Arthur Goldberg

“ It would be virtually impossible for a veteran to show, as the Court of Appeals would require, that it was absolutely certain, 'as a matter of foresight' when he entered military service, that all circumstances essential to obtaining an advancement in status would later occur. To exact such certainty as a condition for insuring a verteran's seniority rights would render these statutorily protected rights without real meaning. ”

“ As Benjamin Franklin observed, 'In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.' In every veteran seniority case the possibility exists that work of the particular type might not have been available; that the veteran would not have worked satisfactorily during the period of his absence; that he might not have elected to accept the higher position; or that sickness might have prevented him from continuing his employment. In light of the purpose and history of this statute, however, we cannot assume that Congress intended possibilities of this sort to defeat the veteran's seniority rights. ”

“ Whenever the railroad is unable to employ persons presently qualified as carmen mechanics, the agreement provides for the advancement or 'upgrading' of carmen helpers to provisional carman status. Representatives of the railroad and the union jointly select the helpers to be so advanced. A helper thus 'upgraded' can then be employed by the railroad to perform the work of a journeyman carman mechanic and is entitled to be paid a carman mechanic's wage.
Under the labor agreement, however, the 'upgraded' helper does not immediately acquire permanent seniority as a journeyman. ”