Atlanta Daily World

Firemen Sue RR Groups For Bias Against Negro Workers

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - (SNS) - Three railroad-connected organizations, the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen; Local 604, Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen, and a union representative together have apparently five remaining days to answer a $50,000 damages suit jointly and separately filed against them in federal court by four Birmingham-based Negro firemen, court records show. The damages suit was filed August 26 by the plaintiffs Pleas Kelley, Louis Johnson, N. L. Bogan and Evans Sanders, through their counsel, Attorney Orzell Billingsley, Jr. The defendants were given a period of 30 days within which to answer the charges and complaints instituted against them by the four railroad firemen. The union representative sued in the case is W. L. Stephenson, a locomotive engineer employed by the S. L.-S. F. Railway Co., and who is also local chairman of the local lodge, Local 604 Brotherhood, the complaint set forth. The complaining firemen charge the Brotherhood and its subordinate lodges of "discriminating against them and excluding them from membership in the organization" solely because of race, thereby refusing to represent them and thus destroying their rights as locomotive firemen," the complaint alleges. The firemen ask for their "right to the mileage or hours of work, as set out in the governing agreement on passenger train runs between Birmingham, Alabama and Amory, Miss." The firemen, in their complaint bill, charge that the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen and the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway Company allegedly "entered into an agreement or conspiracy on or before April 1, 1955, and cut plaintiffs (firemen) down to 3,700 miles (of work) which is below the minimum as set in the Mediation Agreement, and
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Firemen Sue
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thereby deprived plaintiffs of their
contractual rights as firemen assigned
to passenger train service."
The firemen's complaint said
the Mediation Agreement states:
"In the regulation of passenger
or assigned service, sufficient men
will be assigned to keep mileage or
equivalent thereof within the limitations
of 4,000 and 4,800 miles for
passenger service and 3,200 and
3,800 miles for other regular service,
as provided therein. If in any
service
additional
assignments
would reduce earnings below these
limits, regulations will be effected
by requiring assigned man, or men
to lay off when the equivalent of
4,800 miles in passenger service or
3,800 miles in other regular service
has been reached."
Against Stephenson,
the complaint
set forth. "as chairman of
the local Brotherhood, the defendant
gained certain advantages and
considerations which rightfully belong
to plaintiffs; that the organization
which he represents acts in
enforcing the schedule of rules and
working conditions and in matters
of grievance adjustments and job
assignments on the Birmingham
Sub-Division of said railroad.

"On April 1, 1955," the firemen
charge. "the Brotherhood purporting
to act as the exclusive representative
under the Railway Labor
Act of the entire craft or class of
locomotive firemen employed on
defendant (S. L.-S. F.) Railway
Company, did wrongfully prevail
upon defendant Railway Company
to enter into an agreement, and
did wrongfully negotiate an agreement
with defendant Railway Company
which would modify and decrease
the mileage per month guaranteed
to the plaintiffs (firemen)
herein, by placing a fourth fireman
on passenger runs Trains 105-106-
107-108 between Birmingham, Ala.,
and Amory, Miss. The defendants'
action is arbitrary and unjust."
The plaintiffs charge in their
complaint, that the Brotherhood
allegedly "acted in fraud of the
rights of plaintiffs (firemen) and
the other Negro firemen therein,
and failed and refused to represent
them fairly and impartially as was
its duty as their representative under
the Railway Labor Act."