Ark Las Vegas Restaurant Corp.Download PDFNational Labor Relations Board - Board DecisionsDec 16, 2004343 N.L.R.B. 1281 (N.L.R.B. 2004) Copy Citation ARK LAS VEGAS RESTAURANT CORP. 343 NLRB No. 126 1281 Ark Las Vegas Restaurant Corporation and Local Joint Executive Board of Las Vegas, Culinary Workers Union, Local 226, and Bartenders Un- ion, Local 165, affiliated with Hotel Employees and Restaurant Workers International Union, AFL–CIO. Cases 28–CA–14228, 28–CA–14228– 2, 28–CA–14228–6, 28–CA–14228–7, 28–CA– 14376, 28–CA–14463, and 28–CA–14543 December 16, 2004 SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION AND ORDER BY CHAIRMAN BATTISTA AND MEMBERS LIEBMAN AND WALSH On September 25, 2001, the National Labor Relations Board issued its Decision and Order in this proceeding.1 The Board found, inter alia, that the Respondent, Ark Las Vegas Restaurant Corp., violated Section 8(a)(1) of the Act by maintaining work rules forbidding its employees from “[r]eporting to property more than 30 minutes be- fore a shift is to start or staying on property more than 30 minutes after a shift ends,” and from “[r]eturning to the Company’s premises, other than as a guest, during un- scheduled hours.” Subsequently, the Respondent filed a petition for re- view of the Board’s Order with the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and the Board cross-petitioned for enforcement. On July 11, 2003, the court denied enforcement of the Board’s order with respect to the Respondent’s aforementioned rules (rules 30 and 45) and remanded the case to the Board for further proceedings consistent with its opinion.2 By letter dated December 11, 2003, the Board notified the parties that it had accepted the remand and invited the parties to file statements of position. Thereafter, the General Counsel, the Charging Party, and the Respon- dent filed position statements.3 The National Labor Relations Board has delegated its authority in this proceeding to a three-member panel. 1 335 NLRB 1284. 2 334 F.3d 99 (D.C. Cir. 2003). The court enforced the Board’s order in all other respects. The court affirmed the Board’s findings that the Respondent committed numerous violations of Sec. 8 (a)(1) and vio- lated Sec. 8(a)(3) by disciplining and terminating employees because of their union support. 3 The Charging party has requested that we grant this case “related- case” status” with New York New York, Case 28–CA–14519, et al, which is also before the Board on remand from the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. See 313 F.3d 585 (D.C. Cir. 2002). The Charging Party’s request is premised on the Board’s need “to ensure that its decisions are consistent.” We find it unnecessary to formally link these cases in order to ensure that our decisions are consistent, and we therefore deny the Charging Party’s request. The Board has considered the decision and the record in light of the court’s remand and the parties’ statements of position and finds, for reasons explained below, that the Respondent’s work rules violated Section 8(a)(1). I. BACKGROUND A. Relevant Facts The Respondent is a tenant of the New York New York Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Re- spondent operates three restaurants, a food court, and an employee dining room inside the New York New York Hotel and Casino. At all material times, the Respondent’s employee handbook included the following rules prohib- iting early arrival, late departure, and returning to the premises: Rule 30. Reporting to property more than 30 minutes before a shift is to start or staying on prop- erty more than 30 minutes after a shift ends unless authorized by a supervisor. Rule 45. Returning to the Company’s premises, other than as a guest, during unscheduled hours unless authorized in advance by management. The handbook indicated that violation of the rules was un- acceptable and could lead to disciplinary action “up to and including termination.” B. The Board’s Original Decision In its original decision, the Board adopted, without comment, the judge’s finding that rules 30 and 45 vio- lated Section 8(a)(1) of the Act. The judge found that the terms “premises” and “property” were unacceptably am- biguous and, indeed, that the word “property,” in “con- text appears to refer to the entire hotel, casino, outside grounds and parking lot complex.” 335 NLRB at 1290. Because of the terms’ ambiguity, and the failure of the Respondent to establish “valid business justification” for its rules, the judge concluded that, under Tri-County Medical Center, 222 NLRB 1089 (1976), the rules con- stituted an unwarranted intrusion on employees’ ability to engage in Section 7 activities, in violation of Section 8(a)(1). 335 NLRB at 1290.4 The Board adopted the judge’s finding and ordered Ark to rescind the off-duty employee access rules. Id. at 1284, 1285. 4 Although the judge specifically addressed the meaning of the term “property,” which appears in rule 45, but not 30, he apparently treated “property” and “premise” as being synonymous. Indeed, as stated by the court, “[t]he ALJ determined that the word “premises,” as well as “the word ‘property’ in context appear[ ] to refer to the entire hotel, casino, outside grounds, and parking lot complex.” 334 F. 3d at 109. As discussed below, the parties likewise treat rules 30 and 45 as indistin- guishable and address only whether they prohibited off-duty Ark em- ployees’ access to areas outside Ark’s leasehold—including the sur- rounding hotel, casino, and parking lot. DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD1282 C. The D.C. Circuit’s Decision On July 11, 2003, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit set aside the Board’s Order with respect to the Respondent’s access restrictions and remanded this issue to the Board for further proceedings. The court agreed that if Ark’s rules 30 and 45 denied off-duty em- ployees access to “the area outside Ark’s leasehold— including the surrounding hotel, casino and parking lot,”5 Ark had not established a sufficient business justification to support its access restrictions under Tri-County, and such rules were unlawful. However, because other pro- visions in the rules appeared inconsistent with such an interpretation, the court found it “doubtful that Ark’s no- access rules actually barred off-duty Ark employees from the surrounding hotel, casino and parking lot—or even from Ark’s public restaurants.” 334 F. 3d at 110. Spe- cifically, the court noted that “[o]nly a few pages before the rules in question, the employee handbook states: ‘All Ark Las Vegas employees are welcome to use the gam- bling facilities, when off-duty, at the Hotel. That is the explicit policy of New York-New York Hotel & Casino. . . . All of our employees, likewise, are welcome to dine at our restaurant outlets.’” Id. at 110. Further, the court said that, “in two other cases involving the New York New York Hotel and Casino, decided just two months before the instant case, the Board found that New York New York ‘permits, even encourages, off-duty employ- ees of Ark to visit and patronize the casino and the res- taurants in the complex, and to use routes open to the public . . . to enter or exit,’ and that Ark employees are ‘invited to spend off-duty hours using the facilities.’” Id. (quoting New York New York Hotel, LLC, 334 NLRB 762, 767 (2001), and New York New York Hotel, LLC, 334 NLRB 772, 778 (2001), enf. denied 313 F.3d 585 (D.C. Cir. 2002)). The court concluded that, based on the foregoing, “[i]t would be surprising if Ark’s work rules were truly intended to bar its employees from ac- cepting these express invitations made by both Ark and New York New York.” Id. at 110. However, the court found that the Respondent was unable to “bring any clar- ity to the question” of what areas they covered. Id. at 110. Because the court found that the Board “appears to have invalidated the rules based on a misunderstanding of their meaning, or at a minimum without considering the contradictory indications of their meaning described above,” and because the parties’ briefs did not clarify the issue, the court set aside the Board’s Section 8(a)(1) find- ing and remanded the issue for further consideration and explanation. Id. at 111. 5 334 F.3d at 109. (Emphasis in original). II. ANALYSIS Having considered all of the relevant evidence, we re- affirm our finding, for the reasons set forth below, that the Respondent’s rules 30 and 45 violate Section 8(a)(1) of the Act. As discussed above, the court agreed that the Respon- dent’s access policy with respect to its off-duty employ- ees, as set forth in rules 30 and 45, would be invalid un- der Tri-County if that policy covered areas outside Ark’s leasehold, including the surrounding New York New York hotel, casino, and parking lot. The court simply found that the Board’s determination that the rules had such an unlawful reach was not explained, and appeared questionable in light of other rule language and that it was “doubtful that Ark’s no-access rules actually barred off-duty Ark employees from the surrounding hotel, ca- sino and parking lot.” 334 F.3d at 110. Thus, the court found it unclear exactly what areas the rules did cover. In light of the court’s remand, and considering the re- cord as a whole, we find, contrary to the Respondent and our dissenting colleague, that the language of the rules reasonably could lead employees to conclude that they were prohibited from entering areas outside Ark’s lease- hold, including the surrounding New York New York hotel, casino, and parking lot, during their off-duty hours, unless they were returning to the hotel as paying guests. At the very least, employees reasonably could be con- fused by the rules’ use of the terms “property” and “premises.” Any ambiguity in the rules must be con- strued against the Respondent as the promulgator of the rules6 because rules 30 and 45 do not meet the require- ments set forth in Tri-County, we find that the mainte- nance of the rules would reasonably tend to chill em- ployees in the exercise of their Section 7 rights. As set forth above, rules 30 and 45 prohibit employees from reporting to the “property” more than 30 minutes before a shift is to start and from staying on the “prop- erty” more than 30 minutes after a shift ends and from returning to the Respondent’s “premises” other than as a guest, during unscheduled hours unless authorized by the Respondent. The employee handbook itself uses the terms “prop- erty” and “premises” on numerous occasions in different contexts. Taken as a whole, these references create an ambiguous message for employees as to the meaning of those terms. For example, the handbook’s “employee parking” section states that New York New York “cus- tomer parking areas are not available for employee park- 6 Lafayette Park Hotel, 326 NLRB 824, 828 (1998); Nor- ris/O’Bannon, 307 NLRB 1236, 1245 (1992). ARK LAS VEGAS RESTAURANT CORP. 1283 ing unless you are visiting the property as a guest.”7 The term “property” here clearly refers to the entire ho- tel/casino complex, and not only to the Respondent’s leasehold. The handbook’s “workplace violence” and “work place searches” sections use terms such as “our property” and “our premises” and “Ark premises” to des- ignate the areas where violence, stealing, drug use, and other inappropriate behavior are prohibited. Similarly, the handbook’s “work rules” section also prohibits the possession of dangerous weapons “on Company prem- ises, or while off the Company premises in the perform- ance of job duties”; stealing guest, employee, or Com- pany property, “including items found on the Company’s premises”; taking liquor or food off “Company premises without authorization”; and “using vulgar or profane language toward a guest, supervisor, or fellow employee while on premises.” By contrast, where a particular area is intended, the handbook specifically describes it. For example, the “smoking policy” section states that em- ployees are permitted to smoke only in designated areas and specifically provides that “[s]moking in private of- fices, work areas, public areas or stairwells is prohib- ited.” These provisions contain general references to “prop- erty” and “premises,” occasionally modified by the term “Company.” The provisions appear at times to refer to the Respondent’s property, but at other times to non- leasehold areas. In these circumstances, it is unclear whether the references to “property” and “premises” in rules 30 and 45 were meant only to apply to the Respon- dent’s leasehold areas, or were also meant to reach all areas of the hotel complex and not just the Respondent’s interior areas. The court found that if the references in rules 30 and 45 to “property” and “premises” include all areas of the hotel and casino facility, then the rules clearly violate Tri-County. We find that employees could reasonably understand rules 30 and 45 to refer broadly to the entire hotel property—and consequently to forbid them both to remain on, and return to, areas that otherwise would be accessible to them as off-duty employees. Further, as discussed, the judge noted that the word “property” in the “hotel-industry parlance” generally refers to the entire hotel, casino, outside grounds, and parking lot complex.8 7 The Respondent maintained a separate parking area for employees who drove to work and provided shuttle buses to the hotel. 8 The Respondent argues that the word “premises” has been used by other hotel/casinos in their rules and the Board did not find the use of the word impermissibly broad or ambiguous. We reject this argument. The Board in the cases cited by the Respondent did not address the issue, presented here, concerning the meaning of the terms “property” and “premises.” In Santa Fe Hotel & Casino, 331 NLRB 723 (2000), the Board found it unnecessary to rely on the judge’s discussion of the In these circumstances, we find that rules 30 and 45 vio- late Section 8(a)(1) of the Act. Although the dissent argues that the rules do not cover areas outside the Respondent’s facilities, the rules do not explicitly exclude such areas. Further, contrary to the dissent, it is not clear that the Respondent’s rules would apply only to the Respondent’s own property. Since the Respondent operated on New York New York Hotel and Casino property, it would make sense for the Respondent to prescribe behavior for its employees on both its own leased premises and New York New York’s premises, which employees were required to transverse to and from work. Indeed, the Respondent’s employee handbook states that [M]any of the policies in our handbook are in part the result of our tenancy at the New York-New York Hotel Casino. Employee entrances, parking, drug testing, name tags, conduct at the hotel while off and on duty are just some of the rules we have included as it relates to Hotel policies, not necessarily our policies. Moreover, even if the Respondent, as the dissent main- tains, did not intend for the rules to reach beyond the interior of the Respondent’s property, that intent was not clearly communicated to the employees. See, e.g., La- fayette Park Hotel, supra, 326 NLRB at 828. Conse- quently, contrary to the dissent, employees could rea- sonably interpret rules 30 and 45 as barring them from engaging in Section 7 activities in areas outside the Re- spondent’s leasehold, including the surrounding New York New York Hotel, casino, and parking lot. The court stated that because the employee handbook provides that off-duty employees are welcome to use the gambling facilities and to dine at the Respondent’s res- taurants, “[i]t would be surprising if Ark’s work rules were truly intended to bar its employees from accepting these express invitations made by both Ark and New York New York.” 334 F.3d at 110. However, we find these provisions do not contradict the message that off- duty employees may not be anywhere on the hotel prop- Board’s application of Tri-County to Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino, 310 NLRB 1162 (1993), and Sears Co., 300 NLRB 804 (1990). The Board agreed with the judge, however, that there was no evidence of a rule banning off-duty employees’ access to the facilities. As in the present case, the employer there invited off-duty employees to gamble, partake of entertainment events, and to eat and drink in bars and restaurants. However, contrary to the facts here, the judge noted that there was “no record evidence that Respondent ever maintained a published employ- ment rule, prohibiting off-duty employees from remaining or returning to its facility.” 331 NLRB at 728. President Riverboat Casinos of Missouri, 329 NLRB 77, 82 fn. 13 (1999), cited by the Respondent, is inapposite. The issue there concerned the validity of the employer’s no solicitation rule. DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD1284 erty except as paying guests. The issue the court raises is whether employees would understand that the term “guest” encompassed the individual’s status as an “em- ployee” with Section 7 rights. However, the Respon- dent’s own rules are ambiguous as to the distinction be- tween “off-duty employees” and “guests.” The hand- book’s “Employee as Guest” section allows “off-duty” employees to use the gambling facilities “at the Hotel. That is the explicit policy of New York-New York Hotel & Casino.” That section also indicates employees are “welcome” to dine at the restaurants at a reduced price. Although this provision refers to “off duty” employees, it is clear that it is meant to apply to employees entering the premises as paying guests, and not to employees re- turning to the premises as nonpaying, off-duty employees exercising Section 7 rights. Moreover, in the New York New York9 cases cited by the court, New York New York argued that because Ark’s off-duty employees were on the hotel and casino premises only as guests, comparable to the general public, they were prohibited from engag- ing in Section 7 activities on the hotel and casino prop- erty.10 Thus, we find that those provisions reinforce the prohibition of rules 30 and 45 by allowing the off-duty employees on the hotel and casino premises only if their status is that of paying customers, and not that of em- ployees with Section 7 rights.11 We therefore find rules 30 and 45 to be unlawfully overbroad because they did not meet the requirements set forth in Tri-County.12 We would at best consider the rules to be ambiguous, as reasonably open to our inter- pretation as to the dissent’s interpretation. Any ambigu- ity in the rules must be construed against the Respondent as the promulgator of the rules.13 Accordingly, we reaf- firm the Board’s earlier finding that the Respondent vio- 9 334 NLRB 762 (2001); 334 NLRB 772 (2001), enf. denied 313 F.3d 585 (D.C. Cir. 2002). 10 313 F.3d at 587, 590. 11 The Respondent states that New York New York’s asserted re- strictions on the Respondent’s employees’ rights do not render the Respondent’s rules unlawful. The issue here, however, as framed by the court’s remand, is what employees would reasonably understand the rules to mean. As noted above, the Respondent’s handbook specifically informed employees that some of its rules reflected New York New York’s rules, since the Respondent was operating as a tenant on New York New York’s property. Thus, it is not unreasonable for employees to assume that New York New York’s rules against Sec. 7 activity on its property fairly reflect the meaning of the Respondent’s rules con- cerning access to the property. 12 Although the Respondent again contends that its rules serve le- gitimate business needs, we agree with the court that the Respondent’s proffered business reasons for the rules do not justify the denial of access by off-duty employees to exterior nonworking areas of the Re- spondent’s premises such as the hotel, casino, and parking lot. 13 Lafayette Park Hotel, 326 NLRB 824, 828 (1998), enfd. 203 F. 3d 52 (D.C. 1999); Norris/O’Bannon, 307 NLRB 1236, 1245 (1992). lated Section 8(a)(1) by maintaining rules 30 and 45 in its employee handbook.14 SUPPLEMENTAL ORDER The National Labor Relations Board reaffirms its prior Order in relevant part and orders that the Respondent, Ark Las Vegas Restaurant Corp., Las Vegas, Nevada, its officers, agents, successors, and assigns, shall 1. Cease and desist from (a) Maintaining a rule barring employees from the premises 30 minutes before their shift and requiring them to leave within 30 minutes after their shift. (b) Maintaining a rule barring employees from return- ing to the premises, other than as a guest, during un- scheduled hours. (c) Telling employees that they must comply with an unlawful rule barring them from arriving on the premises more than 30 minutes before their shift begins and re- quiring them to leave within 30 minutes after their shift ends. (d) In any like or related manner interfering with, re- straining or coercing employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed them by Section 7 of the Act. 2. Take the following affirmative action necessary to effectuate the policies of the Act. (a) Rescind its rules contained in the employee hand- book barring employees from the premises more than 30 minutes before their shift and requiring them to leave within 30 minutes of the time their shift ends, and bar- ring employees from returning to the premises, other than as a guest, during unscheduled hours; and notify employees that the rules have been rescinded to the same extent that the unlawful rules were publicized. (b) Within 14 days after service by Region 28, post at its restaurants and hiring offices in Las Vegas, Nevada, copies of the attached notice marked “Appendix.”15 Copies of the notice, on forms provided by the Regional Director for Region 28, after being signed by the Re- spondent’s authorized representative, shall be posted by the Respondent and maintained for 60 consecutive days 14 In the Board’s original decision, in addition to finding that the Re- spondent violated Sec. 8(a)(1) by maintaining rules 30 and 45, the Board found that the Respondent violated Sec. 8(a)(1) by demanding that employee Ron Isomura comply with Rule 30. See 335 NLRB at 1292–1293. Because the court remanded the Board’s determination that rules 30 and 45 were unlawful, the court also remanded the Sec. 8(a)(1) finding regarding Isomura. See 334 F.3d at 106 fn. 3. Because we find that the maintenance of rules 30 and 45 violated Sec. 8(a)(1) by demanding that Isomura comply with rule 30. 15 If this Order is enforced by a judgment of a United States court of appeals, the words in the notice reading “Posted by Order of the Na- tional Labor Relations Board’ shall read “Posted Pursuant to a Judg- ment of the United States Court of Appeals Enforcing an Order of the National Labor Relations Board.” ARK LAS VEGAS RESTAURANT CORP. 1285 in conspicuous places including all places where notices to employees are customarily posted. Reasonable steps shall be taken by the Respondent to ensure that the no- tices are not altered, defaced, or covered by any other material. In the event that, during the pendency of these proceedings, the Respondent has gone out of business or closed the facility involved in these proceedings, the Re- spondent shall duplicate and mail, at its own expense, a copy of the notice to all current employees and former employees employed by the Respondent at any time since March 13, 1997. (b) Within 21 days after service by the region, file with the Regional Director a sworn certification of a responsi- ble official on a form provided by the region attesting to the steps that the Respondent has taken to comply. CHAIRMAN BATTISTA, dissenting. Contrary to my colleagues, I do not find that the Gen- eral Counsel has established that the Respondent violated Section 8(a)(1) of the Act by maintaining rules 30 and 45 in its employee handbook. Rule 30 prohibits employees from “[r]eporting to property more than 30 minutes before a shift is to start or staying on property more than 30 minutes after a shift ends, unless authorized by a supervisor.” Rule 45 pro- hibits employees from “[r]eturning to the Company’s premises, other than as a guest, during unscheduled hours unless authorized in advance by management.” This case involves only an attack on the facial validity of a rule. There is no evidence of unlawful application; indeed there is no evidence that any employee has been deterred from engaging in Section 7 activity. Thus, the rule is unlawful only if, hypothetically, we can say that the rule can reasonably be read as prohibiting Section 7 activity.1 The Section 7 right involved herein is the right of employees to engage in Section 7 activity during their off-duty hours. That right exists only if such activity occurs outside of the Respondent’s premises.2 The Re- spondent’s premises here are its restaurants. Thus, the issue is whether the rule, on its face, can reasonably be read to prohibit off-duty employees from engaging in Section 7 activity outside the restaurants. I conclude that the General Counsel has not shown that a reasonable employee would read the rule that way. That is, a rea- sonable employee would read the rules as being confined to the restaurants. Rule 45 specifically refers to “the Company’s prem- ises.” The rule appears in the Respondent’s handbook, 1 Adtranz ABB Daimler-Benz Transp. N.A. Inc. v. NLRB, 253 F.3d 19 (D.C. Cir. 2001). 2 Tri-County Medical Center, 222 NLRB 1089. Inasmuch as no party attacks the validity of that case, I shall accept it as the applicable law. and thus “the Company” is clearly the Respondent. Al- though rule 30 refers to “property,” the parties have treated the two rules synonymously. Thus, the term “property” refers to the “Company premises” mentioned in the other rule. Further, rule 30 speaks of “reporting to” the property. The only property to which these em- ployees “report” is the Respondent’s property. Finally, matters relating to activities on property other than the Respondent’s property are set forth in other provisions. These provisions encourage patronage, regulate parking, etc. The essential point, understood by any reasonable employee, is that rules 30 and 45 pertain only to the Re- spondent’s property, and other rules pertain to the prop- erty of others, i.e., the hotel and casino. In sum, absent evidence of unlawful application, I would not seek to stretch these rules beyond their rea- sonable meaning. More specifically, in the absence of such evidence, I would not infer that a reasonable em- ployee would read rules 30 and 45 as prohibiting Section 7 activity outside the restaurants.3 APPENDIX NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES POSTED BY ORDER OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD An Agency of the United States Government The National Labor Relations Board has found that we vio- lated Federal labor law and has ordered us to post and obey this notice. FEDERAL LAW GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO Form, join, or assist any union Choose representatives to bargain with us on your behalf Act together with other employees for your bene- fit and protection Choose not to engage in any of these protected activities. WE WILL NOT maintain any rule which bars employees from our premises 30 minutes before their shift or re- quires them to leave within 30 minutes after their shift. WE WILL NOT maintain any rule which bars employees from returning to our premises, other than as a guest, during unscheduled hours. WE WILL NOT tell employees that they must comply with an unlawful rule barring them from arriving on the premises more than 30 minutes before their shift begins and requiring them to leave within 30 minutes after their shift ends. 3 Consistent therewith, I would find that the Respondent did not vio- late Sec. 8(a)(1) by demanding that employee Ron Isomura comply with rule 30. DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD1286 WE WILL NOT in any like or related manner interfere with, restrain, or coerce our employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed them by Section 7 of the Act. WE WILL rescind our unlawful rules contained in the employee handbook barring employees from the prem- ises more than 30 minutes before their shift and requiring them to leave within 30 minutes of the time their shift ends, and barring employees from returning to our prem- ises, other than as a guest, during unscheduled hours, and WE WILL notify employees that the rules have been re- scinded to the same extent that the unlawful rules were publicized. ARK LAS VEGAS RESTAURANT CORPORATION Copy with citationCopy as parenthetical citation