W.P. Kennedy as President of the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen against the Long Island Railroad Company Court Documents
Collection Number: 5348
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library
This collection was processed with the help of generous funding from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).Title:
W.P. Kennedy as President of the
Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen against the Long Island Railroad Company Court
Documents, 1961-1962
Collection Number:
5348
Creator:
Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen
(BRT);
Long Island Railroad Company (LIRR)
Long Island Railroad Company (LIRR)
Quantity:
0.5 linear ft.
Forms of Material:
Records (documents).
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and
Archives, Cornell University Library
Abstract:
Plaintiffs' Brief and the Jointly Prepared Record of
Proceedings from a civil suit filed in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of
New York [SDNY] by W. P. Kennedy in his role as president of the Brotherhood of
Railroad Trainmen [BRT] and on behalf of other local unions against the Long Island
Rail Road Company [LIRR], the Association of American Railroads [AAR], and other
associated corporate entities in order to recover damages incurred by the BRT and
its union members during a 26 day strike in July and August 1960. [Civil Action No.
60-3496]
Language:
Collection material in English
After the conclusion of a twenty-six day strike by the workers on the LIRR,
the BRT and its officers filed suit against the LIRR, the AAR, and other
ssociated corporate entities, alleging that sometime prior to 1959, the
vice-president in charge of the law department of the AAR met with designated
representatives of the other railroad defendants, including the LIRR, to create
a pool of their assets and earnings for the purpose of assisting any participating
member which might be affected by a work stoppage or strike. The plaintiffs argued
that this artificially strengthened the economic bargaining position of individual
railroad companies in collective bargaining with unions.
The BRT and its officers contended that the costs the union incurred during the strike,
which was prompted by the failure of collective bargaining and mediation proceedings
between the LIRR and the BRT in 1959-1960 to establish a five day work week without
a reduction in pay for the LIRR's employees, were a result of the LIRR entering
into the "strike insurance" pool. This suit was filed to determine the legality
of the LIRR, AAR, and other associated railroads entering into this pool with
the understanding that if the "strike insurance" was itself illegal, then the defendants
would be liable for the damages incurred by the plaintiffs while their members were in
strike. The plaintiffs further charged that the defendants used some funds from the
pool to run a campaign through the AAR's public relations department designed to
influence public opinion against organized labor.
The only question under consideration by the court was whether the LIRR's purchase of
"strike insurance" through the AAR was illegal. In 1962, the court found that it was not.
Not included in this collection is the decision of the court, which found in favor of
the defendants and dismissed the suit without cost [211 F. Supp. 478 (S.D.N.Y.
1962)]. The decision of the court may be found here.
Inclusive date range: 1961-1962
Bulk date: 1961
This collection consists of two copies of a brief filed on behalf of the BRT, et al.,
plaintiffs, by W. P. Kennedy against the LIRR the AAR and associated corporate
entities, as well as the jointly prepared record of proceedings, which include
the exhibits to joint stipulation of facts, contained in three bound volumes. The
brief and the bound volumes of the proceeding contain tables of contents and lists
of exhibits presented during the proceedings. The plaintiffs were seeking monetary
recompense for damages suffered during a 26 day strike in the summer of 1960 as well
as questioning the legality of the LIRR entering, under the auspices of the AAR,
into a "strike insurance" monetary pool with other rail carriers in order to
strengthen their position in collective bargaining with their employees' unions.
Plaintiffs charged that this action was in violation of the Railway Labor Act,
the Interstate Commerce Act, and the Sherman Act.
Included in the plaintiffs' exhibits are reproductions of advertisements the AAR
ran in daily newspapers, condemning the practice of "featherbedding" (i.e. retaining
jobs that are identified as obsolete, generally as the result of a union contract).
These ads compare the cost of featherbedding to the railroads with major American
disasters, such as the San Francisco earthquake of 1906 and the Chicago fire of 1871,
in an attempt, the plaintiffs argue, to turn public opinion against the unions. Also
included in the exhibits are excerpts from the BRT's weekly newsletter and the
newspaper, Labor.
Names:
Kennedy, W. P.
Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen.
Long Island Railroad Company.
Association of American Railroads.
Subjects:
Strike insurance. United States.
Strikes and lockouts. United States.
Industrial relations. United States.
Railroads. Employees. United States.
Form and Genre Terms:
Records (documents)
Access Restrictions:
Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a
reference archivist for access to these materials.
Restrictions on Use:
This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet
and Procedures for Document Use.
Cite As:
W.P. Kennedy as President of the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen against the
Long Island Railroad Company Court Documents #5348. Kheel Center for
Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library.
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Container
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Description
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Date
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| Box 1 | Folder 1 | 1962 | |
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2 copies
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| Box 1 | Folder 2 | 1961 | |
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Pages 1 to 346 (2 copies)
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| Box 1 | Folder 3 | 1961 | |
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Pages 347 to 606
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| Box 1 | Folder 4 | 1961 | |
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Pages 607 to 940
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