Local 1511 of the American Federation of State v. Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons
Local 1511 of the American Federation of State v. Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons
Opinion of the Court
This case emanates from a bitter and protracted labor dispute between a union and an employer.
In 1967 the union and the employer entered into a collective bargaining agreement which covered some 200 employees at the Masonic Home in Alma, Michigan. The agreement was set to expire on December 31, 1969. While negotiations on a new contract were in progress at the end of 1969,
In the meantime on February 16, 1970, the union filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleging that the employer had refused to bargain in good faith as required by § 8(a)(5) of the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA).
After conducting an investigation of the charges and countercharges, the NLRB notified the employer’s attorney on November 10, 1970, that the employer had apparently refused to bargain in good faith contrary to § 8(a)(5) of the LMRA. The NLRB suggested an informal, voluntary settlement of the matter. In response to the employer’s charge of an illegal strike, the NLRB concluded that although the union violated § 8(b)(3) of the
On November 16, 1970, the NLRB issued a formal complaint against the employer which found that the employer was engaged in commerce within the meaning of §§ 2(2), 2(6), and 2(7) of the LMRA
In addition the union and the employer had filed similar charges and countercharges before the Michigan Employment Relations Commission (MERC). When the NLRB took jurisdiction in the Michigan Licensed Practical Nurses case, supra, the union withdrew its charge before the MERC. Shortly thereafter the MERC acknowledged the NLRB’s jurisdiction and dismissed the employer’s countercharge.
Having fully set forth the background of the case, we next turn to the facts which led to the present controversy.
During the strike period (February 5 to December 5, 1970) some of the striking employees returned to work. In order to fill vacancies occasioned by those employees who did not return to work, the employer hired nonunion employees. As jobs became available after the strike ended, the
The grievances proceeded to arbitration. In a written decision dated July 13,1971, the arbitrator ruled that although under the terms of the new collective bargaining contract the grievants were not entitled to return to work and displace newly hired or lesser seniority employees who were working at the conclusion of the strike, the employer had violated the collective bargaining agreement by hiring new employees to fill job openings occurring in the poststrike period without offering such jobs to qualified grievants. The arbitrator ordered the employer to "make whole those grievants who have been injured by such violations”.
Prompted by the arbitrator’s decision, the employer sent a form letter to all 82 grievants on July 17, 1971. The letter contained a list of several irregular part-time and summer job openings.
The employer answered via a form letter which terminated the grievants’ employment. The letter read:
"A specific job was offered you on July 17, 1971. If you had been interested in being recalled from lay-off status you would have returned to work within the ten days as requested pursuant to Article XV of the collective bargaining agreement.
"You have not properly responded to the recall notice by reporting to work and you are, therefore, removed from the seniority rolls * * * .”
The union filed a new grievance contending that it had learned that some 37 new nonseniority employees had been hired since the strike ended, the employer’s job offers were "shams” and calculated to undermine the position of the union as the bargaining agent for the employees. In short the union alleged that the employer was in violation of the arbitration award and the collective bargaining agreement.
The employer countered by asserting that the new grievance was not subject to arbitration and that in any event the first arbitration had decided the questions and the union’s only recourse would
The union took the employer’s advice and on September 14, 1971, instituted a suit in Gratiot County Circuit Court to enforce the arbitration award. The court ordered the employer to show cause at a hearing to be held on November 18¿ 1971, why an injunction should not issue restraining it from refusing to comply with the arbitration award. In answer the employer asserted that it had complied with the arbitrator’s ruling and as affirmative defenses raised the claims that the strike had been illegal in light of § 8(d) of the Federal Labor Management Relation Act and that the strikers had performed acts of violence and had destroyed property- for which the plaintiff sought $500,000 in damages.
On October 27, 1971, at the request of the employer, the circuit court issued an ex parte injunction prohibiting the union from proceeding with arbitration of the second grievance.
The show cause hearing was held as scheduled on November 18, 1971. After considering the arguments of both sides, the circuit court dissolved the ex parte injunction thus in effect ordered the parties to proceed with arbitration of the second grievance. The court also ordered enforcement of the first arbitration award. Later, the employer asserted that the circuit court’s order was ambiguous. Accordingly, the circuit court clarified the order. The employer appealed. Pending the outcome of the appeal, we restrained the union from proceeding with the second arbitration.
First the employer argues that the circuit court erred in ordering enforcement of the first arbitration award. We disagree.
Where, as here, the parties to a collective bar
A review of the arbitrator’s opinion in the case at bar reveals that the arbitrator examined the 82 grievants’ claims in light of the appropriate portions of the collective bargaining agreement. As previously recounted the arbitrator determined that under the terms of the agreement although the grievants were not entitled to displace employees hired during the strike, they were entitled to offers of job openings as they occurred during the poststrike period. The arbitrator found that since the employer had not made such job offers, it was in violation of the agreement and required to make the grievants whole. We find no evidence in the opinion that the arbitrator’s decision was based on anything other than the provisions of the contract.
We hold, therefore, that since the arbitrator’s award was properly based upon an interpretation of the collective bargaining agreement and did not
Next it is the position of the employer that the circuit court erred in ordering arbitration of the union’s second grievance. The employer contends that the union through the second grievance seeks to relitigate the same matters arbitrated in the first grievance. Again, we must disagree.
Since the NLRB has found the employer subject to the provisions of the LMRA, the union’s suit to compel the second arbitration arises under § 301 of the LMRA
Here the arbitration clause contained in the collective bargaining agreement is very broad in its scope. For example, the arbitration clause reads in pertinent part:
"|T]t is the intent of the parties that arbitration shall be used during the life of this agreement to resolve*20 disputes which arise concerning the express provisions of this agreement * * *
In the second grievance the union charged the employer with violating several enumerated provisions in the collective bargaining agreement. Therefore, in view of the broad scope of the arbitration clause and inasmuch as the union cited alleged violations of specific provisions of the collective bargaining agreement, it is our opinion that the trial court did not err in ordering arbitration of the second grievance.
The employer’s argument that the second grievance filed by the union was an attempt to rearbitrate the same matters arbitrated in the first grievance requires only a brief comment. We noted earlier that the second grievance had references to a host of part-time and summer job offers allegedly devised to weaken the bargaining strength of the union and evade the arbitrator’s first award and to the employer’s right to terminate the grievants. It is patent these matters were not determined in the first arbitration since they arose subsequent to that arbitration.
Finally, the employer asserts that the circuit court erred by implicitly refusing to assert jurisdiction over its claim that the union’s strike was in violation of § 8(d) of the LMRA and, therefore, illegal.
The NLRB is vested with exclusive jurisdiction in determining whether under § 8, supra, certain activities constituted an unfair labor practice. Thus, state jurisdiction on the matter must yield. San Diego Building Trades Council v Garmon, 359 US 236; 79 S Ct 773; 3 L Ed 2d 775 (1959). We conclude, therefore, that the circuit court did not err by failing to pass upon the legality of the strike.
Accordingly, for all of the reasons delineated above, the order of the circuit court compelling the employer to comply with the first arbitration award and requiring the employer to proceed with an arbitration of subsequent grievances is affirmed without prejudice to the employer’s right to institute a suit for the damages allegedly caused by the union’s use of violence during the strike.
61 Stat 141; 29 USCA 158(a)(5).
61 Stat 142-143; 29 USCA 158(d).
61 Stat 141; 29 USCA 158(bX3).
61 Stat 146-147; 29 USCA 160(b).
61 Stat 137-138; 29 USCA 152(2), 152(6), 152(7).
The job openings listed in letter were as follows: the
Janitor 14 hrs per week
Janitor 16 * "
Kitchen Helper 19 " "
Kitchen Helper 18 " "
Kitchen Helper 15 " "
Dishwasher 24 " "
Laundry Helper Orderly 16 " " 16 " "
Hall maid Hall maid 22 " " 20 " "
Nurse’s aide (10) 16 " "
61 Stat 156-157; 29 USCA 185.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- LOCAL 1511 OF THE AMERICAN FEDERATION OF STATE, COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES, AFL-CIO v. GRAND LODGE OF FREE AND ACCEPTED MASONS OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published