45 U.S.C. § 152 — General duties

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 Page 12 TITLE 45—RAILROADS § 152 chapter shall be construed to supersede the pro- visions of any agreement (as to conferences) then in effect between the parties. Seventh. Change in pay, rules, or working condi- tions contrary to agreement or to section 156 forbidden No carrier, its officers, or agents shall change the rates of pay, rules, or working conditions of its employees, as a class, as embodied in agree- ments except in the manner prescribed in such agreements or in section 156 of this title. Eighth. Notices of manner of settlement of dis- putes; posting Every carrier shall notify its employees by printed notices in such form and posted at such times and places as shall be specified by the Me- diation Board that all disputes between the car- rier and its employees will be handled in accord- ance with the requirements of this chapter, and in such notices there shall be printed verbatim, in large type, the third, fourth, and fifth para- graphs of this section. The provisions of said paragraphs are made a part of the contract of employment between the carrier and each em- ployee, and shall be held binding upon the par- ties, regardless of any other express or implied agreements between them. Ninth. Disputes as to identity of representatives; designation by Mediation Board; secret elec- tions If any dispute shall arise among a carrier’s employees as to who are the representatives of such employees designated and authorized in ac- cordance with the requirements of this chapter, it shall be the duty of the Mediation Board, upon request of either party to the dispute, to investigate such dispute and to certify to both parties, in writing, within thirty days after the receipt of the invocation of its services, the name or names of the individuals or organiza- tions that have been designated and authorized to represent the employees involved in the dis- pute, and certify the same to the carrier. Upon receipt of such certification the carrier shall treat with the representative so certified as the representative of the craft or class for the pur- poses of this chapter. In such an investigation, the Mediation Board shall be authorized to take a secret ballot of the employees involved, or to utilize any other appropriate method of ascertaining the names of their duly designated and authorized representatives in such manner as shall insure the choice of representatives by the employees without interference, influence, or coercion exercised by the carrier. In the con- duct of any election for the purposes herein indi- cated the Board shall designate who may par- ticipate in the election and establish the rules to govern the election, or may appoint a com- mittee of three neutral persons who after hear- ing shall within ten days designate the employ- ees who may participate in the election. In any such election for which there are 3 or more op- tions (including the option of not being rep- resented by any labor organization) on the bal- lot and no such option receives a majority of the valid votes cast, the Mediation Board shall ar- range for a second election between the options receiving the largest and the second largest number of votes. The Board shall have access to and have power to make copies of the books and records of the carriers to obtain and utilize such information as may be deemed necessary by it to carry out the purposes and provisions of this paragraph. Tenth. Violations; prosecution and penalties The willful failure or refusal of any carrier, its officers or agents, to comply with the terms of the third, fourth, fifth, seventh, or eighth para- graph of this section shall be a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof the carrier, officer, or agent offending shall be subject to a fine of not less than $1,000, nor more than $20,000, or im- prisonment for not more than six months, or both fine and imprisonment, for each offense, and each day during which such carrier, officer, or agent shall willfully fail or refuse to comply with the terms of the said paragraphs of this section shall constitute a separate offense. It shall be the duty of any United States attorney to whom any duly designated representative of a carrier’s employees may apply to institute in the proper court and to prosecute under the di- rection of the Attorney General of the United States, all necessary proceedings for the en- forcement of the provisions of this section, and for the punishment of all violations thereof and the costs and expenses of such prosecution shall be paid out of the appropriation for the expenses of the courts of the United States: Provided, That nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require an individual employee to render labor or service without his consent, nor shall anything in this chapter be construed to make the quitting of his labor by an individual em- ployee an illegal act; nor shall any court issue any process to compel the performance by an in- dividual employee of such labor or service, with- out his consent. Eleventh. Union security agreements; check-off Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, or of any other statute or law of the United States, or Territory thereof, or of any State, any carrier or carriers as defined in this chapter and a labor organization or labor orga- nizations duly designated and authorized to rep- resent employees in accordance with the re- quirements of this chapter shall be permitted— (a) to make agreements, requiring, as a con- dition of continued employment, that within sixty days following the beginning of such em- ployment, or the effective date of such agree- ments, whichever is the later, all employees shall become members of the labor organiza- tion representing their craft or class: Provided, That no such agreement shall require such condition of employment with respect to em- ployees to whom membership is not available upon the same terms and conditions as are generally applicable to any other member or with respect to employees to whom member- ship was denied or terminated for any reason other than the failure of the employee to ten- der the periodic dues, initiation fees, and as- sessments (not including fines and penalties) uniformly required as a condition of acquiring or retaining membership. (b) to make agreements providing for the de- duction by such carrier or carriers from the Page 13 TITLE 45—RAILROADS § 153 wages of its or their employees in a craft or class and payment to the labor organization representing the craft or class of such employ- ees, of any periodic dues, initiation fees, and assessments (not including fines and penalties) uniformly required as a condition of acquiring or retaining membership: Provided, That no such agreement shall be effective with respect to any individual employee until he shall have furnished the employer with a written assign- ment to the labor organization of such mem- bership dues, initiation fees, and assessments, which shall be revocable in writing after the expiration of one year or upon the termination date of the applicable collective agreement, whichever occurs sooner. (c) The requirement of membership in a labor organization in an agreement made pur- suant to subparagraph (a) of this paragraph shall be satisfied, as to both a present or fu- ture employee in engine, train, yard, or hostling service, that is, an employee engaged in any of the services or capacities covered in the First division of paragraph (h) of section 153 of this title defining the jurisdictional scope of the First Division of the National Railroad Adjustment Board, if said employee shall hold or acquire membership in any one of the labor organizations, national in scope, or- ganized in accordance with this chapter and admitting to membership employees of a craft or class in any of said services; and no agree- ment made pursuant to subparagraph (b) of this paragraph shall provide for deductions from his wages for periodic dues, initiation fees, or assessments payable to any labor orga- nization other than that in which he holds membership: Provided, however, That as to an employee in any of said services on a par- ticular carrier at the effective date of any such agreement on a carrier, who is not a member of any one of the labor organizations, national in scope, organized in accordance with this chapter and admitting to member- ship employees of a craft or class in any of said services, such employee, as a condition of continuing his employment, may be required to become a member of the organization rep- resenting the craft in which he is employed on the effective date of the first agreement appli- cable to him: Provided, further, That nothing herein or in any such agreement or agree- ments shall prevent an employee from chang- ing membership from one organization to an- other organization admitting to membership employees of a craft or class in any of said services. (d) Any provisions in paragraphs Fourth and Fifth of this section in conflict herewith are to the extent of such conflict amended. Twelfth. Showing of interest for representation elections The Mediation Board, upon receipt of an appli- cation requesting that an organization or indi- vidual be certified as the representative of any craft or class of employees, shall not direct an election or use any other method to determine who shall be the representative of such craft or class unless the Mediation Board determines that the application is supported by a showing of interest from not less than 50 percent of the employees in the craft or class. (May 20, 1926, ch. 347, § 2, 44 Stat. 577; June 21, 1934, ch. 691, § 2, 48 Stat. 1186; June 25, 1948, ch. 646, § 1, 62 Stat. 909; Jan. 10, 1951, ch. 1220, 64 Stat. 1238; Pub. L. 112–95, title X, §§ 1002, 1003, Feb. 14, 2012, 126 Stat. 146, 147.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The effective date of this chapter, referred to in par. Fifth, probably means May 20, 1926, the date of ap- proval of act May 20, 1926, ch. 347, 44 Stat. 577. CODIFICATION Section is comprised of pars. designated First to Twelfth of section 2 of act May 20, 1926. The remainder of section 2 of act May 20, 1926, is classified to section 151a of this title. AMENDMENTS 2012—Pub. L. 112–95, § 1002, in par. Ninth, inserted after fourth sentence ‘‘In any such election for which there are 3 or more options (including the option of not being represented by any labor organization) on the ballot and no such option receives a majority of the valid votes cast, the Mediation Board shall arrange for a second election between the options receiving the largest and the second largest number of votes.’’ Pub. L. 112–95, § 1003, added par. Twelfth. 1951—Act Jan. 10, 1951, added par. Eleventh. 1934—Act June 21, 1934, substituted ‘‘by the carrier or carriers’’ for ‘‘by the carriers’’ in par. Second, gen- erally amended pars. Third, Fourth, and Fifth, and added pars. Sixth to Tenth. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries CHANGE OF NAME Act June 25, 1948, eff. Sept. 1, 1948, substituted ‘‘United States attorney’’ for ‘‘district attorney of the United States’’. See section 541 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure, and Historical and Revision Notes thereunder. § 153. National Railroad Adjustment Board First. Establishment; composition; powers and duties; divisions; hearings and awards; judi- cial review There is established a Board, to be known as the ‘‘National Railroad Adjustment Board’’, the members of which shall be selected within thir- ty days after June 21, 1934, and it is provided— (a) That the said Adjustment Board shall con- sist of thirty-four members, seventeen of whom shall be selected by the carriers and seventeen by such labor organizations of the employees, national in scope, as have been or may be orga- nized in accordance with the provisions of sec- tions 151a and 152 of this title. (b) The carriers, acting each through its board of directors or its receiver or receivers, trustee or trustees, or through an officer or officers des- ignated for that purpose by such board, trustee or trustees, or receiver or receivers, shall pre- scribe the rules under which its representatives shall be selected and shall select the representa- tives of the carriers on the Adjustment Board and designate the division on which each such representative shall serve, but no carrier or sys- tem of carriers shall have more than one voting representative on any division of the Board.