Transportation Crisis Prevention Act

Transportation Crisis Prevention Act - Title I: Amendments to the Labor-Management Relations Act, 1947 Relating to Emergency Disputes in the Transportation Industry - Provides that the national emergency procedures of the Labor-Management Relations Act shall apply to a strike in the railroad, airline, maritime, longshore, or trucking industries if such strike or lockout imperils the health or safety of a substantial sector of the Nation. States that when a petition to enjoin such strike or lockout is sought it shall be heard by a three judge district court.

Empowers the President to use, in additon to the basic emergency dispute provision of the Labor-Management Relations Act, new options for dealing with national emergency disputes in the transportation industries. States that the President may proceed under these options in such sequence as he may deem appropriate until it is certified by the Secretary of Labor that the dispute is settled. Provides that these optional procedures may be used if the transportation national emergency dispute was still unresolved after the 80-day cooling-off period provided in the Labor-Management Relations Act.

Authorizes the President to extend the cooling off period, with continued bargaining between the parties, for a period of 15 days.

Empowers the President to appoint a special board to determine whether and under what conditions a partial strike or lockout could take place without imperiling the national health or safety, or the health or safety of a substantial portion of the territory or population of the Nation and whether under such condtions, the partial strike would be of sufficient economic impact to encourage resolution of the dispute.

Provides that if the special board determines that a partial strike or lockout is feasible, it shall issue an order specifying the extent and conditions of partial operation and if a partial strike or lockout is not feasible, the board shall submit a report to the President.

Precludes the parties from interfering, by resort to strike or lockout, with a partial operation ordered by the special board. Provides that the board's order may be effective for up to 180 days.

Authorizes the President to appoint a special board and to direct them to review the feasibility of partial operations. Permits any party or any member of the board to present to the board a plan defining the strike or lockout action that would be consistent with the public interest. Authorizes the board, after appropriate hearings in which the Government would be a party, to protect the public interest, and to adopt or modify the plan. Provides that, before approving the plan, the board would have to find that the partial strike or lockout is sufficiently extensive to encourage resolution of the dispute.

Requires the parties to submit their final proposals for full resolution of the controversy following the 80-day cooling-off period. Provides that the parties shall be given 3 days in which to submit two final offers and that if any party fails to submit a final offer or offers, the last offer made during bargaining shall be deemed its final offer.

Directs that following this submission, to the Secretary of Labor, the parties shall be required to meet and bargain for five days, with or without mediation by the Secretary.

Provides that, as a second step, the parties shall be given an opportunity to select a panel to act as "Final Offer Selector" and that if the parties are unable to select the panel, a panel composed of three neutral members shall be appointed by the President. Asserts that the panel shall hold hearings and determine which of the final offers constituted the final and binding resolution of the issues. Provides that, in reaching its determination, the panel may not choose any settlement other than those represented by the final offers. Specifies the criteria to be used by the panel in reaching its decision.

Provides that the panel's choice becomes the contract between the parties.

Title II: Amendments to the Railway Labor Act - Abolishes the National Mediation Board and states that its functions shall be assumed and carried out by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service and the National Labor Relations Board.

Provides for the discontinuance of the referral of disputes under the Railway Labor Act to the Adjustment Board and provides for their submission to arbitration in accordance with procedures set forth in this Act. States that the parties to a dispute shall have five days to reach a mutual agreement on the selection of an arbitrator and if they can not agree one shall be selected from a list submitted by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service through a process of alternate rejection.

Provides that the method of arbitration set forth in this Act shall prevail with respect to disputes under the Railway Labor Act until such time as the collective bargaining agreements between the parties contain no-strike, no-lockout clauses and provisions for grievance machinery terminating in final, binding arbitration.

States that the Adjustment Board shall be dissolved after it has processed to completion all of the disputes before it or upon two years from the effective date of this amendment to the Act, whichever first occurs. Provides that if all the disputes before the Board have not been processed to completion by the time of the Board's dissolution date, all such disputes shall be removed to the arbitration process set forth in this Act.

Provides that all cases which are being mediated by the National Mediation Board on the effective date of this Act shall be transferred to the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service no later than thirty days after the effective date of this Act.

States that carriers and representatives shall give sixty days written notice of an intended modification of termination in agreements or arrangements affecting rates of pay, rules, or working conditions. Provides that the party desiring such change or termination shall simultaneously notify the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service which shall commence appropriate mediation efforts.

States that the parties shall continue in full force and effect all the terms and conditions of the existing agreement or arrangements for a period of sixty days after such notice is given or until the expiration date of the agreement, whichever occurs later, without resorting to strike or lockout or other economic coercion.

Title III: Special Free Collective Bargaining Study Commission - Establishes the Special Free Collective Bargaining Study Commission to study labor relations in those industries which the Secretary of Labor has determined to be particularly vulnerable to national emergency disputes. Empowers the commission to study all the factors affecting labor relations in these industries and to make recommendations on the weaknesses of collective bargaining in the industries studied, including recommendations for legislation, if appropriate.

Authorizes the Commission to study the operation of the revised emergency procedures.

Title IV: Miscellaneous Provisions - Defines the jurisdictions in which such representatives of employees or carriers may be sued.

Repeals the provisions of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act that makes strikers eligible for benefits if the strike is not in violation of the Railway Labor Act or of the rules of the labor organization of which he is a member. Disqualifies railroad workers who strike from unemployment insurance benefits in accordance with criteria in State unemployment insurance laws applicable to other industries.

Authorizes to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.