not be required to receive evidence cumulative thereto. The Commission may establish a Special Advisory Panel to assist in the discharge of the functions conferred upon it by this joint resolution.

SEC. 3. In acting upon an application filed pursuant to section 1, the Commission shall give due consideration to the effect of the proposed rule upon adequate and safe transportation service to the public and upon the interests of the carrier and the employees affected, giving due consideration to the recommendations of the Presidential Railroad Commission and Emergency Board 154, and to the narrowing of the areas of disagreement which has been accomplished in bargaining and mediation following the Emergency Board report. As a condition of its approval of any interim rule involving, directly or indirectly, the reduction of existing manning requirements or practices, the Commission shall require a fair and equitable arrangement to protect the interests of the railroad employees affected as provided in section 5(2)(f) of the Interstate Commerce Act, and with due consideration to the recommendations of the Presidential Railroad Commission and Emergency Board 154 relating to the retention of job rights by senior employees, relocation expenses and earnings protection to less senior employees transferred to other jobs by the employing carrier, preferential hiring rights, displacement allowances, supplemental severance allowances, and retraining allowances. To the extent that provision for such payments and retraining may be available to an employee under the Manpower Development and Training Act of 1962 or other Federal statutes, the carrier will be relieved of this obligation.

SEC. 4. The Commission shall act upon any application filed with it under section 1 of this joint resolution, by way of approval, modified approval, or disapproval; and upon such approval or modified approval an interim rule consistent therewith shall be put into effect and shall remain operative until the parties reach agreement regarding the matter involved or, if no agreement is reached. for two years following the date the interim rule goes into effect.

SEC. 5. No change in rules coming within the scope of the notices referred to in section 1 of this joint resolution may be made except by agreement or by the procedures prescribed herein, and any strike or lockout to accomplish, prevent, or interfere with such change shall be subject to the procedures of section 5(8) of the Interstate Commerce Act.

SEC. 6. The parties shall proceed immediately to bargain collectively, with the assistance of the National Mediation Board, concerning any unresolved issues regarding any proposals which were included in the notices of November 2, 1959, or September 7, 1960, but which do not involve the manning of train or engine crews and the protection of the interests of employees affected thereby. If agreement has not been reached with sixty days following the effective date of this joint resolution, any party may submit its proposal to the Interstate Commerce Commission for disposition by such special procedures, not confined to those set out specifically in this joint resolution, as the Commission, after consultation with the parties, deems appropriate. Due consideration shall be given in any such procedure to the recommendations of the Presidential Railroad Commission and Emergency Board 154 and to the narrowing of the areas of disagreement which has been accomplished in bargaining and mediation. The provisions of section 5 of this joint resolution shall be applicable to matters covered by such proposals.

SEC. 7. The provisions of the Act of March 23, 1932, entitled "An Act to amend the Judicial Code and to define and limit the jurisdiction of courts sitting in equity, and for other purposes," shall not be applicable to an action under sections 5 or 6. In any such action, service of the complaint and summons shall be made on the parties to the controversy by delivery thereof to an officer or to any other agent of said parties authorized by appointment or by law to receive service of process. The delivery of the summons and complaint may be made by certified mail. The orders, writs, and process of a district court issued in any such action shall run, be served, and be returnable anywhere in the United States.

SEC. 8. This joint resolution shall expire two years from the date it becomes effective: Provided, That the jurisdiction of a District Court of the United States under sections 5 and 6 shall continue for so long as any interim rule under section 4 continues to be operative. Prior to such expiration, the President shall report on its operation to the Congress and make such further recommendations, if any, as he deems appropriate, including his recommendation as to whether this joint resolution should be extended. In addition, the Interstate Commerce Commission may, from time to time, submit interim reports to the President on its actions pursuant to this resolution.

The CHAIRMAN. It would be unnecessary for me to make any comment regarding this problem because the situation has been so thoroughly discussed and publicized over the last several weeks and months, and indeed years, that the problem is a familiar one to all of us.

Not too long ago I received a letter from a constituent who said that this constituent had a real problem. He said that he had gone to every place that he could think of in his appeal and failed, so "I am appealing to Congress to give me some relief." Apparently that is the situation we are in now with this important problem. We have been given a week to consider a problem of such tremendous importance. There was a time when problems of this nature would arise that did not present the complications that are presented today and it was more logical that in the past they could have been handled rather expeditiously.

But today the problems get more and more complicated, as is understandable, because of our society and our economy being so much different than it was 50 years ago. I must say in all candor that we cannot conclude this problem and act on it as we should and give it the consideration that it deserves by Tuesday of next week, or Monday.

As a matter of fact. We have only 5 days left. I have therefore requested the representatives of the railroad industry to defer for a period of 30 days the institution of the proposed work rules which, as we all know, would invoke a strike on a national basis. I am sure I speak for every member of the committee when I say that in our judgment this would not be unreasonable.

I have asked that they advise this committee in 24 hours their decision in view of the imperative need for this matter to be settled to a point that it could be given the attention it should have. I am hopeful that we will have, and I believe we will have, a favorable response. Mr. LOOMIS. Mr. Chairman, may I have permission to make a statement?

The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Dan Loomis, president of the 'American Association of Railroads and representing the railroad industry.

STATEMENT OF DANIEL P. LOOMIS, PRESIDENT, ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN RAILROADS

Mr. LOOMIS. First I may say that I do not have any authority at the moment to agree or disagree with the request. I would, however, point out certain facts. I am deeply concerned with the request for such a long postponement. On the surface it would appear to be a simple one, but the facts that the railroads for many years have attempted to negotiate a solution to various phases of the work rules problems with the organizations engaged in train and engine service. We have had very little success in that connection.

Meanwhile costs have increased, competition has increased, and these unnecessary payments for work not needed and not performed which were only a burden in more prosperous times are becoming intolerable under present conditions. I think you are familiar with the recent history in this area. Our notices were served on November 2, 1959, seeking to negotiate relief. Finally when all the bargaining procedures had been exhausted and the subject had been explored intensively for 13 months by the Presidential Railroad Commission, when mediation had brought no progress, and when arbitration contemplated under the Railway Labor Act had been rejected by the unions. The railroads served notice, as they were legally entitled to do, that the rules changes would go into effect on August 16, 1962, almost a year ago. Injunctive proceedings forced a postponement at that time while the case was argued in the U.S. district court, the court of appeals, and finally settled in the Supreme Court. Again the railroads served notice that rules changes would go into effect on April 8, 1963, only to have the date postponed by the appointment of an emergency board under the Railway Labor Act.

When this board's report was rendered, accepted by the railroads and rejected by the unions, the railroads again set a date for the rules changes, only to have it postponed again at the request of the administration. In all there have been six postponements, growing out of legal moves or voluntary agreement at the request of the administration. I think indeed it was in recognition of the railroad's cooperation in this field that led the President himself to say in his July 10 statement that the administration would not ask for a further post ponement. The record is crystal clear that the railroads have been completely cooperative and deeply aware of the public interest throughout all of the developments in this trying case.

But how much longer can we continue this and survive? In addition to the fact that the rules are not settled and no savings are being made, it is a fact that so long as there is uncertainty and the strike date continues to be postponed there is a continuing diversion of traffic by shippers to other forms of transportation. That has to be very carefully considered by the railroads, because the mere threat of a work stoppage drives business away and bitter experience shows that a substantial portion of this never returns to the railroads. So that a continuing postponement is equivalent to draining off more of the livelihood of an anemic industry.

This dispute can certainly be no surprise to Members of the Congress or to the American public. The newspapers have provided full coverage of the matter for the last 4 years and for weeks it has been apparent that collective bargaining had collapsed, that the Railway Labor Act procedures had been exhausted, that administrative efforts of the Secretary of Labor and the President have been unsuccessful in budging the unions, and that the ultimate answer to the problem would have to be in Congress. We shall, of course, give any consideration and very serious consideration to a request by the Congress, but I think the Congress should fully understand the position in which we find ourselves, that we have already been delayed and that this has continued for some 4 years.

I would also remind the Congress that the Adamson Act when the shoe was on the other foot was passed in 4 days between the 29th of