United Transp. Union v. Foxx, No. 11-73258 (9th Cir. 2014)
Annotate this CaseThe Union petitioned for review of the FRA's decision that the agency lacked jurisdiction to decide whether the Union Pacific Railroad Company had authority under the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) to designate terminals for a new service the railroad had instituted in California. The court concluded that, because this was a dispute regarding interpretation of the CBA, it was governed by the procedures of the Railway Labor Act (RLA), 45 U.S.C. 151a, for disputes requiring interpretation or application of agreements covering rates of pay, rules, or working conditions. The FRA correctly determined that this was fundamentally an issue of contract interpretation beyond its adjudicatory powers. Accordingly, the court denied the petition for review.
Court Description: Federal Railroad Administration. The panel denied a petition for review of a decision of the Federal Railroad Administration, and upheld the FRA’s conclusion that it lacked jurisdiction to decide whether the Union Pacific Railroad Company had authority under a collective bargaining agreement to designate terminals for a new service the railroad had instituted in California. The FRA concluded it lacked jurisdiction to resolve the dispute between the Railroad and the United Transportation Union because it did not have the statutory authority to interpret collective bargaining agreements. The panel held that the FRA can review an agreement to determine what the designated terminals are, but it cannot interpret the agreement to decide how the terminals shall be designated. The panel held that the parties’ dispute regarded interpretation of the collective bargaining agreement, and it was therefore governed by the resolution procedures of the Railway Labor Act and beyond the adjudicatory powers of the FRA.
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