CLEVELAND, December 5 — The BLET is pleased to announce that its Education & Training and Arbitration Departments are offering a General Chairman””s workshop in St. Louis, Mo., the week of January 22, 2007.
The focus of this workshop will be on the preparation of submissions for arbitrations conducted pursuant to Section Three of the Railway Labor Act. The four day workshop will be held on January 22-24 (Monday-Wednesday) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a half a day on January 25 (Thursday), from 9 a.m. to noon. While there is no tuition for the class, attendees are responsible for all other expenses.
Attendance is limited to General Chairmen and any subordinates they designate who are engaged in arbitration work. We ask that you bring a copy of your basic Schedule Agreement for reference. There will be assignments that will be mailed to you ahead of time that you will be expected to have done when you start the workshop.
Upon successful completion of the course, attendees will qualify for a $99 per day stipend from the North American Railway Foundation (NARF). The stipends will be paid directly to the General Committee Secretary-Treasurer.
NARF is a non-profit operating foundation formed by the Brotherhood””s Relief and Compensation Fund (BR&CF) to support rail history, education, safety, and technology in the United States and Canada. With initial funding and continued Board of Directors stewardship coming from the BR&CF, NARF has supported many non-political projects throughout the United States and Canada over the past 10 years. The primary focus of these efforts has been in support of organized rail labor — giving back to all of the men and women of the railroad community across North America.
General Chairmen or Vice General Chairmen who are engaged in arbitration work and are interested in registering for the workshop may do so online at https://www.ble-t.org/gc. If you are not a General Chairman, then you must have your General Chairman’s permission to attend the workshop.
Workshop instructors will include: BLET National Secretary-Treasurer William C. Walpert, BLET Vice-President Richard K. Radek, and Special Representative & Coordinator of Education and Training Ken Kroeger.
The BLET pays the costs of books and equipment. General Chairmen and Vice General Chairmen who attend are responsible for their transportation costs, along with the cost of room and board. Special arrangements have been made at the Sheraton St Louis City Center Hotel & Suites in downtown St. Louis. Once your attendance at the workshop has been approved, you will be sent a confirmation letter that will include instructions on how to register for the hotel.
Registration for the General Chairman Workshop is on a first-come, first-served basis, with class size limited to the first 15 who register through the BLET website. If there is enough interest, a second workshop will be held sometime in late 2007. For more information, please contact Ken Kroeger, Coordinator of the BLET Education & Training Dept., at (216) 272-0986 or kroeger@ble-t.org.