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Federal
Railroad Administration Operating
Practices Technical Bulletin (OP-98-01) Operating
Practices Agency Interpretation (OPAI-98-01) 49
USC Chapter 211 The
Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) hereby cancels
Technical Bulletin OP-97-31 (formerly OP-96-01) and Operating Practices
Safety Advisory SA-96-01. This
document clarifies FRA’s application of the Federal hours of service
laws concerning issues previously addressed in the cancelled
publications. This
document is divided into the following four parts and pertains only
to train service employees.
Part
A
Call and Release
Call and
Release is
known by other names, such as "Busted Call" and “Set
Back." In all cases, both the call and the release occur prior to
the Report-for-Duty Time. A
release, busted call, or set back occurring on or after the Report-for-Duty
Time is an EARLY Release from
duty. FRA Policy: FRA
will generally view a brief call from the railroad to the employee that
establishes a Report-for-Duty
Time as incidental, i.e., not a material disruption of the
employee's off-duty period. In
addition, FRA will generally view as incidental a brief call to CHANGE
the original Report-for-Duty
Time, or to RELEASE the
employee from the original Report-for-Duty
Call, provided the employee RECEIVES
the call PRIOR to DEPARTURE from his or her place of rest. When
the railroad changes or releases the employee from his or her original Report-for-Duty Time after the employee has arrived at the duty
location, but prior to the Report-for-Duty
Time, FRA will view the travel time to the duty point as LIMBO
TIME (neither on- nor off-duty time).
If all or part of the limbo time occurs during the
employee's statutory off-duty period, FRA will view the limbo time
as a material disruption of the employee's opportunity to secure
meaningful rest. Railroad
Options: Generally, the railroad may utilize one of the
following options when notifying a train service employee of a release
from a Report-for-Duty Call after his or her arrival at the duty point
but before the Report-for-Duty Time: Option 1: The employee may be released to begin a new 8- or 10-hour statutory off-duty period. NOTE: The
off-duty period will begin when the employee completes the required duty
record and establishes a Final Release time with the railroad.
Although the original call no longer exists, the railroad is required to maintain
a record of the employee's activity under the COMMINGLED SERVICE provisions of the Federal hours of service laws.
See 49 U.S.C. §21103(b)(3).
As a result of considering travel time as limbo time, the administrative
duties involved in establishing a new release time may commingle with the previous covered
service to produce excess
service. In these
cases, the "quick tie-up” process described in Operating
Practices Safety Advisory OPSA-96-03 and Technical Bulletin OP-97-34
should be used to avoid excess service. Option 2:
The employee may be allowed to begin duty at the original
Report-for-Duty Time and immediately be given a qualifying
interim release. NOTE: The
release period is subject to the provisions of the Federal hours of
service laws, and FRA's interpretation set forth in Operating Practices
Safety Advisory OPSA 96-06 and Technical Bulletin OP-97-37.
Also, the release will not begin until the employee has
established a new Release Time with
the railroad. Option 3: The railroad may maintain the original Report-for-Duty Time and utilize the employee in service
for which he or she is qualified. A release, busted call, or set back occurring at
or after the Report-for-Duty Time is an EARLY
Release that is subject to the reporting requirements for covered
service and future Total Time On-Duty considerations imposed by the
Federal hours of service laws. In
this scenario, the following will apply. 1
. A new Report-for-Duty
Time issued to take effect within four hours of the release will
continue the employee in CONTINUOUS
On-Duty Status calculated
from the ORIGINAL Report-for-Duty
Time. 2. A new Report-for-Duty
Time issued to take effect on or after 4 hours but not more than 7
hours and 59 minutes from the release will constitute a valid Interim Release and continue the employee in AGGREGATE
On-Duty Status calculated from the ORIGINAL
Report for Duty Time. 3. A release of eight
hours or more qualifies as a Statutory
Off-Duty Period that resets the employee's subsequent on-duty
availability to the maximum 12 hours. APPENDIX TO
PART A The following scenarios are provided as examples of
how FRA will apply the Federal hours of service laws with respect to Call
and Release (C&R) issues covered in Operating Practices Agency
Interpretations OPAI-98-01, Part A. While FRA cannot foresee all
possible scenarios, the examples presented are intended to aid the
understanding of the reader. Any
changes in the specifics of a scenario MAY or MAY NOT
change FRA's application of the laws as applied to the original
example. Where doubt as to
FRA's application to an actual issue is present, the reader is
encouraged to contact FRA for further analysis and policy guidance. ___________________________________________________________________ Call and
Release Examples for Train Service Employees C&R #1: At
10 p.m., Engineer A and Conductor B are called and given a
Report-for-Duty time of
12:01 a.m. for train XYZ. At
the Report-for-Duty Time, Engineer
A would have 17 hours and 36 minutes of time off duty, while Conductor B
would have completed her Statutory
Off-Duty Period at 11:30 p.m. Shortly after the Report-for-Duty Call
was issued, the railroad became aware of operating problems that would
delay departure of Train XYZ by several hours, whereupon, the railroad
decided to terminate the 12:01 a.m. Report-for-Duty Time. Crew
Management contacted Engineer A at 10:25 p.m. and Conductor B at 10:28
p.m., prior to departure from their respective residences (places of
rest) and informed each person that the Report-for-Duty Time had been
cancelled. FRA Application: FRA will view the Report-for-Duty Call as incidental.
The Release Call is also viewed as incidental and an effective
release that does not break the continuity, of each employee's
off-duty period. Each employee may be re-called at a later time without
acquiring an additional Statutory Off-Duty Period. C&R #2:
Same scenario as C&R #1 except the railroad attempted, but
was unable to contact Engineer A at 11:20 p.m. and Conductor B at 11:22
p.m. to give them an effective release. Due to driving distances, Engineer A departed
his place of rest at 10:55 p.m. and Conductor B departed her place of
rest at 11:05 p.m.. Engineer
A arrived at the on-duty location at 11:40 p.m. Conductor B arrived at
the on-duty location at 11:45 p.m.. On arrival at the on-duty location
each employee was informed that the Report-for-Duty Time of 12:01 a.m.
had been cancelled. Since
the notification of the cancelled Report-for-Duty Time was delivered
after the employees arrived at the on-duty site but BEFORE
the original Report-for-Duty Time, FRA will apply the
Federal hours of service laws in
the following manner. FRA Application
relative to Engineer A: While FRA considers Engineer A's travel time
of' 45 minutes as LIMBO, it did not erode the Statutory Off-Duty Period
that had been acquired earlier. Therefore, the railroad may employ any one
of the THREE options
listed in this advisory. FRA Application relative to Conductor B: Since
part of Conductor B's travel (11:05 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.) occurred during
her Statutory Off-Duty Period, FRA considers the total travel time as
both LIMBO and an EROSION of her Statutory Off-Duty, Period below the
minimum required by the Federal hours of service laws.
Therefore, the railroad must
consider Conductor B’s Previous Total Time
On Duty prior to determining which of the three options are
available. In this
application, Conductor B’s Previous Off-Duty Period becomes an Interim
Release of 7 hours and 35 minutes, which will commingle ALL previous
activities with any activity that occurs within a new Statutory Off-Duty
Period beginning when Conductor B establishes a new Final Release Time
with the railroad’s crew management.
INTERRUPTED
OFF-DUTY PERIOD Train Service
Employees The statutory off-duty
period, either
eight or 10 consecutive hours,
is the minimum time required
to start a new duty tour. The statutory off-duty period, either eight or 10
consecutive hours, is determined by the length of the previous duty
tour, i.e., the total amount of covered and commingled service
for the ending duty tour. The
statutory period will always begin at the time the employee is finally
released from duty and will consume the first eight or 10 hours
of the total off-duty period.
Total Off-Duty
Period Train Service
Employees The
total off-duty period is
the amount of off-duty time
between duty tours. The total off-duty period is a period equal to or
greater than the required statutory
off-duty period. This
period will always start at the time of the employee's final
release and terminate when the employee begins covered or commingled
service. Duty Tour Train Service
Employees A
duty tour is the
period(s) of covered and commingled
service occurring between TWO
qualifying statutory off-duty
periods. A duty tour is
the total time consumed in
one or more railroad-required activities, one of which must be covered service, that occurs between two
statutory off-duty periods. All
activity occurring between statutory off-duty periods, regardless of the
time or number of
runs, trains, jobs or shifts worked, is considered ONE
duty tour. A duty
tour may also contain one or more interim
releases. All activity occurring in
a duty tour, covered and commingled, contributes to the calculation
of Total Hours On Duty. FRA Policy: 1. A brief call
to report and a brief call to
release are viewed by FRA as calls "at
the behest of the
railroad” that
require the employee to perform service for the benefit of the railroad.
As such, these calls represent the only
calls initiated by the railroad during the employee's total off-duty period that FRA will generally treat within its
prosecutorial discretion as incidental events.
Therefore, the time spent receiving the calls would not be treated as commingled with previous or future duty
tours. 2. All other calls “at
the behest of the railroad” beyond the scope of these calls
will be considered on a case-by-case basis to determine the impact on
the total off-duty period. 3. Calls initiated by
the railroad or the employee that do not require the employee to perform
duty or service “at the behest of the railroad” will be considered incidental
and not a material disruption. Examples
are notification of a seniority displacement or notification of a
bulletin-awarded position. 4. Calls generated
by the employee to determine board placement, train line up, or pay
issues are considered “at the
behest of the EMPLOYEE” and do not disrupt the off-duty period. 5. Any material
disruption of the opportunity to secure "meaningful rest"
intended by the statute will be viewed by FRA as a disruption of the consecutiveness requirements of the statutory off-duty period.
In establishing the existence of a material disruption, FRA will
consider the purpose, frequency and
duration of calls initiated
by the railroad during an employee's total
off-duty period. EXPLANATION OF
FRA'S APPLICATION The Federal hours of service laws require a minimum statutory
off-duty period of either eight
or 10 consecutive hours off duty for Train Service employees to
provide them an opportunity to secure meaningful rest. Train Service statutory off-duty periods reset
the employee's maximum allowable
time available for duty to 12 hours.
The Federal hours of service laws are silent regarding undisturbed
statutory off-duty periods, but by mandating specific periods of consecutive
hours off duty, FRA interprets the laws as requiring railroads to
give employees meaningful rest opportunities. FRA will utilize its prosecutorial discretion on a
case-by-case basis to determine if the railroad's activity has broken or
interrupted the consecutiveness of
the applicable employee's
minimum statutory requirement. In
most instances, these railroad-initiated activities involve a call to report for duty at or soon after the employee's
statutory off-duty period has expired.
FRA has traditionally treated a brief call to report for duty as incidental and not a material disruption
of the statutory off-duty period. In other instances, calls to determine operational
issues relative to previous duty tours may be initiated by
representatives of the railroad during any part of the employee's off-duty period. FRA
views the calls as "at the
behest of the railroad” and the time spent by the employee in
responding to these calls will commingle
with previous or future covered
service, IF POSSIBLE. The
call cannot commingle for
Train Service and Signal Service employees if a statutory off-duty
period exists prior to and after the call.
In the event that a call can commingle for Train Service, the
amount of time between the call and covered service will determine the
existence of CONTINUOUS or AGGREGATE
duty tours. APPENDIX TO
PART B Interrupted
Off-Duty Period Examples Train Service
Employees IODP #1: After
having been in Off-Duty status for 11 hours and 40 minutes, Engineer A
is called by the railroad’s Road Foreman of Engines. The call began at 9:42 a.m. and terminated at 9:54 a.m.,
during which the engineer was questioned regarding his operation of the
locomotive consist for the previous duty tour. FRA
Application: FRA
will consider this call “at the
behest of the railroad” and an activity that MAY
commingle with future COVERED SERVICE provided the covered service
occurs before 5:54 p.m. Since the call occurred after the engineer's
Statutory Off-Duty Period, it CANNOT
COMMINGLE with the previous duty tour. IODP #2: After
having been in Off-Duty status for six hours and 15 minutes, Conductor B
is called by the railroad's Road Trainmaster.
The call began at 7:14 a.m. and terminated at 7:31 a.m. during
which the Trainmaster questioned Conductor B about the circumstances
involved in an on-duty injury to one of Conductor B's crew members. FRA Application: FRA will consider this call “at
the behest of the railroad” and an activity that WILL commingle with the previous covered service and restart the previous
duty tour to add an additional 17
minutes in commingled service to the Total On-Duty Time for
Conductor B. Also, the consecutiveness of Conductor B's Statutory Off-Duty Period has been broken, necessitating a revised Release
Time with the railroad and a restart
of Conductor B's Statutory
Off-Duty Period. If the
additional 17 minutes results in a Total-On-Duty-Time in excess of 12
hours, the railroad is required to report the event to FRA under 49
C.F.R. Part 228. NOTE:
If this call
had occurred during the first
three hours and 59 minutes of Conductor B's Off Duty Period, the 17
minutes would commingle with the previous covered service to produce CONTINUOUS
on-duty time for Conductor B. IODP #3: After
having been in Off-Duty status for six hours and 40 minutes, Conductor C
is called by a Crew Dispatcher who informs Conductor C that she has been
displaced by a senior conductor via
a seniority move. The
conductor is asked if she wishes to exercise her seniority over junior
conductors. Conductor C
declines for the present time and advises crew management that she will
exercise her seniority within the collective bargaining agreement time
limits. FRA Application: FRA will consider this call "at
the behest of the railroad.” However, since the call is of an
"informative" nature and does not require the conductor to
perform duty for the railroad, the call WILL
NOT COMMINGLE with PREVIOUS or
FUTURE covered service. NOTE: When
Conductor C places the future call to exercise her seniority, FRA will
consider that call “at the
behest of the employee” and its duration will not commingle with
previous or future covered service.
REPORTING
POINTS Train Service
Employees A Reporting Point
is a precise physical location where an employee reports for duty to begin or
restart a duty tour. Reporting points are further defined as regular
and other-than-regular. A regular reporting point is
the permanent on-duty
location of the employee's regular
assignment that is established through a job bulletin assignment
(job award or forced assignment) or seniority placement.
The assigned regular reporting point for extraboard and pool crew
employees will always be a single fixed location identified by the
railroad. Other-than-regular reporting point(s) are
all other on-duty reporting
points within a railroad-defined geographic area, usually established
under the collective bargaining process. NOTE:
Reporting Points
should not be confused with Designated
Terminals. Reporting points
are employee specific, and identify one or more on-duty locations for
all covered service employees. Designated
terminals apply only to Train Service employees, are job
or run oriented, and refer to the terminal (city or area) where
employees may be released for statutory off duty purposes. A designated terminal may contain multiple reporting points. Deadheading is
an employee relocation (or repositioning) activity primarily related to
train and engine personnel. It
identifies the physical nonworking
relocation of the employee from one point to another as a result
of carrier-issued verbal or written directives. FRA
Policy: 1.
TRAIN SERVICE employees
may have only one regular
reporting point. a.
assigned employee: the
assigned on-duty location for the job or run is the regular
reporting point for the assigned
(incumbent) employees. b.
extraboard employee: the
precise assigned location of the extraboard is the regular
reporting point for every employee assigned to that extraboard. NOTE:
An extraboard may supply employees to multiple
on-duty locations other than the assigned regular reporting point
for the extraboard. In this
instance, travel time to the extraboard's assigned regular reporting
point is considered commuting time.
Travel time to the other-than-regular
reporting point(s) is considered on-duty within the context of FRA's
application of the Federal hours of service law. 2
. Regular
reporting points may change, but must always change through either
bulletin or seniority placement that establishes the employee as an
incumbent on a job or run rather than on a temporary assignment. 3. For purposes of
calculating Total Time On Duty under the Federal hours of service laws,
the following will apply: All
travel time between the employee's residence and his or her regular
reporting point is considered as commuting time and, therefore, part of
the employee's off-duty period; and Travel
time between the employee's residence and ALL
other-than-regular points is
given special treatment in calculating Total Time On Duty (See Total
Time On Duty Calculations, page 15 in this Part). EXPLANATION
OF FRA'S APPLICATION The following is an explanation of
FRA's application of the Federal hours of service laws regarding temporary
assignments involving extraboards and extended vacancy hold downs
for train service employees
plus Train Service Employee pool crews.
Certain forced assignments
are treated as regular
assignments.
1
.
Extraboard
- Extraboard employees receive temporary assignments on a daily basis. If the
temporary assignment is at the assigned location of the extraboard, all
travel time between the employee's residence and the regular reporting
point is commuting time and is considered part of the off-duty period.
If the temporary assignment is at a location other than the
assigned regular reporting point, travel time is subject to the
provisions of the appropriate section of the Federal hours of service
laws. Normally, the
railroad should identify one of
the reporting points as the regular reporting point for all incumbents
of the extraboard. If the
railroad does not establish one regular reporting point location, travel
time to all reporting points
served by the extraboard is subject to the on-duty provisions of the
Federal hours of service laws. 2. Hold
Downs - train service extraboard employees may receive more
long-term temporary assignments generally referred to as "hold
downs." Hold downs are temporary assignments made “at
the behest of the railroad" for a period of time greater than
one shift. The length of a
hold down is usually determined by a collective bargaining agreement.
The length of the hold
down does not affect its temporary status.
In these temporary assignments, FRA considers the employee an
incumbent of the extraboard and
its fixed location as the employee's regular reporting point. Travel time is considered in the same context as a
temporary one-day assignment. 3. Pool
Crew - Pool Crew is unique to Train Service Employee assignments and
is the crew version of a craft
extraboard. A train pool
crew or an engine pool crew operates as a unit on a “first
in, first out” basis similar to extraboards for individual train
and engine personnel. While
employees may be assigned to a specifically identified Pool Crew, this
assignment does not constitute a regular assignment in the context of
this advisory. Pool crews
may receive calls for varied start times and locations.
As in
the explanation for extraboard employees, all travel time between a
pool crew member's residence and his or her Regular
Reporting Point is considered commuting time. Conversely, all travel time to other-than-regular reporting points is subject to FRA's application
of the deadheading provisions of the Federal hours of service laws. FORCED
ASSIGNMENTS
Unlike
temporary assignments, a covered service extraboard employee, junior in
seniority, may be force assigned to
a job or run as the result of no senior applicants to a bulletin
announcement. The junior
employee, once force assigned, must remain on the assignment until he or
she is: (1) displaced (bumped) by a senior employee; or (2) "bids
on" and acquires another position through seniority rights.
In this scenario, FRA considers the force
assigned employee to be an incumbent of the newly assigned job or
run and will have the job or run's assigned on-duty location as his or her
regular reporting point. As
such, all travel time between the force assigned employee's residence
and the new reporting point is considered commuting time. TRAVEL
In
many cases an employee's travel to an other-than-regular point is
through his or her regular reporting point.
In this scenario, that part of the travel from the employee's
residence to his or her regular reporting point is commuting
time. Further travel to
the other-than-regular reporting point will
be on-duty time. When
the employee either chooses or
is instructed to travel directly from his or her residence to an
other-than-regular reporting point, part
or all of the actual travel time is considered on-duty.
If covered service is
performed within eight hours after arrival, the travel is considered deadheading
to duty, and the travel time is counted in calculating
Total-Time-On-Duty. TOTAL
TIME ON DUTY CALCULATIONS 1. If the travel time from the employee's
residence to the other-than-regular reporting point is less
than the travel time from his or her regular reporting point to the
other-than-regular reporting point, then the total
travel time from his or her residence to the other-than-regular
reporting point is considered deadheading. 2. If the travel time
from the employee's residence to the other-than-regular reporting point
is greater than the travel
time from the employee's regular reporting point to the
other-than-regular reporting point, then only
the travel time from the regular reporting point is considered as
deadheading. In this
application, a reasonable estimate of the travel time under
existing conditions (considering weather and time of day) should be
used for the travel time from the employee's regular reporting point to
the other-than-regular reporting point.
Collective bargaining times used for pay purposes should not be
used. 3. In the event a
regular reporting point is not established by the railroad for an
extraboard or pool crew employee, all travel between the employee's residence and all his or her
on-duty locations is considered deadheading. 4. In certain instances,
the return travel from the other-than-regular reporting point to the
employee's off-duty location may be treated as part of the Total Time On
Duty [See: Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 228,
Appendix A, regarding use of Privately Owned Vehicle (POV)]. APPENDIX TO
PART C The following scenarios are provided as examples of
how FRA will apply the Federal hours of service laws with respect to Reporting
Point (RP) issues covered in Operating Practices Agency
Interpretation (OPAI) 98-01, Part C.
While FRA cannot foresee all possible scenarios, those presented
are intended to aid the understanding of the reader.
Any changes to the specifics of a scenarios MAY
or MAY NOT change FRA’s
application of the Federal hours of service laws as applied to the
original example. Where
doubt, as to FRA’s application to an actual issue is present, the
reader is encouraged to contact FRA for further analysis and policy
guidance. Reporting Point
Examples Train Service
Employees RP #l:
Conductor C, previously displaced by a senior conductor, called
the railroad’s Crew Management and advised that she would exercise her
seniority as conductor on outlying job YABC.
The new assignment is approximately 20 miles from her previous
regular assignment. FRA Application: FRA considers the
conductor as an assigned employee on job YABC with a regular point at
the outlying location. FRA
will consider all travel between her residence and the new reporting
point as commuting. NOTE:
Since the change in reporting points is accomplished through
either a seniority move or a bulletin assignment, a Deadhead record is NOT
required to reposition the conductor from the former assignment to the
new assignment. RP #2: The railroad’s Train Service employee extraboards are
located at Reporting Point Z, from which temporary vacancies at
Reporting Points Z, X, and Y are filled.
On Monday morning at 3:00 a.m., extraboard Brakeman C is called
to fill a “five day hold down” at Reporting Point Y, approximately 3
hours and 30 minutes travel time from Reporting Point Z and 2 hours and
45 minutes from Brakeman C’s residence.
On Friday, after being released from the hold down, Brakeman C
returns to Reporting Point Z. FRA Application: FRA considers Brakeman C an “incumbent”
of the extraboard at
Reporting Point Z during the five day hold down.
The duration of the hold down does not change the “extraboard
incumbency” status of Brakeman C, because a bulletined assignment was
not made. The employee was
called “at
the behest of the railroad” and will return to the extraboard at Z
after the five day hold down. At
the end of Brakeman C’s duty tour on Monday, Brakeman C will “remain” at Reporting Point Y for
hours of duty recordkeeping purposes.
All travel from Z to Y on Monday and from Y to Z on Friday is
deadheading and subject to the Federal hours of service laws. NOTE 1:
Since the hold down is at a location a significant distance from
Brakeman C’s home terminal, food and lodging becomes an issue. It is assumed that Reporting Y is IN a designated terminal with suitable food and lodging.
As such, if the food and lodging is not
within a reasonable walking distance of the release point, the
railroad IS REQUIRED to
provide transportation between the duty site and the location of
suitable food and lodging. The
Federal hours of service laws are silent on who pays for food and
lodging in these cases. If
the travel time to or from food and lodging is 30 minutes or less, it is
considered commuting time. If the
travel time is more than 30 minutes, it is subject
to the deadhead provisions and FRA’s application of the Federal
hours of service laws.
NOTE 2: If Reporting Point Y is
not a designated terminal, Brakeman C and the remainder of the crew,
cannot be released for off-duty purposes at Y.
In this case, Brakeman C and the remainder of the crew may be Relieved at Y and Deadheaded to
a designated terminal for Statutory
Off-Duty purposes.
NOTE 3: The railroad is not compelled to deadhead Brakeman C
back and forth between Z and Y on a daily basis because he is an
incumbent of the extraboard at Z. The
railroad is only required to furnish transportation to food and lodging.
In addition, a collective bargaining agreement may exist that
gives Brakeman C the choice of using his privately-owned vehicle in
transportation between Z and Y in lieu of carrier-provided
transportation. In most
cases, FRA considers this action to be voluntary on the part of the
employee, and therefore the return trip form Y to Z will not commingle
with Friday’s covered service to extend the duty tour’s
Total-Time-On-Duty period, unless Administrative Duties associated with
the tie-up process are performed after arriving at Z.
NOTE 4: The duty tour for
the first day, Monday, must include:
(1) a deadhead record from Z to Y; (2) the service trip; and (3)
any deadheading (Limbo) time associated with travel to food and lodging.
Friday’s duty tour must include:
(1) any deadheading (to duty) associated with travel from food
and lodging; (2) the service trip; and (3) deadhead from Y to Z, if
applicable. If travel to
and from suitable food and lodging is more than 30 minutes, the duty
tours for Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday must include:
(1) travel from food and lodging as deadheading
to duty; (2) the service trip; and (3) travel to food and lodging
as deadheading from duty.
FRA Application: Since
the extraboard and Job J554 are both located at Reporting Point U, all
travel between Engineer D’s residence and Reporting U is considered as
commuting. RP #4: On April 2, Engineer D received a Report-for Duty Time
for Job K263 at Reporting Point T.
Reporting Point T is 45 minutes travel time (under existing
conditions) form Regular Reporting Point U and 55 minutes (under
existing conditions) from Engineer D’s residence. FRA
Application:
Since Reporting Point U is the regular reporting point for Engineer D,
travel to and from Reporting Point T is considered deadheading. NOTE:
If
Engineer D travels to Reporting Point U and then to Reporting Point T,
45 minutes is considered as deadheading to duty.
If Engineer D elects to drive his privately-owned vehicle (POV)
directly from his residence to Reporting Point T, 45 minutes of the 55
minute travel is considered as deadheading to duty. R.P # 5: On
April 3, Engineer D receives a Report-for-Duty Time for Job B 116 at
Reporting Point S. Reporting Point S is 40 minutes travel time (under
existing conditions) from Regular Reporting Point U and 25 minutes
travel time (under existing conditions) from Engineer D's residence. FRA
Application: Since
Reporting Point U is the regular reporting point for Engineer D, travel
to and from Reporting Point S is considered deadheading. NOTE:
If Engineer D travels to Reporting Point U and
then to Reporting Point S, 40 minutes is considered as deadheading to
duty. If Engineer D elects
to drive his personally owned vehicle (POV) directly from his residence
to Reporting Point S, 25 minutes travel time is
considered as deadheading to duty. RP #6: Using
the same Engineer D and his status as the junior engineer on the
extraboard at U, the engineer's current collective bargaining agreement
with this railroad permits the railroad to assign the junior engineer to
a job in the event that no applicants (bids) are received on a bulletin
advertising an engineer's 'ob. At
12:01 p.m., on April 4, railroad Job Bulletin 10, advertising the
engineer position for Job R633 at Reporting Point W, closed.
The railroad did not receive "bids" from any applicants
for this position. Under
the provisions of the current collective bargaining agreement, the
railroad may FORCE assign Engineer D to Job R633 at Reporting Point W. FRA
Application: Prior
to the bulletin assignment, Engineer D was considered an
"incumbent" of the engineer's extraboard at Reporting Point U,
with U as the engineer's regular reporting point.
After the forced assignment as the
result of a bulletin notice, FRA will consider Engineer D as the incumbent engineer on Job R633 at Reporting Point W. W becomes the
regular reporting point for Engineer D. NOTE:
Engineer D assumes the location, start time and job frequency of
Job R633. The assignment
exhibits the permanency as if Engineer D had "bid" on Job
R633. The test of
permanence is that Engineer D cannot leave this position without being
displaced (bumped) or bidding on and acquiring another position through
seniority rights. Since the engineer is no longer an incumbent of the
extraboard, Engineer D is immune to any further forced assignments.
TRAVEL
TIME RAILROAD-PROVIDED
OR AUTHORIZED TRANSPORTATION Train
Service Employees
Deadheading
is an employee relocation (or repositioning) activity primarily related
to train and engine personnel. It
identifies the physical nonworking
relocation of the employee from one point to another as a result of
carrier-issued verbal or written directives. Commuting
is the time spent by an employee in travel between his or her residence
and the employee’s Regular
Reporting Point. In
certain instances it is also the time spent by the employee in carrier
provided or authorized transportation between his or her release point
and the lodging facilities at the away-from-home terminal. The Federal hours of service laws require that deadhead
travel time to duty (covered service), not
commuting time, is
counted as time on duty and
generally, deadheading from duty is treated as limbo
time. These
applications usually involve departures and arrivals at the employee’s
home or away-from-home terminals. However,
travel circumstances at the away-from-home
terminal are unique and warrant special consideration. Title
49 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 228, Appendix A states: Transit time from the employee's residence to his
regular reporting point is not considered deadhead time. TRAVEL
TIME
AT THE AWAY-FROM-HOME TERMINAL FRA Policy: ·
If
the travel time is thirty
minutes or less, the entire period is considered commuting time and is
part of the off-duty period. ·
If
the travel time is more than
thirty minutes, the entire period is considered Limbo Time, i.e.,
neither time on- nor off-duty, and the Final Release Time must be
readjusted to reflect the employee's arrival time. ·
In
the event room accommodations are not readily available after arrival at
the lodging facility, all time
spent waiting for room availability will be considered part of the
travel time. If room
availability occurs more than thirty minutes after the Final Release
Time, the entire period is considered Limbo Time and the Final Release
Time must be readjusted to reflect the room availability time. Travel From The Hotel Or Lodging Facility To The On-Duty Location ·
If
the travel time is thirty minutes or less, then the entire period
is considered part of the off-duty period. ·
If
the travel time is more than thirty minutes, then the entire period is deadheading
to duty and included in the calculation of Total
On-Duty Time. TRAVEL
FROM AN ON-LINE-OF-ROAD LOCATION DIRECTLY FRA Policy:
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