I Was Only Periodically Suspending Consciousness
by Peter S. Saucier

If you like to work with words and language, you know your way around a dictionary and a thesaurus. Unfortunately, some arbitrators could not locate either in their office. Instead, those arbitrators employ self-inspired intuition to describe analyses that would not pass scrutiny in a middle school logic class.

An Equipment Operator on the third shift at the United States Pipe & Foundry Company received a three-day suspension for sleeping on the job in November 2000. The employee accepted the discipline, which included written notice that if "any similar incidents recur, you will be subject to termination of employment." Three months later, he was observed by two supervisors to be in a reclining position, eyes closed, for 35 minutes. When the supervisors roused him, the employee claimed that he had not been sleeping, just dozing while waiting for equipment. The Equipment Operator was fired.

Arbitrator Thomas E. Terrill reversed the decision of the Company and ordered the employee returned to his job, with seven months of back pay. Arbitrator Terrill wrote, "The evidence presented here points to a strong possibility that the Grievant was dozing on March 8, but that he was not asleep. . . ."

That sent me to my dictionary. According to Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary, doze is defined to mean "to sleep lightly." Other dictionaries all agreed with that. Meanwhile, Webster's Collegiate Thesaurus includes the words sleep, nap, slumber, and drowse as alternatives. Doze is the second synonym for sleep in my word processing program's thesaurus.

Perhaps the next arbitrator who faces this situation, if she wants to keep workplace slumber a respectable vocation, can take some language from Webster's thesaurus. In support of the hapless grievant she can write, "He was not sleeping, he was experiencing a natural periodic suspension of consciousness during which the powers of the body are restored."

March 2002

If you are interested in arbitration, also read my article, Arbitration Follies.

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