Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen v. Union Pacific Railroad Company, and Brotherhood Oflocomotive Engineers, Intervenor-Appellee

Union Pacific Railroad brought this suit to enjoin the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen & Enginemen (BLF&E) from striking. BLF&E has taken this appeal from preliminary injunction issued by the District Court. The issue is whether the underlying controversy between the union and the railroad is a major or a minor dispute; if the dispute is a major one, the Norris LaGuardia Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 101-107 , protects the strike from a federal court’s injunction.

By agreement in 1968 between Union Pacific and intervenor, Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers (BLE), the work week of engineers was reduced to five days, and the manner in which extra engineering work was to be assigned under these new conditions was spelled out. BLF&E contends that this method is contrary to that formerly practiced and serves to reduce the opportunity of certain firemen (designated “demoted engineers” and members of BLF&E) to serve as engineers.

Before the District Court BLF&E contended that the railroad’s new agreement with BLE was contrary to provisions of the BLF&E agreement. The District Court ruled that such a dispute would be resolved by construction of the BLF&E contract and thus was a minor dispute…