45 U.S.C. § 151a — General purposes

Page 10 TITLE 45—RAILROADS § 151a Date note under section 1301 of Title 49, Transpor- tation. RESTRICTION ON ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW ANNUITIES OR PENSIONS Pub. L. 91–215, § 7, Mar. 17, 1970, 84 Stat. 72, provided that: ‘‘No carrier and no representative of employees, as defined in section 1 of the Railway Labor Act [this section], shall, before April 1, 1974, utilize any of the procedures of such Act [this chapter], to seek to make any changes in the provisions of the Railroad Retire- ment Act of 1937 [section 228a et seq. of this title] for supplemental annuities or to establish any new class of pensions or annuities, other than annuities payable out of the Railroad Retirement Account provided under section 15(a) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1937 [subsection (a) of section 228o of this title], to become effective prior to July 1, 1974; nor shall any such carrier or representative of employees until July 1, 1974, en- gage in any strike or lockout to seek to make any such changes or to establish any such new class of pensions or annuities: Provided, That nothing in this section shall inhibit any carrier or representative of employees from seeking any change with respect to benefits pay- able out of the Railroad Retirement Account provided under section 15(a) of the Railroad Retirement Act of 1937 [subsection (a) of section 228o of this title].’’ SOCIAL INSURANCE AND LABOR RELATIONS OF RAILROAD COAL-MINING EMPLOYEES; RETROACTIVE OPERATION OF ACT AUGUST 13, 1940; EFFECT ON PAYMENTS, RIGHTS, ETC. Act Aug. 13, 1940, ch. 664, §§ 4–7, 54 Stat. 786, 787, as amended by Reorg. Plan No. 2 of 1946, § 4, eff. July 16, 1946, 11 F.R. 7873, 60 Stat. 1095, with regard to the oper- ation and effect of the laws amended, provided: ‘‘SEC. 4. (a) The laws hereby expressly amended (sec- tion 1532 of Title 26, I.R.C. 1939 [former Title 26, Inter- nal Revenue Code of 1939] and sections 151, 215, 228a, 261, and 351 of this title), the Social Security Act, approved August 14, 1935 (section 301 et seq. of Title 42), and all amendments thereto, shall operate as if each amend- ment herein contained had been enacted as a part of the law it amends, at the time of the original enact- ment of such law. ‘‘(b) No person (as defined in the Carriers Taxing Act of 1937 [section 261 et seq. of this title]) shall be enti- tled, by reason of the provisions of this Act, to a refund of, or relief from liability for, any income or excise taxes paid or accrued, pursuant to the provisions of the Carriers Taxing Act of 1937 or subchapter B of chapter 9 of the Internal Revenue Code [section 1500 et seq. of former Title 26, Internal Revenue Code of 1939], prior to the date of the enactment of this Act [Aug. 13, 1940] by reason of employment in the service of any carrier by railroad subject to part I of the Interstate Commerce Act [former 49 U.S.C. 1 et seq.], but any individual who has been employed in such service of any carrier by railroad subject to part I of the Interstate Commerce Act as is excluded by the amendments made by this Act from coverage under the Carriers Taxing Act of 1937 and subchapter B of chapter 9 of the Internal Revenue Code, and who has paid income taxes under the provi- sions of such Act or subchapter, and any carrier by rail- road subject to part I of the Interstate Commerce Act which has paid excise taxes under the provisions of the Carriers Taxing Act of 1937 or subchapter B of chapter 9 of the Internal Revenue Code, may, upon making proper application therefor to the Bureau of Internal Revenue [now Internal Revenue Service], have the amount of taxes so paid applied in reduction of such tax liability with respect to employment, as may, by reason of the amendments made by this Act, accrue against them under the provisions of title VIII of the Social Security Act [section 1001 et seq. of Title 42] or the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (subchapter A of chapter 9 of the Internal Revenue Code) [section 1400 et seq. of former Title 26]. ‘‘(c) Nothing contained in this Act shall operate (1) to affect any annuity, pension, or death benefit granted under the Railroad Retirement Act of 1935 [section 215 et seq. of this title] or the Railroad Retirement Act of 1937 [section 228a et seq. of this title], prior to the date of enactment of this Act [Aug. 13, 1940], or (2) to include any of the services on the basis of which any such an- nuity or pension was granted, as employment within the meaning of section 210(b) of the Social Security Act or section 209(b) of such Act, as amended [sections 410(b) and 409(b), respectively, of Title 42]. In any case in which a death benefit alone has been granted, the amount of such death benefit attributable to services, coverage of which is affected by this Act, shall be deemed to have been paid to the deceased under section 204 of the Social Security Act [section 404 of Title 42] in effect prior to January 1, 1940, and deductions shall be made from any insurance benefit or benefits payable under the Social Security Act, as amended [section 301 et seq. of Title 42], with respect to wages paid to an in- dividual for such services until such deductions total the amount of such death benefit attributable to such services. ‘‘(d) Nothing contained in this Act shall operate to affect the benefit rights of any individual under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act [section 351 et seq. of this title] for any day of unemployment (as de- fined in section 1(k) of such Act [section 351(k) of this title]) occurring prior to the date of enactment of this Act. [Aug. 13, 1940] ‘‘SEC. 5. Any application for payment filed with the Railroad Retirement Board prior to, or within sixty days after, the enactment of this Act shall, under such regulations as the Federal Security Administrator may prescribe, be deemed to be an application filed with the Federal Security Administrator by such individual or by any person claiming any payment with respect to the wages of such individual, under any provision of section 202 of the Social Security Act, as amended [sec- tion 402 of Title 42]. ‘‘SEC. 6. Nothing contained in this Act, nor the action of Congress in adopting it, shall be taken or considered as affecting the question of what carriers, companies, or individuals, other than those in this Act specifically provided for, are included in or excluded from the pro- visions of the various laws to which this Act is an amendment. ‘‘SEC. 7. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 1605(b) of the Internal Revenue Code [section 1605(b) of former Title 26, Internal Revenue Code of 1939], no in- terest shall, during the period February 1, 1940, to the eighty-ninth day after the date of enactment of this Act [Aug. 13, 1940], inclusive, accrue by reason of delin- quency in the payment of the tax imposed by section 1600 with respect to services affected by this Act per- formed during the period July 1, 1939, to December 31, 1939, inclusive, with respect to which services amounts have been paid as contributions under the Railroad Un- employment Insurance Act [section 351 et seq. of this title] prior to the date of enactment of this Act. ‘‘(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 1601(a)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code [section 1601(a)(3) of former Title 26, Internal Revenue Code of 1939], the credit allowable under section 1601(a) against the tax imposed by section 1600 for the calendar year 1939 shall not be disallowed or reduced by reason of the payment into a State unemployment fund after Janu- ary 31, 1940, of contributions with respect to services af- fected by this Act performed during the period July 1, 1939, to December 31, 1939, inclusive, with respect to which services amounts have been paid as contribu- tions under the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act [section 351 et seq. of this title] prior to the date of en- actment of this Act [Aug. 13, 1940]: Provided, That this subsection shall be applicable only if the contributions with respect to such services are paid into the State unemployment fund before the ninetieth day after the date of enactment of this Act.’’ § 151a. General purposes The purposes of the chapter are: (1) To avoid any interruption to commerce or to the oper- Page 11 TITLE 45—RAILROADS § 152 ation of any carrier engaged therein; (2) to for- bid any limitation upon freedom of association among employees or any denial, as a condition of employment or otherwise, of the right of em- ployees to join a labor organization; (3) to pro- vide for the complete independence of carriers and of employees in the matter of self-organiza- tion to carry out the purposes of this chapter; (4) to provide for the prompt and orderly settle- ment of all disputes concerning rates of pay, rules, or working conditions; (5) to provide for the prompt and orderly settlement of all dis- putes growing out of grievances or out of the in- terpretation or application of agreements cov- ering rates of pay, rules, or working conditions. (May 20, 1926, ch. 347, § 2, 44 Stat. 577; June 21, 1934, ch. 691, § 2, 48 Stat. 1186.) Editorial Notes CODIFICATION Section is comprised of the first sentence of section 2 of act May 20, 1926, as added in the general amend- ment of section 2 by act June 21, 1934. The remainder of section 2 of act May 20, 1926, is classified to section 152 of this title. AMENDMENTS 1934—Act June 21, 1934, amended section 2 of act May 20, 1926, generally, adding the text of this section. § 152. General duties First. Duty of carriers and employees to settle disputes It shall be the duty of all carriers, their offi- cers, agents, and employees to exert every rea- sonable effort to make and maintain agreements concerning rates of pay, rules, and working con- ditions, and to settle all disputes, whether aris- ing out of the application of such agreements or otherwise, in order to avoid any interruption to commerce or to the operation of any carrier growing out of any dispute between the carrier and the employees thereof. Second. Consideration of disputes by representa- tives All disputes between a carrier or carriers and its or their employees shall be considered, and, if possible, decided, with all expedition, in con- ference between representatives designated and authorized so to confer, respectively, by the car- rier or carriers and by the employees thereof in- terested in the dispute. Third. Designation of representatives Representatives, for the purposes of this chap- ter, shall be designated by the respective parties without interference, influence, or coercion by either party over the designation of representa- tives by the other; and neither party shall in any way interfere with, influence, or coerce the other in its choice of representatives. Represent- atives of employees for the purposes of this chapter need not be persons in the employ of the carrier, and no carrier shall, by interference, in- fluence, or coercion seek in any manner to pre- vent the designation by its employees as their representatives of those who or which are not employees of the carrier. Fourth. Organization and collective bargaining; freedom from interference by carrier; assist- ance in organizing or maintaining organiza- tion by carrier forbidden; deduction of dues from wages forbidden Employees shall have the right to organize and bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing. The majority of any craft or class of employees shall have the right to de- termine who shall be the representative of the craft or class for the purposes of this chapter. No carrier, its officers, or agents shall deny or in any way question the right of its employees to join, organize, or assist in organizing the labor organization of their choice, and it shall be unlawful for any carrier to interfere in any way with the organization of its employees, or to use the funds of the carrier in maintaining or assisting or contributing to any labor organiza- tion, labor representative, or other agency of collective bargaining, or in performing any work therefor, or to influence or coerce employees in an effort to induce them to join or remain or not to join or remain members of any labor organi- zation, or to deduct from the wages of employ- ees any dues, fees, assessments, or other con- tributions payable to labor organizations, or to collect or to assist in the collection of any such dues, fees, assessments, or other contributions: Provided, That nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prohibit a carrier from permitting an employee, individually, or local representa- tives of employees from conferring with man- agement during working hours without loss of time, or to prohibit a carrier from furnishing free transportation to its employees while en- gaged in the business of a labor organization. Fifth. Agreements to join or not to join labor or- ganizations forbidden No carrier, its officers, or agents shall require any person seeking employment to sign any con- tract or agreement promising to join or not to join a labor organization; and if any such con- tract has been enforced prior to the effective date of this chapter, then such carrier shall no- tify the employees by an appropriate order that such contract has been discarded and is no longer binding on them in any way. Sixth. Conference of representatives; time; place; private agreements In case of a dispute between a carrier or car- riers and its or their employees, arising out of grievances or out of the interpretation or appli- cation of agreements concerning rates of pay, rules, or working conditions, it shall be the duty of the designated representative or representa- tives of such carrier or carriers and of such em- ployees, within ten days after the receipt of no- tice of a desire on the part of either party to confer in respect to such dispute, to specify a time and place at which such conference shall be held: Provided, (1) That the place so specified shall be situated upon the line of the carrier in- volved or as otherwise mutually agreed upon; and (2) that the time so specified shall allow the designated conferees reasonable opportunity to reach such place of conference, but shall not ex- ceed twenty days from the receipt of such no- tice: And provided further, That nothing in this