ARTICLE VI ‑ SWITCHING LIMITS

Existing agreements are amended to read as follows:

The employees involved, and the carriers represented by the National Carriers' Conference Committee, being desirous of cooperating in order to meet conditions on the various properties to the end that efficient and adequate switching service may be provided and industrial development facilitated, adopt the following:

Section 1.  Except as provided in Section 2 hereof, where an individual carrier not now having the right to change existing switching limits where yard crews are employed, considers it advisable to change the same, it shall give notice in writing to the General Chairman or General Chairmen of such intention, whereupon the carrier and the General Chairman or General Chairman shall, within 30 days, endeavor to negotiate an understanding.

In the event the carrier and the General Chairman or General Chairmen cannot agree on the matter, the dispute shall be submitted to arbitration as provided for in the Railway Labor Act, as amended, within 60 days following date of last conference. The decision of the Arbitration Board will be made within 30 days thereafter. The award of the Board shall be final and binding an the parties and shall become effective thereafter upon seven days notice by the carrier.

Section 2. Where, after the effective dates of the 1951 and 1952 Agreements, an industry locates outside of switching limits at points where yard crews are employed, the carrier may provide switching service to such industries with yardman without additional compensation or penalties therefor to yard or road men, provided the switches governing movements from the main track to the track or tracks serving such industries are located at a point not to exceed four miles from the switching limits in effect as of the date of this Agreement. Other industries located between such switching limits and such new industries may also be served by yardman without additional compensation or penalties therefor to road or yardmen. Where rules require that yard limits and switching limits be the same, the yard limit board may be moved for operating purposes but switching limits shall remain unchanged unless and until changed in accordance with rules governing changes in switching limits.

The yard conductor (foreman) or yard conductors (foreman) involved shall keep account of and report to the carrier daily on form provided the actual time consumed by the yard crew or crews Outside of the switching limits in serving the industry in accordance with this Section 2 and a statement of such time shall be furnished the General Chairman or General Chairmen representing yard and road crews by the carrier each month. Unless some other plan for equalization of time is agreed to by the General Chairman or General Chairman representing yard and road crews, the carrier shall periodically advertise to road service employees the opportunity to work in yard service. under yard rules and conditions, on assignments as may be mutually agreed upon by the local representatives of the employees involved, for a period of time sufficient to offset the time so consumed by yard crews outside the switching limits. In the event such local representatives fail to agree, the carrier will designate such assignments but shall not be subject to penalty claims because of doing so. Such equalization of time shall be apportioned among employees holding seniority as road conductors or road brakemen in the same ratio as the accumulated hours of yard conductors (foreman) and yard brakeman (helpers).

In the event no road employee elects to bid on the accumulated equalizing hours within the bulletined period such accumulation of equalizing hours will be considered forfeited and a new accumulating period shall commence.

Section 3. This Agreement shall in no way affect the changing of yard or switching limits at points where no yard crews are employed.

Section 4. The foregoing is not intended to amend or change existing agreements involving predominantly full‑time switching service performed solely by road crows at industrial parks located within the 4‑mile limit referred to in Section 2 hereof that have been negotiated on individual properties since the National Agreements of 1951 and 1952.

This rule shall become effective 15 days after the date of this Agreement except an such carriers as may elect to preserve existing rules or practices and so notify the authorized employee representatives on or before such effective date