1495 Shepard v. Local Union 174

Shepard insists that his discharge could not have been sustained because he completed the task assigned to him. The record demonstrates, however, that Shepard was discharged for his angry and disruptive behavior towards his supervisor in response to the assignment, rather than for a failure to complete any particular task. Representative Uram based his decision not to arbitrate Shepard’s grievance on a prior ruling by the Umpire that an employee’s uncooperative and harassing behavior toward his supervisor amounted to insubordination even though the employee ultimately completed his assignment. His determination that the case could not be successfully arbitrated cannot be said to lack a rational basis.