2022 BLET Tentative Work/Rest Agreement Synopsis & FAQs

Union Pacific Property Only

2022 Tentative Agreement
Synopsis and FAQs

Agreement Provisions 

  • While on your 11-day work cycle, there will be a mandatory 4 & 1 with a 23-hour Undisturbed Rest reset. This includes all work events, including deadheads.
  • Guarantee will not be reduced by the mandatory 23-hour reset.
  • All assigned engineers will be compensated full extra board guarantee plus Bonus Payment.
  • Weekly Vacations will start on Sunday with an unrestricted 96-hour advancement or deferral.
  • 11&4 boards will work first in / first out on both ends based upon tie-up time.
  • Pools that run more than 250 miles, can opt out of the 11&4 work rest schedule. Everything remains the same for the pool, except they will be self-supporting.
  • Locations where 11&4 is impractical or unnecessary, other work-rest schedules may be implemented by mutual agreement.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Did the Engineers lose the ability to extend their vacation? (This only applied to the Missouri Pacific Upper Lines and the Eastern District.)
  2. You can move your week of vacation up or back 96 hours. In most cases, you can align it with your rest days, so your week of vacation could be 11 days.
  3. Did the guarantee get reduced?
  4. No, the guarantee rate is the same as the current rate today. It is paid over 11 days instead of 15.
  5. Do the Engineers have to work 11 days in a row?
  6. No, after 4 consecutive starts (including DH’s) you will go into 23 hours of Undisturbed Rest (UDR) (Work 4 Starts and Off 23 hours of UDR, Work 4 Starts and Off 23 hours of UDR, Work 1 and Off 4 Rest Days). You will still be paid guarantee for the 23 hours of UDR. If your 4th consecutive start takes you to your AFHT, your 23 hours of UDR would begin upon tie up at the home terminal.
  7. Does this mean there will be no more extra boards?
  8. In most areas the pool and extra board will be combined into one board. However, in some locations that opt out of the 11/4 or where the extra board doesn’t support a pool today, those extra boards will continue to exist.
  9. Will this change the way PL and Vacation days work?
  10. No.
  11. How will the boards work?
  12. The way the boards work today is how they will work going forward. No supplementing or covering other areas.
  13. Does Article I, B-1(f) allow an engineer to work in other crafts where it states, “subject to call in any class of service”?
  14. No, it simply means they can work as an engineer in through freight service, yard service, local freight service, road switcher service etc.
  15. Why are self-supporting pools contained in the 11&4 TA and how do they operate?
  16. Self-supporting pools as required by PEB 250 are operated in the following manner. The extra board will not be called to fill regular vacancies until the pool is exhausted. The 1st out person on the pool who is unavailable will be dropped to the bottom and the next available Engineer will be used.
  17. Can the Carrier combine multiple pools and/or extra boards into one board?
  18. No, the Carrier cannot combine multiple pools and extra boards under the 11&4 TA without mutual consent. However, Boards not covered by the 11&4 TA are subject to PEB 250 that allows the Carrier to establish, abolish and combine extra boards at its discretion.