[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 120 (Sunday, August 21, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: August 21, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                 INTRODUCTION OF THE BA&P FAIRNESS BILL

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                           HON. PAT WILLIAMS

                               of montana

                    in the house of representatives

                        Sunday, August 21, 1994

  Mr. WILLIAMS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to introduce legislation to 
limit the authority of the Interstate Commerce Commission to overturn 
employee protective agreements. I have prepared this legislation and 
introduce it this late in the Congress because it is finally the only 
avenue left to right a wrong committed to workers in my State and 
assure that it cannot happen again.
  Workers still struggle to set back in place the cornerstones of 
worker rights that were slowly dismantled throughout the 1980's. There 
is no more clear example of this than the case of the employees of the 
Butte, Anaconda, and Pacific Railroad and the Interstate Commerce 
Commission.
  The BA&P railroad was the mining company railroad that served the 
smelters and mines of Butte, MT. In its heyday it was the busiest 
railroad in the region and moved millions of tons of ore. In the 1980's 
the BA&P was abandoned as a railroad by ARCO, the new owners of the old 
Anaconda Company empire. The rail workers on that line were longtime 
workers and had negotiated a contract for this type of situation. Under 
the agreed procedures in the employee contract the severance pay of the 
workers was submitted to arbitration. That arbitration produced an 
agreement for New York dock-style benefits, both parties to the 
contract signed and heralded the agreement.
  This is where the process was corrupted. At the same time the company 
was signing the agreement they were also lobbying the Reagan 
administration to use the ICC to overturn the agreement. And that is 
precisely what happened. Using broad ICC authority to review matters of 
commerce, the ICC reached out for the first and only time to overturn a 
signed arbitration agreement.
  Since that time, the workers in my State have slowly wound their way 
through the endless corridors of appeals and litigation. Ultimately the 
courts ruled that the ICC authority was broad enough to encompass 
review of signed arbitration agreements and the time, money, and 
benefits of the workers in Montana were lost.
  My legislation will correct this. It prevents the ICC from reviewing 
signed arbitrations and it reaches back and reinstates the New York 
dock benefits ARCO contracted to pay.
  This legislation is simple common sense and fairplay. I cannot 
believe that anyone thinks that it is good policy to let the Government 
override bargained agreements between employers and employees. It may 
take longer than this Congress for the appropriate committees to 
ultimately hear these railworkers' case, but when they do I believe 
they will join me in putting this right.

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