Bentonite Performance Minerals

National Labor Relations Board - Administrative Judge Opinions

Jun 2, 2008

27-CA-020596 (N.L.R.B. Jun. 2, 2008)

JD(SF)–24–08
Colony, WY
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
BEFORE THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
DIVISION OF JUDGES
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
BENTONITE PERFORMANCE MINERALS, LLC, a
PRODUCT AND SERVICE LINE OF HALLIBURTON
ENERGY SERVICES, INC.
and
INTERNATIONAL CHEMICAL WORKERS UNION
COUNCIL/UNITED FOOD AND COMMERCIAL
WORKERS UNION, CLC, LOCAL 353C
Cases 27–CA–20596
27–CA–20681
27–CA–20697
Nancy S. Brandt and Isabel C. Acosta, Denver, Colo., for the
General Counsel.
Howard S. Linzy of The Kullman Firm, New Orleans, La., for
Respondent.
Robert W. Lowrey, Akron, Ohio, for the Charging Party.
DECISION
Statement of the Case
JAMES M. KENNEDY, Administrative Law Judge: This case was tried before me
for 7 days in Belle Fourche, South Dakota, December 18-21, 2007 and January 23-25, 2008.
The hearing was pursuant to an amended consolidated complaint issued on December 3,
2007 1 by the Regional Director for Region 27 of the National Labor Relations Board. The
complaint is based upon unfair labor practice charges filed by International Chemical Workers
Union Council/United Food and Commercial Workers Union, CLC, Local 353C (the Union) on
August 16, November 2 and November 26. It alleges that Bentonite Performance Minerals,
LLC, a Product and Service Line of Halliburton Energy Services, Inc., (Respondent) has
engaged in certain violations of §8(a)(1) and (5) of the Act. Respondent denies the allegations.
The issues presented here are relatively simple. The complaint asserts that Respondent
induced its employees into repudiating the Union as their representative. In the course of this
campaign, Respondent is alleged to have coercively interrogated its employees, promised them
benefits and induced them to create disaffection petitions. The complaint goes on to assert that
Respondent improperly utilized the results of those disaffection petitions to justify withdrawing
recognition of the Union and following the withdrawal made unlawful unilateral changes in the
employees' wages and working conditions. As will be seen, the disaffection solicitation
occurred over a period of 4 days in July 2007.

1 All dates are 2007 unless otherwise noted.
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The parties were given full opportunity to participate, to introduce relevant evidence, to
examine and cross-examine witnesses and to file briefs. All parties have filed briefs which have
been carefully considered. Based upon the entire record of the case, as well as my observation
of the witnesses and their demeanor, I make the following:
Findings of Fact
I. Jurisdiction
Respondent is a Delaware corporation with operations near Colony, Wyoming 2 where it
mines and processes bentonite, a mineral used in petroleum extraction. In the course of its
operations at Colony, it annually sells and ships its products valued in excess of $50,000
directly to points outside Wyoming. Accordingly, it has admitted, and I find it to be an employer
engaged in commerce within the meaning §2(2), (6) and (7) of the Act. In addition, it has
admitted the Union is a labor organization within the meaning of §2(5) of the Act.
II. Background and Introduction to the Issues
Bentonite is a type of clay which is used as a component of drilling mud; it also has a
large number of other commercial uses. The Colony plant strip-mines the mineral at various
locations within easy reach of that facility. It is then hauled to the plant where it is dried, milled,
packed in various formats and shipped by both truck and rail. Colony is remote, located in the
extreme northeast corner of Wyoming. The nearest town is Belle Fourche, South Dakota, about
20 miles southeast. Most of Respondent’s employees live in Belle Fourche, though some live in
Spearfish, Sturgis or other nearby communities. They can get to work by driving to Colony
themselves or ride the shift van from a parking lot in Belle Fourche. The plant currently
operates 7 days a week, with four rotating shifts, three shifts on and the fourth off. On
Wednesdays, the shifts are rotated, beginning with a new swing shift. The day and swing shifts
have one day off each week; the graveyard shift two days off.
The Colony operation consists of administrative offices, the processing plant, a packing
location, and a warehouse/shipping facility, as well as areas for the Boragel and Baramix
product lines. From Colony it also directs the exploration for new mineral sites (through crews
known as drillers) and the strip mining itself. These field employees, as they are known, work
10-hour days, taking advantage of the early daylight hours.
In 1948 the Union (through predecessors) was certified as the exclusive collective
bargaining representative of the Colony employees in a production and maintenance bargaining
unit, then operated by a predecessor. Halliburton acquired the company from Dresser
Industries in 1998. The most recent collective bargaining contract, having a term of 6 years,
was signed in October 2001 and was set to expire on October 21, 2007. Events beginning on
July 9, 4 months prior to that expiration date, are the subject of this complaint.

2 The record shows Respondent has another mine and plant in Lovell, Wyoming. It may
operate facilities at other sites as well. Locations other than Colony are not at issue here.
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As of the week of July 9, according to a stipulation, there were 69 employees in the
Colony bargaining unit. The Colony managerial staff at that time consisted of senior plant
manager Mike Houston, plant manager Danny Oaks, and production manager Ray Dell.
Supervisors who were involved here include Lyle Droppers and Gerry Bergum. 3
III. Principal Facts
The AmericInn Meeting; Monday, July 9
Ostensibly to prepare for the upcoming negotiations with the Union which were
anticipated to begin some time before the October 21 expiration date, Respondent called a
meeting of its Colony management and some advisors from elsewhere within the Halliburton
system. The meeting was held at the largest hotel/motel in Belle Fourche, the AmericInn, on
July 9. The three from Colony were Houston, Oaks and Dell. Other people attending were
Howard Linzy, Respondent’s attorney (and representative in this matter); Nora Polanis
(described as a "super paralegal"); 4 Pat Goen, a records administrator from Wyoming; and Ed
Stanworth, from Halliburton's Denver office. Two others participated by telephone from their
offices in Texas, Monica Thurman and Steve Gray. An earlier meeting had been held in May
involving the same participants.
At the May meeting, according to Oaks, he had requested a sheet comparing employee
benefits under the collective bargaining contract with the benefits of employees who were not
working under that contract. Such a document was presented during the July 9 meeting. This
document, and an identical one on which Oaks wrote some additional material, became a
significant tool in the disaffection solicitation which began that evening.
During the meeting, according to Houston, Dell commented that he was aware that a
number of the employees were unhappy with the Union and wanted to get rid of it. Dell
asserted that he had advised those employees, apparently over a long period time, that he
didn't know how to get rid of the Union, but that if he ever learned he would tell them. According
to Houston, Thurman responded by telling the group that to get rid of the Union: ". . . [T]he
employees could pass a petition, and that the petition needed to say something as simple as ‘I
don't want a union’ or ‘I don't want the Union,’ and that on the petition they needed to sign, print,
and date their -- sign their name, print their name, and mark the date."
Thurman's remark allegedly triggered a flurry of activity.
Oaks testified that the meeting shifted from negotiation preparations to the prospect of
decertification. In addition, the participants began discussing the time frame in which that could
happen, concluding that the timing "was right."
The first thing that happened was that shift supervisor Gerry Bergum was summoned to
the meeting, arriving about 2 p.m. He had been called because his swing shift was scheduled
to begin work at 4 p.m. Oaks gave Bergum a copy of the benefit comparison chart. Later that
evening at the Boragel station, Bergum gave it, or a copy, to bag handler John Preisner, saying
that he wanted the employees to have everything that Halliburton had to offer. Preisner had

3 The other shift supervisors were Donnie Staley and Lawrence Wattier. The mining crew
supervisor was Martin Stroschein. The drillers reported to a mining engineer, Joel Severin
There was also a maintenance foreman, not involved here.
4 Ms. Polanis assisted Mr. Linzy during the hearing.
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worked for Respondent for a little over a year. Preisner testified: "He [Bergum] asked me what I
felt about the Union. And I said I didn't care if it stayed or went at that time. And he asked me if
I would sign a petition to get the Union out, and I said, yes, that I would. And he told me what to
write on the paper, ‘I do not want the Union.’ And then he had me sign it, date it, and print my
name on it." Bergum does not disagree with Preisner on the point. He does assert that he did
not show Preisner the comparison chart until after Preisner had created and signed the petition
sheet. He also says Preisner took the signed sheet with him and he does not know what
happened to it. 5
Similarly, Dell decided to leave the meeting at about 4 p.m. His purpose was to go to
the parking lot in Belle Fourche to meet the shift van in order to meet with Dan McGinnis, who
was getting off shift. Dell explained "because knowing of his dissatisfaction, the timing was
right. I learned that the timing was right that I could now share this information with him. There
was something he could do about it now." He further said, "I felt that [McGinnis] would be a
good person to approach to see if his sentiments were still the same."
At the parking lot Dell called McGinnis over to his truck. He said 'I know how you felt
about the Union the past several years, Dan ... if you still feel that way, now is the time you can
do something about this.' When McGinnis asked what to do, Dell told him, "[H]e could circulate
a petition." When McGinnis asked what the petition should say, Dell told him to put a heading
on it saying he didn't want the Union, to print his name, sign it and date it. 6 McGinnis did not
reject the idea and said he would think about it. He also advised Dell that he had been
scheduled to go to Kaycee, Wyoming the following morning as part of the drill crew.

5 Bergum's testimony:
[WITNESS BERGUM] I went over to check off the truck for him, which is standard procedure.
When we were done we went into Boragel there and I told John, I said, "We've conversed
before about the union John, and you've told me you were interesting in getting it out of here,
and if you were still interested in doing that this is the time to do it."
Q. Was anyone else present besides you and Mr. Preisner during that conversation?
A. No, sir.
Q. When you made that statement to Mr. Preisner, what did he say?
A. "Yes, I still have the same opinion. I don't feel the union's doing any good for me and I'd like
to get it out."
Q. And what, if anything, occurred then?
A. And then he asked, "What do I need to do?"
Q. And what happened next?
A. I said, "If you want to, what you need to do is take a piece of paper, put on the top of it, I do
not want the union, sign it, date it, and print your name."
Q. After you said that, what did he say, if anything?
A. He said, "Well, I don't have a piece of paper."
Q. What happened next?
A. Well, there was a piece of paper laying over there on the -- we have a little table over there
at Boragel where he keeps supplies and stuff, and I said, "Well, here's a piece of paper for you if
you want to do this."
Q. What happened next?
A. He took the paper and printed on the top of it, "I do not want the union." Signed his name,
printed it, and dated it.
6 The only significant difference between Dell's version and McGinnis' is that McGinnis says
that he thought up the language for the petition on his own.
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Dell returned to the hotel and reported the outcome of his conversation to the meeting
which was still in progress. He told them that McGinnis was scheduled to go to Kaycee in the
morning. Oaks responded by telling Dell to call McGinnis and tell him not to go to Kaycee but to
meet with Dell at his office instead. Dell made the call and Oaks arranged for McGinnis's trip to
be rescheduled for Wednesday.
In the meantime, Bergum had been persuading Preisner as described above. Among
other things, Bergum asked Preisner if he could get anyone else to sign the petition. Preisner
said he could. Preisner says that Bergum told him not to speak to fellow employees Rick Reid,
Glade Lynch, or Jerry Rose, because they would not sign. Bergum also told him that he was
going to train him and two other employees, Robert Stack and Jonathan Henderson, that night
on a computer training program known as iLearn. While working their way toward those two
employees, they came across Will Boggs, the hopper shack worker. Bergum allowed Preisner
to enter the hopper shack and speak with Boggs about the petition. Boggs signed it. Some
time afterwards, during their evening "dinner" in the breakroom, Bergum collected Preisner,
Stack and Henderson and took them to the office where they spent about 15 minutes being
taught how to use the iLearn program.
According to Preisner, at the end of the training session, Bergum got up and announced
that Preisner had something to say to them, and left the room. Using the comparison chart
given him earlier, Preisner went through it with Stack and Henderson as Preisner attempted to
persuade them to sign the petition. A question came up concerning the concept of "cliff
vesting." Unable to explain it, Preisner asked Bergum to return. During the course of his
explanation, Bergum spoke about the fact that nonunion Halliburton employees enjoyed better
vacation benefits and had greater safety boot allowances. Eventually, Stack and Henderson
signed the petition. Preisner testified that he gave the signed petition to Bergum.
Both Stack and Henderson corroborated Preisner. Henderson adds that Bergum also
explained that families would have better life insurance and long-term disability under the
Halliburton plan than the Union could offer. Stack remembered Bergum saying that at another
plant (unclear whether it was a Halliburton facility or one run by a competitor) that the
employees had gotten a raise when they threw out their union and he thought it "most likely" it
would happen at Colony if it went "union free."
Bergum's testimony is not significantly different from that of the three employees. He
admits that he gave Preisner the comparison chart Oaks had given him and told Preisner,
pointing to the appropriate spots on the chart, "Here’s what I get being a nonunion employee,
and [what] other Halliburton nonunion employees get, and here is what you get from being in
the Union." Bergum does contend that he told Stack and Henderson that he could not
guarantee any raises, but he did admit to showing the different benefits per the chart.
I have no difficulty crediting Preisner, Stack and Henderson where Bergum's version
varies from theirs.
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Signature Solicitation, Tuesday, July 10
As directed the night before, McGinnis 7 reported to Dell's office on Tuesday morning.
He recalls Oaks joined them in Dell's office. McGinnis acknowledges that he has never been a
proponent of the Union and that his feelings were reasonably well known throughout the plant.
Referencing their conversation at the parking lot the evening before, McGinnis asked them "... if
I was going to go and talk to the people about whether they wanted the Union or not, what did I
have to sell them with? What was there? You know, why would somebody just listen to me and
say, yeah, I don't want the Union anymore?"
At that point either Dell or Oaks produced the comparison chart. McGinnis says that
they did not really discuss its contents and he decided that he would take it home to read it
more thoroughly. He left the meeting and went to work.
In addition, McGinnis said Dell told him that if he wanted to get rid of the Union he'd
"have to get signatures on this piece of paper saying that people -- having them sign and date it,
that they did not want the Union."
Dell has a slightly different version, but essentially confirms what McGinnis said. He
varies only slightly with the details. Dell testified McGinnis started the conversation by asking
how "to go about this Union thing?" It was Dell who called Oaks to assist. He remembers
McGinnis raising his long-held issues, a twelve hour day, higher wages and a 401(k) plan. Dell
says they both told McGinnis that they couldn't promise anything, that changes would have to
come from above. McGinnis observed that when a nearby competitor, American Colloid, had
gone nonunion, its employees had received a pay raise. Dell again said that they were not
promising or guaranteeing anything. It should be noted here, that McGinnis, on cross, testified
that neither Dell nor Oaks ever mentioned not guaranteeing anything during this conversation.
Curiously, Oaks asserts that he never had any conversation with McGinnis where they
discussed the need for a petition, essentially denying being in this meeting.
McGinnis did not actually began soliciting signatures until following day, Wednesday
July 11, as will be seen below.
Ivan Bierema is the appointed lead of the drill crew. On Tuesday, about 1 p.m., he was
at the field shop some distance away from the main plant. There he encountered McGinnis who
showed him the comparison chart. The two had some sort of discussion about its contents.
There is no evidence that McGinnis solicited any signature at that point, but it gave Bierema
some pause.
About 1:30 p.m., Bierema and one of his crew members, Dick Holdhusen, 8 drove to the
plant in a pickup truck in order to deliver some drill samples to the lab. While sitting in the
pickup, senior plant manager Mike Houston and production manager Ray Dell approached
Bierema on the driver's side. Momentarily, Dell went to the passenger side where he spoke with
Holdhusen at the same time Houston greeted Bierema.

7 McGinnis had worked, at that time, for Respondent for approximately 10 years, principally
in the plant. He had transferred to the drill crew in the spring of 2007. His duties included
exploration, but also involved pit preparation, pumping water from the pits and cleaning and
repairing cattle guards.
8 Holdhusen recalls the date of the conversation as July 10, because that was his birthday.
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Bierema testified that Houston asked if they had signed the paper. When Bierema
responded he had not, Houston asked why not. Bierema said that he needed to know the dollar
amount for the raise before he signed anything. Bierema reports that Houston said that he
couldn't say, but as manager he had the "power to do stuff." Bierema agrees that Houston did
not promise any specific item, but did say "It would be better around here."
Holdhusen testified that either he or Bierema asked Houston and Dell if they could
provide a dollar amount or salary amount they would get if the Union was voted out. He
remembered Houston responding that he didn't know, it was above his head, but Houston then
asked if they trusted him. Holdhusen also recalls Dell mentioning a plant in Texas which had
given up its union and had gotten a wage increase.
Houston described a conversation similar to that described by Bierema and Holdhusen
at the pickup truck, but put it on July 11. He asserts that Bierema asked him about a petition
going around and asked Houston if he should sign it. He told Bierema he couldn't tell him
whether to sign or not to sign. He asserts that Bierema asked if they would get more money if
they got rid of the Union, but he responded that he couldn't guarantee anything "if the Union
goes." He says that Bierema asked him if the benefits would change, and he responded "No,
Ivan, I can't promise you anything about any benefits changing." Houston also testified that
Holdhusen asked what would happen to his Union pension. Houston replied he did not know.
He did offer that the employees wouldn't lose their 401(k) if the Union was voted out and he
would find out what would happen with the Union pension. He also told them that he would be
available to answer any questions and they could come see him any time. He denied asking
Bierema and Holdhusen if they had signed a petition.
Dell also places the conversation on Wednesday, July 11. Dell recalls the conversation
as initially being about hunting, but that it quickly turned to the 401(k) plan and whether it would
improve or stay the same. He remembers Holdhusen raised questions about the comparison
sheet, which Dell assumes Holdhusen had seen earlier. Dell, somewhat vaguely, testified he
told Holdhusen, "[I told him] kind of what, you know, what my program so to speak, what I have
and kind of what he has. I just gave him my analogy of the comparison." Dell's lack of
specificity here concerns me; it seems evasive when it was not necessary. In any event, Dell
remembered Holdhusen asking a question through Bierema: what would they get if they got rid
of the Union? Dell says he responded, apparently before Houston did, "Dick, we as supervisors
here at the Colony have no, you know, no authority to guarantee anybody anything."
It is clear from these early instances that the comparison chart would play a major role in
the effort to oust the Union. In this regard, I make two observations: first, Respondent, pointing
to the testimony of its managers at the AmericInn meeting, asserts that the document had been
prepared solely for the purpose of preparing for upcoming collective bargaining negotiations.
Second, it is clear from its face that it had no such purpose. It is entitled "Comparison of ESG
and Colony Benefits." ESG stands for Energy Services Group, which is a Halliburton
designation for a group of companies that fall within its framework. Respondent is one of a
number of Halliburton companies which have relatively uniform wages and working conditions.
The Colony plant, on the other hand, was different from those other Halliburton subsidiaries in
the ESG group, because employees' working conditions and wages were governed by the
Union's collective bargaining contract.
It was certainly valuable for management to know what the existing working conditions
were in Colony. It would also have been handy to know what goals management might expect
to seek at collective bargaining. What it did not need was a list of items showing how the ESG
benefits equaled or exceeded those that the Union had negotiated in the past. The only
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purpose such a chart with that information could serve would be to persuade employees that
union representation was unnecessary and that they would do better off ousting the Union and
accepting the ESG standards. It could have had no other purpose. I therefore do not accept
that the idea of jettisoning the Union arose due to sudden advice from a Houston-based
executive. It was planned in advance – perhaps in May, but possibly earlier.
In any event, it makes little difference whether the Bierema-Holdhusen/Houston-Dell
encounter occurred on July 10 or July 11. In either case, the comparison sheet had made its
rounds to the bargaining unit employees in question. Its very existence was an implied promise
that without the Union the ESG benefits would replace what had been lost, and the replacement
value exceeded what the Union had been able to negotiate.
Parenthetically, it should be also observed that the comparison sheet was an apples v.
oranges circumstance: the Union's negotiated benefits and wages had been established in the
contract almost 6 years earlier. Clearly such a long-term had risked that the economic needs of
employees might be outrun by economic factors during that time frame. That risk had come to
fruition as Respondent had flexibility with its ESG standards which the collective bargaining
contract did not provide, indeed, did not want. In essence, what the comparison chart did was
to compare outdated matters with more current ones. Respondent took full advantage of this
anomaly.
So even if Houston's testimony is accepted and one were to conclude that Bierema
began the conversation as Houston said, by asking if he should sign the petition and if the
Union were ousted could they expect better conditions, the whole conversation was triggered
much as planned. The purpose of the chart was to spark this very discussion.
However, given Houston's other behavior, described below, it is difficult to accept his
version over that of Bierema and Holdhusen. Houston was directly involved in the solicitation of
signatures from other employees. This was a similar appeal, perhaps more indirect, but
nonetheless a solicitation. In addition, the conversation may be characterized as a subtle
interrogation of the two employees to determine whether or not they had signed a petition. If
they had, no further action was needed. If they had not, additional effort could be seen to be
needed. That is why Houston concluded with his offer to make himself available to answer any
questions that the two might have had.
There is also testimony that McGinnis had begun soliciting signatures that day, 9 despite
his initial hesitation, and his acknowledgement that he actually began the next day, Wednesday
July 11. As with the Bierema-Holdhusen/Houston-Dell encounter, there is some disagreement
concerning the date he started. Nevertheless, McGinnis testified that he did not go to Kaycee
until Thursday, July 12. Moreover, all of the signatures he solicited [Jt.Exh. 2, p. 3] are dated
July 11.
It is fair to say, therefore, that the bulk of the signatures was solicited between
Wednesday, July 11 and most of Thursday, July 12. I therefore proceed to Wednesday.

9 Employee Rick Bevier recalled that he observed McGinnis soliciting on two occasions in
the field on July 10. Since all the signatures on his petition are dated July 11, I believe Bevier to
have been mistaken regarding the date.
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Signature Solicitation, Wednesday, July 11
On July 11, four employees began soliciting signatures on home-made petitions. These
were Daniel McGinnis, Brad Kirksey, Jeffrey Westland, and Martin Brosnahan.
Daniel McGinnis. McGinnis, noted above, had not immediately accepted the Dell/Oaks
suggestion that he begin soliciting disaffection petitions from his fellows. But, he said, on
Wednesday he met again with both Dell and Oaks and engaged in another discussion
concerning the issues that bothered him most. These were his desire for a 12-hour shift and a
pay increase. During this conversation, McGinnis says Dell told him the company would not be
able to guarantee him anything, repeating it several times. Nevertheless, the comparison chart
was at work and McGinnis, reasonably, came to believe that if the Union was removed, the ESG
conditions set forth in the chart would prevail. As a result, he agreed to begin soliciting. He
remembers Dell giving him a blank notebook to use to obtain signatures.
Dell testified that the Wednesday morning meeting described by McGinnis did not occur.
He testified that the only meeting he had with McGinnis was on Tuesday, July 10. Oaks would
not even agree with Dell that he had met with McGinnis on Tuesday, though Dell had called him
to the meeting. He denied ever meeting with McGinnis concerning disaffection petitions. Both
of these denials are entirely unpersuasive and are not credited. McGinnis had been kept in
Colony for the specific purpose of soliciting such petitions. Both Dell and Oaks were entirely
confident that he would do so. McGinnis's one-day hesitation only amplified the need to put him
to work on Wednesday to solicit the needed signatures. If Dell and Oaks did not want him
soliciting, they would have permitted him to go to Kaycee on Tuesday as originally planned.
After the meeting on Wednesday morning, according to McGinnis, he changed his
clothes and began the solicitation process. His work is set forth in Jt.Exh. 2, p. 3. The petition
is typical of all of them. It is home-made and headed with "I do not want a Union." He was the
first to sign it. Two other employees, Keith Baker and Vern Keegan printed their names and
dated it, but failed to sign. Four others, John Deighton, Jesse Bosch, Brandon Ozuna and
Chico Priewe printed, signed and dated McGinnis's petition. Deighton, Bosch and Ozuna are all
plant employees. Indeed, so are Baker and Keegan. McGinnis, whose duties were in the field
as part of the drill crew, testified that he spent 2 to 3 hours in the plant that day attempting to
persuade employees to sign. He showed them the comparison chart, let them review it, pointed
out the advantages of the non-union benefits and took the signatures of those who would sign.
During the course of his rounds he discovered other individuals were also soliciting
signatures. As a result, he went back to the office and spoke with either Dell or Oaks who told
him to go into the field, that the strippers were about to take their break. McGinnis did so and
was able to persuade Priewe to sign. He says he attempted to persuade the remainder of the
mining crew to sign but they declined.
It was here that Bevier remembered seeing McGinnis soliciting the signatures. As noted
above, Bevier misplaced the incident as being on Tuesday. Nevertheless, he knows McGinnis
had a tablet and the comparison chart. Bevier even saw Priewe sign McGinnis’s petition.
McGinnis says his lack of success in persuading other stripping crew members to sign
was because he could not answer some of their questions. When he returned to the plant, he
spoke to Houston and asked if he would answer them. As a result, later that day both he and
Houston returned to the mining location. Houston, however, denies the incident, even asserting
that McGinnis had already gone to Kaycee earlier that afternoon.
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A number of the stripping crew corroborate McGinnis, including Bevier. Mining
employee Kenneth Merrell specifically corroborated McGinnis, saying that Houston had come to
the mining shack and answered questions about the comparison chart which the crew had
asked him. A second mining employee, Frank McKenna concurs.
Earlier Wednesday, both Merrell and McKenna had temporarily been working on a road
project which they finished at noon. While they were working on the road that morning, they
remember McGinnis coming by and telling them both that ‘they’ were passing around a petition
to ‘vote the Union out.’ He showed them the comparison chart and urged them to sign his
petition. Merrell and McKenna declined, but asked if Houston or someone with knowledge
about the items could talk to them about the issues. Finished with the road, they returned to
stripping site in the early afternoon. As a result of their encounter with McGinnis, they were not
entirely surprised to see both McGinnis and Houston at the mining shack later that afternoon.
McGinnis testified that after he was through soliciting that day he returned to the plant
yard about 4 p.m. He saw Marty Brosnahan there. By then McGinnis had become aware that
Brosnahan was soliciting a similar petition and asked Brosnahan to turn his in for him.
Brosnahan did, but as the General Counsel observes, it is unclear when Brosnahan actually did
so or to whom he gave it. Brosnahan opined that McGinnis may well have given him the
petition, but he had no real recollection of the incident. Clearly, at some point, McGinnis's
petition was submitted to someone in Colony management.
Brad Kirksey. Kirksey was the solicitor for Jt.Exh. 2, p. 4. He has been employed by
Respondent since 2004. In July, he was a dryer operator in the plant. By the time he testified,
he been promoted to a non-unit a job, laboratory technician. Kirksey said that sometime in
either April or May he had asked Ray Dell what they needed to do to get rid of the Union. Dell
told him he did not know but said he’d talk to someone and see what Kirksey "could start;" when
he found out, he would let Kirksey know. Kirksey cannot recall the date when Dell gave him the
answer, but it would appear to be July 10. 10 Kirksey was working the day shift at the dryer
when Dell approached him and told him that if Kirksey wanted to get rid of the Union, he could
start a petition.
Kirksey remembers starting the petition by asking Ray Dell's son Jeff to help him with the
language. He testified that his own handwriting is illegible, so he asked Jeff Dell to write it for
him. The original wording was "Petition to Remove the Union from BPM Minerals LLC Plant in
Colony, WY." Kirksey's was the first signature; Jeff Dell’s was the second. Both signatures are
dated July 11. At some point someone told Kirksey that the wording was wrong and needed to
be changed. As a result, he and Jeff Dell scratched out the original heading and overwrote it
with "We do not want the Union." During the solicitation process Kirksey saw McGinnis using
the comparison chart. Kirksey asked for and obtained a copy.
In addition, Kirksey testified that he and two other employees, whose identity he does
not remember (one might have been Kevin King, who signed the petition), had a conversation
with Mike Houston in the dryer room. They discussed the comparison chart. Houston
acknowledges that he had a copy of the chart in his back pocket. In any event they discussed

10 Dell places the first conversation as occurring on the Thursday before the AmericInn
meeting, meaning July 5. Houston remembers Dell telling the group at the hotel that he had
spoken to Kirksey several months earlier about his dissatisfaction with the Union.
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the vacation differences and Kirksey recalls asking Houston a question about the short and
long-term disability benefit offered by Respondent for its non-union employees. Kirksey’s
testimony:
Q. (By Ms. ACOSTA) Do you remember what he [Houston] said about it specifically?
A. (Witness KIRKSEY) He would just -- pretty much what the paper said was if we were a non-
union you would get this much time of vacation after -- the first year you would get I believe it's
two weeks, I think it is, and then on down the list, however it was reading.
After Houston departed, the employees remained in the dryer room where they
discussed the matter further among themselves. Kirksey said, “I told them some of the benefits
they could get of being non-union and what they were losing as being in a union.” On cross he
was asked what topics he discussed with his co-workers. He reconfirmed: “The more (sic) of
the topics were the non-union benefits.”
After the discussion ended, his co-workers signed the petition. The three additional
employees who signed the petition were Joseph Bohm, Kevin King and Terry Samples. Other
individuals also started to sign, but for the most part their names are illegible, having been
marked over. Another, Jamie Sexton, signed, but did not print or date his name.
Kirksey testified that he took the signed petition home with him that evening. He says he
gave it to Ray Dell: “At least four days after I started [collecting signatures] I probably turned it
in.” This testimony suggests that Respondent's management did not possess Kirksey's petition
at the time it says it counted the signatures on July 12 at midday, for the earliest Kirksey could
have turned it in would have been Friday, July 13.
Dell, however, says that Kirksey came to him during the midmorning of July 12 asking
what he should do with his petition. Dell asked him to wait for moment while he went up to the
lab and when he returned Kirksey took the petition out of his back pocket and gave it to him.
Dell told Kirksey that he would get it to Oaks.
Jeffrey Westland. Westland has worked for Respondent since 1993. He is currently the
leadman for Lyle Droppers's crew and serves as the crew's shuttle driver. As noted above,
Droppers's crew began work on July 11 at 3:30 p.m. He remembers Dell called him to Dell's
office when he arrived for work. He testified:
Q. [by Ms. ACOSTA] What happened when you went in his office?
A. [Witness WESTLAND] He asked me if I heard that the employees were not happy with the
union, and if I would take a petition down and have the guys on my crew sign it.
Q. And did you respond?
A. I said, yeah.
Q. And what happened after you said yes?
A. He just showed me a sheet of the difference between the hourly employees -- the union
employees and the salary employees, what the benefits were. Vacations, insurance, and
different things. [Referring to the comparison chart.]
Westland said that Oaks joined them about that point and the discussion continued.
A. [Witness WESTLAND] Danny Oaks. Come in and helped him [Dell] explain what we got if
we didn't have the union.
Q. Did they tell you why they were explaining it?
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A. Well, so I could explain it to my guys on my packing crew so they would understand what
was going on. What kind of benefits they would be getting compared to what they had now.
Q. Did they explain to you what you needed to do?
[Objection Interposed.]
THE WITNESS: Yeah. They had just asked if I'd get the petition signed. They just explained
me the benefits and how to get the petition. They needed them to print their name, sign
their name, and date it, so it'd be official.
Westland later said that Dell and Oaks had told him they did not know for sure what
would happen after the Union was gone but hopefully, everyone would be on the same plan.
Although the timing of Westland's response to the question is not entirely clear, he responded to
the initial question concerning whether he would try to get his crew to sign the petitions, that he
would see what the employees actually had to say.
Westland left the office in time for the safety huddle conducted by Droppers. Shortly
after that, Westland had a huddle of his own with the rest of the packing crew. Westland went
over the comparison chart with his group. He said that most of the packers were asking about
the vacation issue, apparently intrigued, because it was more generous than the plan under the
collective bargaining contract. Sometime during this discussion, Droppers came by and told
Westland to take as much time as he needed because he didn't want Westland running after
people to try to get them to sign.
Droppers agrees that he left the group alone because he was under instructions not to
get involved. Even so, he said someone asked him what he would do if it was up to him. He
responded, "... knowing what I have for benefits and what you have for benefits, I would sign
that document in a heartbeat..."
A short time after that, Houston appeared and asked if the employees had questions.
He, too, compared his benefits with those under the contract.
After Houston left, the packing crew signed the petition. Once they had signed,
Westland then solicited other employees in the plant, including the hopper operator, the dryer
operator, the mill operator, and the Baramix operator. He later delivered his petition, in
evidence as Jt.Exh. 2, p. 2, to Houston in his office. When he did so, Houston asked him to
change the wording from "We are opposed to the Union at Colony" to "We do not want the
Union." 11
Supervisory Solicitation: Foreman Lyle Droppers
As noted above, Lyle Droppers is a plant foreman and admitted supervisor. At 4 p.m. on
July 11 he had a conversation with Zackary Zupan, one of the dryer operators. At the end of the
pre-shift meeting, Zupan asked Droppers if there was a petition going around as he had heard
rumors from other employees. Droppers replied that he was aware that Jeff Westland was
circulating such a petition and took Zupan to the warehouse where Droppers picked up a
comparison chart sitting on a table near the tail rollers of the palletizer. He gave it to Zupan to

11 Dell does not specifically deny Westland's testimony concerning the meeting in Dell's
office, saying he did not recall it, but instead described a different conversation at the palletizer
in which Westland supposedly initiated a conversation concerning the comparison chart.
Clearly Westland's recollection about the incident is superior to Dell's, since Dell "could not
recall."
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read. Zupan perused it as they were returning to the dryer room. Zupan asked Droppers some
questions regarding the differences between what they would be given without the Union as
opposed to what they were now getting. He remembered Droppers said the employees would
get a greater vacation benefit. He also remembered asking Droppers why the Company
couldn't give them the benefits on the chart through negotiations. Droppers answered "Because
it wasn't offered to union plants." When Zupan asked why not, Droppers could only reply, "They
just don't."
They then had a discussion concerning the number of union plants Halliburton operated
as opposed to non-union plants. Zupan also recalls Droppers saying that if they got rid of the
Union at Colony, the employees would most likely receive everything on the comparison sheet:
"This is what the Company [is] offering." Droppers asked Zupan if he was interested in signing
the petition, but Zupan replied that he was not.
Droppers denies that the conversation Zupan described ever occurred. He offered an
alternative version that occurred during the luncheon break where Zupan and two other
employees had a conversation with him concerning short-term disability and vacation benefits.
Droppers told them he had done really well under the ESG plan because he had invoked it after
being injured. He does agree that he told the group that the Company plan "would affect a lot of
the newer employees because [under] the union scheduling they get one week vacation after
the first year and then two weeks after the second year, where what the salary people were
getting we have two weeks after the first year."
I credit Zupan over Droppers. Zupan's detailed testimony was impressive, whereas
Droppers's denial and alternative version did not seem to carry with it a sense of veracity. Even
so, his alternative version is consistent with the promises being implied from the comparison
chart. Accordingly, I find that Droppers engaged in the direct solicitation of Zupan's signature
on a disaffection petition.
About two hours after his conversation with Zupan, Droppers encountered Thomas
("T.J.") Davis, the mill operator in the sample room. Davis remembers he had been working
alone and Droppers had come into the sample room and was talking about how the Company
was trying to get rid of the Union. Davis was already somewhat familiar with what was
happening due to an earlier conversation he had had with Marty Brosnahan, the plant
electrician.
Davis responded to Droppers's comments by asking him what the Company would give
the employees, what was going to change if the employees got rid of the Union? Droppers
replied he needed to get a copy of the paper from Westland so he could show it to Davis. Once
the comparison chart had been obtained, Droppers explained to Davis that the short-term
disability benefit was far better than anything in the Union contract, that if he had missed work
because of such a disability he would get full pay for up to 26 weeks. Shortly after Droppers
left, Westland approached Davis and asked him to sign his petition.
Droppers agreed that he had a similar conversation with Davis but said that the
discussion about short-term disability had been initiated by Davis. He did acknowledge telling
Davis "if the Company is going to offer it, yes, you would be better off." He denied that he had
to go get the comparison chart from another location, saying a copy of it was there in the
sample room.
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Again, I credit the employee, Davis, over Droppers. Droppers's presence in the sample
room together with the comparison chart was not simply fortuitous. It was a direct effort to
persuade Davis to sign a disaffection petition. Furthermore, even though Droppers did not
specifically ask Davis to sign a petition, as he did with Zupan, Westland's immediate
appearance after Droppers left the sample room was not chance. It is fair to conclude that
immediately after trying to convince Davis that the non-union benefits were superior, that he
sent Westland to serve as a "closer."
Here, too, Droppers was engaged in the solicitation of employee to sign a disaffection
petition. That he did not utter the magic words is not a defense. He schemed so that Westland
could obtain Davis's signature.
Signature Solicitation, Thursday, July 12
Martin “Marty” Brosnahan. Brosnahan has worked for Respondent since February 2004.
Initially, he was a maintenance electrician and held that job in July 2007. At the time of the
hearing he had become Respondent's health, safety and environment manager (HSE), a
managerial job outside the bargaining unit.
Brosnahan readily agrees that he circulated disaffection petitions and solicited fellow
employees to sign them. The record shows that he obtained 15 signatures on July 12. Those
petitions are in evidence as Jt.Exh. 2, pp. 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13 and 14.
Brosnahan's testimony was significantly marred by his inability to recall with any detail
how he came to be a solicitor. It will be recalled that on the evening before, he had accepted
McGinnis's petitions with an apparent promise to deliver them to Houston. At some point he
came into possession of the comparison chart. He testified variously that McGinnis had given
him one (he retracted that contention), that it had "somehow" come into his possession, and that
Houston may also have given him a copy, though he said he wasn't sure if Houston had. It
seems to me, as he was testifying, that he was attempting to protect Houston from being
exposed as being heavily involved in the disaffection effort. It really doesn't matter much to this
analysis because once he reviewed the comparison chart, he was hooked:
Q. BY MS. BRANDT: What was the reason you signed the petition?
A. [Witness BROSNAHAN] I signed the petition for the pension purpose only. You know,
the —
Q. Take your time. If you'd like to help yourself to a bottle of water --
A. No, not yet.
Q. -- feel free to.
A. Not yet. I stutter, so -- but anyway, I signed it for the percentage benefit that they were
going to give us. And that's why I signed it.
Q. Okay. And how did you know you were going to get a different pension percentage?
A. If I remember right -- was it in here?
Q. Just take a moment and look through the document.
A. Yes. The fir -- the very first one. It's --
JUDGE KENNEDY: And if it's not in the document, you can take a minute to think through
where you got that information too. That's --
THE WITNESS: It looks like the first benefit on the first line, or, you know, the fourth column,
the first, second -- or the fifth box down.
Q. BY MS. BRANDT: So when you saw a document similar to this and it had information
about the pension, you made up your mind to sign the petition?
A. That is correct. I made up my mind to sign that petition, that -- this petition here, yes.
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A review of the comparison chart shows that the first comparison, the one to which
Brosnahan referred, was that of retirement benefits. Under "Colony Provisions" (the Union-
negotiated plan) there was a 100 percent to 4 percent match, but with a 5-year vesting period.
Under (Halliburton’s) ESG plan the matching contribution was the same, but there was
immediate vesting, plus an additional automatic 4 percent Company basic contribution which
took three years to vest.
Moreover, Brosnahan's perception of what the Company was going to do is clear from
his testimony, as he absorbed the face of the document. He looked at it and "knew" that if the
Union was gone, it would significantly improve his pension. To him it was a ‘no brainer’ — get
rid of the Union and you get a better pension. He recognized the document to be not simply an
implied promise, but an explicit promise. He believed it then, and his testimony shows that he
believed it at the hearing. Indeed, by that time, he knew it to be true, because Respondent had,
well before the hearing, implemented those very benefits. I recognize that Brosnahan, when he
testified, was out of the bargaining unit, but it is equally certain that he did not wish to cost his
fellow employees the fruits the Union’s ouster had brought. The reason for Brosnahan's
hesitancy to name Houston as being involved seems relatively transparent. He did not want to
return the employees to the lesser benefits he perceived the Union as providing. If Brosnahan
implicated Houston in that effort, from his perspective wages and conditions were not likely to
remain as good as they had just become — either for him or for his fellows. He had no desire to
bring in Houston for that reason; plus, he was grateful to Houston for his recent promotion. Yet,
someone had helped Brosnahan to choose the language that appeared on top of the petitions.
Brosnahan seemed deliberately vague about the time of day and the locations where he
solicited individuals, even contending that he did not sign until after the other "gentlemen" had
signed.
The truly curious thing about Brosnahan's solicitation was that he was totally free to
roam the plant as well as the field in his effort. And, he was out early the morning of the 12th.
Kurt Ranta testified he encountered Brosnahan at 7:30 a.m., just as Ranta was coming off his
graveyard shift. He said that Brosnahan already had several names on the petition Brosnahan
offered him. 12
In any event, as an electrician, Brosnahan would normally be called to perform electrical
repair work in both places. One thing is clear; he had the comparison chart with him while he
solicited the signatures. He also told Vern Keegan, who had signed Kirksey's petition, that
Kirksey's had an error in the heading and Keegan needed to sign again. Keegan did so. How
did Brosnahan make that judgment?
About an hour before quitting time, perhaps about 3 p.m., Brosnahan and Houston drove
in Houston's truck to the stripping site, then located about three miles from the plant.
Brosnahan asserted that he had gone to Houston to discuss his application for the HSE job and
that Houston suggested he come along for the ride so they could. Given the fact that
Brosnahan also testified that he delivered many of his petitions to Houston during the day, his
explanation seems hollow.
In any event, the two arrived at the mining "shack" and Houston spoke to the crew for
few minutes as they were shutting down for the day. Brosnahan says he asked Houston to
leave. Still taken with his belief that the ESG pension plan was a very good deal, he attempted

12 Ranta was willing to sign, but only anonymously.
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to persuade the stripping crew to sign. He also remembers speaking about the vacation issue,
but does not recall what he said. He recalls only one employee, Frank McKenna, saying he
would sign.
The members of the stripping crew who testified, Bevier, Merrell and McKenna did not
confirm Brosnahan's version. They testified that Houston told them that Brosnahan wanted to
meet with them and that Houston would wait outside. They also said that when Houston left,
Brosnahan went over the comparison chart, specifically pointing out how the retirement plan
would be better for him personally. When they left the shack Houston was still outside and
asked if any of them had any questions.
Houston testified that when he arrived he told the crew he was there to answer any
questions that they had and then said Brosnahan had asked to talk to the crew. He also said
that after Brosnahan was finished he offered to answer any questions the crew might have had.
It is clear to me, and I find, because of Brosnahan's guarded unwillingness to implicate
Houston, his delivery on separate occasions of perhaps seven petitions to Houston throughout
the morning and early afternoon, coupled with what is Houston's transparent effort to get the
crew to sign Brosnahan's petition, that Houston was behind all of Brosnahan's efforts. Even if I
were to not reach this conclusion based upon what happened before the mining shack meeting,
is clear that Brosnahan was serving as Houston's instrument at the shack.
Supervisory Solicitation: Production Manager Ray Dell
Charles Callison has worked for Respondent in a variety of jobs for 23 years. At the
time he testified, he had been a loader operator for about two years. He said he had been on
vacation during the week of July 9. 13 He said that on Wednesday morning he received a
telephone call at his home from Ray Dell. This was unusual, as Dell had never before called
him at home. Dell told him that a petition was going around to get rid of the Union and he
wanted to know if Callison would sign it. Callison said he would. They discussed how he would
get the petition to the plant (about 30 miles distant from his house) and Callison advised that he
could use his personal fax machine. Callison said they then discussed the language he should
use on the petition. Callison: “Well, we discussed what would work as far as me getting my
point across to him. And we came up with ‘I do not support the Union,’ and that's what I faxed.”
Callison says he faxed Jt.Exh. 2 p. 5 to Dell. Curiously, however, the exhibit does not
appear to have been what was received by Respondent. Later that night, about 10:30 p.m.,
Callison received a call from plant manager Danny Oaks. Oaks told Callison he wanted him to
re-sign his name and date the petition. Oakes then drove to Callison's home in Spearfish so he
could acquire the re-signed version. He did so and Callison signed something, apparently the
original which he had probably kept. Oaks does not have a significantly different version.
Clearly, Callison's signature on the disaffection petition was solicited and obtained by
members of management, Ray Dell 14 and Danny Oaks.

13 The parties have stipulated that Callison was not scheduled to work from July 4 through
July 15.
14 Curiously, Dell testified that when management counted the petition signatures at noon on
July 12, they had a photocopy of the original of Callison's petition, not the faxed version.
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David Dell is Ray's brother. Ray testified that his brother, who works in the maintenance
department, had been vacationing in a remote location in Wyoming during the week of July 9.
He said he knew his brother's sentiments concerning unions — that he's been both pro and con
— but at that time was in antiunion mode. As a result, Ray concedes that he "took the liberty" to
find out if Dave still felt the same way on July 12. In the middle of that morning Ray reached
Dave, apparently by cell phone. He learned that Dave was willing to sign a disaffection petition
and he instructed Dave "to get a piece of paper and put a header on it, print your name, sign it,
date it, and get it back to me." Dave did so and faxed it, as Ray suggested, to Ray at Colony. It
is in evidence as Jt.Exh. 2, p. 6. It is headed "I agree with the idea of a non-union plant."
Curiously, the document in evidence does not appear to have been faxed but is instead a
photocopy of an original.
Whatever the circumstances of the transmittal, Ray Dell readily admitted soliciting his
brother, a bargaining unit member, to sign a disaffection petition.
Supervisory Solicitation: Senior Plant Manager Mike Houston
Gregory DeKnikker is the plant cleanup man. He has worked for Respondent for a little
over two years. His principal duty is to clean up around the plant and haul debris to the landfill
located on Respondent's property about a mile and a half southeast of the plant. On July 12
DeKnikker was located at the landfill performing his duties when Mike Houston drove up in his
personal pickup truck. That was unusual, as the senior plant manager rarely spoke to the
individual who performed the operation’s most humble tasks, and certainly not at a location as
remote as the landfill.
DeKnikker testified that Houston told him he had learned DeKnikker was interested in
looking at the comparison chart. Houston brought it out and placed it on the hood of his truck,
allowing DeKnikker to look it over. DeKnikker remembers Houston asking him if any of the
things on the chart interested him. The conversation turned to other matters but later returned
to the chart and DeKnikker told him that he was interested. Houston obtained some paper from
his truck and gave to DeKnikker who wrote on it, "I don't want the Union." He then gave it to
Houston.
Houston, however, suggests that his conversation with DeKnikker was essentially by
chance. He said he was on his way to meet with the stripping crew and observed the dump
truck at the landfill. Because it was a truck which had been recently purchased, he decided to
see how well it was working and drove over to discuss it with DeKnikker. He says DeKnikker
asked what was going on with the petition, that there were a lot of guys talking about the
benefits. Houston asked if DeKnikker had any questions and DeKnikker said he did. As result,
Houston took out the comparison chart. Houston testified: “So I said, ‘I have a sheet here that
you can look at that compares the union benefits versus the nonunion benefits. If you would like
to look at that you can.’" Then, Houston said, he started to leave. At that point DeKnikker
stopped him and asked if there was anything he could do to get rid of the Union. Houston says
he responded: “Yes, there is. All you have to do is sign a petition that you write on the top of it,
you say, I don’t want a union, print your name, sign your name, and date it.” DeKnikker said he
would like to sign a petition and Houston helpfully provided him with pen and paper. The
petition DeKnikker signed is in evidence as Jt.Exh. 2, p. 10.
There is no doubt in my mind that Houston solicited DeKnikker's signature on the
disaffection petition. He deliberately sought out DeKnikker who generally worked alone and
who was not part of anybody's crew. He was probably the least likely employee to be found by
the employee solicitors. He needed special attention, and Houston gave it to him. Once again,
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the comparison chart had done its work. Even Houston agrees that as soon as he showed
DeKnikker the chart, DeKnikker decided it was in his best interest to join the effort to oust the
Union.
Morning at the stripping site. I have already discussed Houston's visit to the stripping
crew on the afternoon of July 12 when he was accompanied by Brosnahan. However, he had
made an earlier visit, perhaps on the same run where he stopped to talk to DeKnikker.
During the morning visit, apparently arriving in time for the coffee break, he spoke with
the crew. This was his second solicitation of the crew, though he and McGinnis had been there
the night before, with scant success. McGinnis had signed only Priewe on Tuesday morning.
The stripping crew was a much tougher sell than the plant employees.
Houston acknowledges that he visited with the stripping crew that morning. 15 His
testimony:
HOUSTON: They said, "Yes, they had some questions in regarding benefits." And they had a
copy of -- I can't remember if it was -- I believe it was GC-3 [the comparison chart] that they had
on their -- on the table there. And they just started out, "You know, Mike, what's up with all
this?" And I said, "Well guys, you know, I can't promise you anything that's on this document."
And they had already been approached about signing a petition. And they said, "You know
we've been approached to signing a petition to get rid of the union, and received this document.
What's going on here?"
So I explained to them that employees were passing around a petition to get rid of the
union, and that I couldn't tell them one way or another what to do. And that if they had
questions I could explain to them on the comparison sheet of benefits that I have and other
people that are not under the collective bargaining agreement had, and we could discuss those
comparisons.
Houston remembers McKenna asking some questions about what would happen to the
current 401(k) plan if the Union were voted out and responding that he did not know, but he
would find out. McKenna, Houston says, pressed him about worker's compensation as he had
suffered a sprained ankle earlier in the year. Houston says he explained that if he had been
under the ESG plan he would have been made whole, but since he was under the Union
contract, what had been bargained for him was what he got. (The chart shows that the Union
had not negotiated anything more than what state legislation provided; it also shows that the
ESG benefit supplemented the legislated amount plus a salary supplement so that an injured
employee would be reimbursed up to his base salary, i.e., making him whole.)
Two employees, Rick Bevier and Frank McKenna testified about the morning meeting
with Houston.
Bevier said, in effect, that Houston was fairly circumspect in his approach that morning.
Bevier remembered asking some questions about whether, if the Union were out, there would
still be overtime after 8 hours per day. He remembers Houston saying that he could not
comment on that. 16 He also remembered McKenna asking a question about retirement, but

15 The stripping crew members present that morning were Kenny Merrell, Chico Priewe,
Frank McKenna, Duane Newlander, Randy Wulf, John Geib and Rick Bevier.
16 The chart suggested such a reduction; later, because of concerns about downtime due to
climate conditions, Houston said something would be worked out so no wages would be lost.
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couldn’t recall Houston's answer. He recalled Randy Wulf asked a question about vacations,
but did not recall either the question or the answer. He did remember Houston saying "[T]he
only thing I can — that I can guarantee you is what [is] on the comparison sheet...."
McKenna testified about what Houston was doing. He said, "[Houston] just explained
the difference in some of these areas, like the health group benefits and different parts of it he
explained the difference in what -- what the difference would be from what we have, to what we
would have." McKenna remembered Houston described the change in the 401(k) plan.
According to McKenna, Houston said that the existing plan in which he was contributing seven
percent, if the Union was gone, would cease at the end of the year. At that point, a new plan
would begin in which he would contribute the same seven percent, but the company would
match it up to an additional 4 percent, depending on "how everything went with Halliburton."
McKenna also said Houston described the short-term disability benefit saying it was "a new deal
and it would be like 26 weeks short-term sickness, which we didn't have...."
It is clear to me that even if Houston prefaced his remarks with a disclaimer asserting he
wasn't making promises, in fact he was. There is no other way to read the comparison chart.
On one side were the Union negotiated terms and on the other side were better terms which
seem to be conditioned on not being represented by the Union. Indeed, I do not think that
Houston's own testimony can be read any other way. His statement (“Well guys, you know, I
can't promise you anything that's on this document”), even if said, was meaningless in the
context of the chart plus what the employees have reported he said. On one side were the
Union-negotiated terms and conditions; on the other side were the benefits of being non-union.
His disclaimer must be discounted as the wink and the nod it was.
William Kester and John Kreitel. During the morning of July 12, maintenance
department employees William Kester and John Kreitel were putting in a drainage line at the
railroad tracks adjacent to the warehouse building. They encountered Marty Brosnahan and
another employee who were working on the electrical rerouting on the same project. Brosnahan
asked Kester to sign a petition saying they were putting the petition out to see how many people
did not want the Union. Brosnahan also asserted that he had something to show Kester which
might convince him that rejecting Union would be a good thing. Kester was reluctant and
Brosnahan told him he would have Houston, come talk to him if Kester wanted.
About 3 30 p.m., Houston appeared at the project. At the time Kester was working on a
Bobcat while Kreitel was operating a forklift. Kester shut off his machine and stepped down to
speak with Houston. Kreitel joined them a few moments later. During the conversation,
according to Kester, Houston told them that Halliburton had two companies which were
unionized, including Bentonite, and they could provide very well without any union involvement.
Houston explained to Kester the Halliburton sick leave policy, saying that he could get up to 26
weeks from his first day in the hospital. This was important to Kester because in May he had
been hospitalized with pneumonia and had not been the beneficiary of such a program. There
was also some discussion of vacations, but due to Kester's experience level, he remembered
that it would not affect him significantly.
Kreitel said that he joined the two after he had moved some pallets. When he joined
them Houston was discussing the differences between union and non-union employees
concerning retirement and vacations. He remembered Houston using the comparison chart and
that Houston selected particular topics from it. He also remembered that Houston told them that
except for the other Halliburton plant which had a union, all the employees under the ESG
grouping had all benefits listed under the ESG column. He remembered Houston saying that
Kester's retirement had vested and that he asked Kreitel how long he had been employed.
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When Kreitel said “4 years,” Houston told him he had not been there long enough to have
become vested. Kreitel did remember that Houston told him that he was entitled to a third week
of vacation after 5 years under the ESG plan, and that under the Union plan it would take 10
years to reach that level.
During this conversation they spoke about two other employment connected perquisites,
the Star card and the length of service award. The Star card was a type of debit card or gift
card which employees who had earned it could use to purchase products. Houston told them
that even though the Star card had been used at Colony, it had been phased out because it had
not been "contracted for." Similarly, since the collective bargaining contract did not contain a
provision for length of service awards, that too, had been canceled for Colony employees.
Houston made some other comparisons as well. Then Kreitel asked Houston for
something in writing with Kreitel's name on it so Kreitel would have proof that what Houston said
would not be taken away. Houston declined, saying that "It's all on the paper, right there,"
indicating the comparison chart. The conversation ended at that point. This was a clear
promise of benefits for eliminating the Union. It can be interpreted no other way.
Houston remembers the conversation occurring sometime between 2 and 2:30 p.m. he
confirmed that Brosnahan had told him Kester had some questions for him. As a result, he took
the comparison chart with him when they spoke. He says Kester asked him in regard to sick
leave whether he would "get this," meaning the 26 week period. He says Kester explained that
he had been obligated to use vacation time in order to maintain paid status when he had been
hospitalized with pneumonia. Houston asserts he said, "Bill, I can't promise you anything about
what’s on the sheet of paper here. This is what I have, this is what other people that are not
under the collective bargaining unit have. No guarantee." He admitted saying that the Stars
card program was inapplicable to non-union facilities, since it had not been bargained for. His
statement was: "Well, if you look at the items that are under the [union contract], that's [not] a
benefit that you guys are entitled to, so we had to discontinue the program."
With respect to benefits that had been applied to the Colony plant, but which were not
part of the collective bargaining agreement, it is clear that Houston does not understand that
existing employment benefits not covered by the union contract cannot lawfully be taken away
on unilateral basis. Nonetheless that is exactly what he told Kester and Kreitel.
After his discussion with Houston, Kester sought out Brosnahan and signed a
disaffection petition.
Withdrawal of Recognition and Unilateral Changes
In its answer Respondent has admitted that it withdrew recognition of the Union on
July 13 and since that date has failed to respond to the Union's request to bargain collectively
for the purpose of negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement. It is further undisputed
that it withdrew recognition based upon its claim that the Union had lost majority status. In this
regard, on July 13 Respondent, through Oaks, e-mailed and faxed a letter to the Chemical
Workers Union representative Arthur Stevens in Topeka, Kansas announcing that it was
withdrawing recognition because the Union had lost majority status. Curiously, Oaks also
acknowledged that the collective bargaining contract was still in effect and that Respondent
would abide by the terms of the contract "to the extent consistent with the withdrawal of
recognition."
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Although Respondent’s answer denies that it made unilateral changes in the terms and
conditions of the employees after July 13, the denial is essentially without force as it actually
admits making the changes alleged in the complaint.
More specifically, on July 19, Houston and Oaks strongly suggested to the employees
that they not attend a union meeting to be held at Herrmann Park in Belle Fourche. They
advised the employees "the less you have to do with [union official Art Stevens] and the Union,
the better all of us are... We are in the process of making good things happen. A wage increase
announced Monday and more good things to come. In our opinion, Mr. Stevens had his chance
and now we ask you to give us and Halliburton a chance. ... If [Stevens] stirs up trouble then
everything could come to a halt -- more union outsiders could bother us, Halliburton would have
to get its corporate people, lawyers could come from everywhere. And, we could find ourselves
stopped dead in our tracks ... If you go to the meeting, that is your right and choice. For our
part, our advice is: don't go -- that's the best way to tell Mr. Stevens not to get in the way of
progress."
At the meeting, Stevens was able to persuade about 18 employees to sign a petition in
favor of continued union representation. Two more employees also signed separately on July
18. Over the next few days, 20 employees added their names, for a total of 40. Of these 40,
fourteen had signed a disaffection petition.
On August 10, Stevens asserted by letter that the Union continued to enjoy majority
status and offered to prove it through a signature check by a neutral person. Oaks responded
by letter of August 15 rejecting Stevens's offer and asserting that it had proven that the
employees no longer wished representation by the Charging Party. Indeed, Respondent argues
here that once the Union had lost majority status as of a midday count supposedly held on
July 12, no further inquiry was necessary into the Union's majority status.
In any event, immediately after withdrawing recognition, Respondent began making
changes, some of which appeared in the chart and also added some additional matters to the
terms and conditions of employment at Colony. The first was a notice from Houston and Oaks
on July 16 announcing an across-the-Board wage increase of $1.25 per hour.
By letter dated July 19, Union representative Stevens asked Oaks four questions: who
gets this wage increase? How long would be in effect? Is the Company asking bargaining unit
members to give up anything for the increase, i.e., were there trade-offs? He concluded by
asking for the reasoning behind the “welcomed, but unprecedented wage increase this close to
our impending negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement.”
On July 25, Oaks responded by letter which can only be described as gloating. In his
first sentences he told Stevens:
You are absolutely correct when you say that the $1.25 per hour wage increase was
UNPRECEDENTED! To my knowledge, the wage increase was about 100% LARGER than any
increase your union has ever negotiated for our employees in any one year. We have also just
announced an unprecedented increase in the men's vacation policy and will soon be meeting
with them to explain that new benefit to each one of them.
THESE ARE UNPRECEDENTED WAGE AND BENEFITS CHANGES WHICH OCCURRED
DIRECTLY AS A RESULT OF THEIR DECISION TO GIVE US AND THEM A CHANCE TO
SEE WHAT BEING UNION FREE COULD MEAN.
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The wage increase and better vacation benefits came months before anything could have
happened by bargaining with the union. And, if history is any judge, those wages and better
benefits came YEARS before anything could have happened by being represented by your
union.
Oaks concluded with three paragraphs in which he claimed that a clear majority of its
employees had told them that they no longer wished to be represented by the Union and
downplayed a July 18 grievance which the Union had filed protesting the withdrawal of
recognition. Indeed, he accuses Stevens of "ignoring the will of the majority." He said that the
Company no longer recognizes the Union and would not communicate with Stevens further
concerning employees' wages, benefits and working conditions. He even asserted that the
letter itself was "only a courtesy to you..." Finally, he said, "Art, we — the Company, the
supervisors and the men — work together every day. Personally, I am here with them virtually
every day. To my knowledge, you have not been present except for two times in five years!
The men deserve a chance to see what we and they can do together to make more progress
and improvements. Do not stand in the way."
Consistent with that letter, Respondent almost immediately notified the employees of
their improved vacation benefits in an undated notice. Once again, this change was consistent
with the ESG benefits described in the comparison chart. The notice also stated that the
Company would stop withholding union dues when the contract expired in October. It advised
that employees could resign their membership earlier if they chose by sending a resignation
letter to the Union with a copy to the Company, noting that Wyoming is a right-to-work state.
At some point, shortly before July 27, the Union submitted some dues check-off
authorization forms for four employees which were dated in July, three after the withdrawal of
recognition and one before. On July 27 Oaks wrote Stevens advising that the Company would
process the forms but would not modify the withdrawal of recognition. It would appear that the
letter was intended as a summary compliance with the dues deduction authorization clause of
the contract, but that compliance would end with the contract's expiration.
In August there was an exchange of correspondence in which the Union requested a
neutral observer review the employees' signatures; Respondent preferred as a starting point
proving the loss of majority status. This exchange led nowhere. On August 20, Oaks wrote
Stevens giving notice of cancellation of the contract effective on the date of its expiration.
After the contract expired on October 21, Respondent began making additional changes.
On October 15 it announced it was amending the retirement plan effective December 1 by
ceasing future benefit accruals; it explained that a participant's benefits would be frozen at the
level determined as of December 1. This was the plan that had been negotiated with the Union.
It also began taking steps to terminate the 401(k) plan which the Union had negotiated.
On October 25 it issued a notice requesting instructions concerning what to do with the funds
which had been accumulated under that plan. Almost simultaneously it welcomed employees to
the Halliburton Retirement and Savings Plan and automatically enrolled them in it (subject to an
opt-out option).
In addition, Respondent also began requiring all its Colony employees to acknowledge
that they were now bound by Halliburton's Dispute Resolution Program. An exemplar is in
evidence as Jt.Exh. 17. This requirement was short-lived as on December 13 it revoked that
requirement.
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The demands for information
There is really no dispute concerning the allegations concerning information requests.
Indeed, Respondent has admitted the allegations. The Union's letters of July 19 and July 23
are in evidence. The July 19 letter has been discussed in passing above and will not be
repeated here. The July 23 letter, also styled as a 60-day notice to modify the collective
bargaining contract, made additional information demands. By an attachment to that letter
Stevens set forth 24 items about which he needed information. Of those 24 items, only one, No.
4, can be said to be unrelated to wages, hours and terms and conditions of employment. That
was a request for the names and positions of each management or salaried employee who
made the determination of the hourly wage increase of $1.25 per hour as announced on
July 16.
IV. Analysis and Conclusions
At this stage, a short review of the complaint’s allegations is appropriate. First, is an
overview. Generally, the complaint alleges that Respondent embarked upon a campaign to
oust the Union which had represented its employees since 1948. It did this, urges the
complaint, by inducing employees to abandon union representation through interrogations and
promises of benefit. In this way Respondent was able to determine who was and who was not
susceptible to its overtures. Then, it made promises of change for the better by providing the
comparison chart.
That chart was unfair from the outset. Presumably, Respondent had obtained a
significant benefit from the 6-year contract, labor peace and a lengthy period of economic
certainty. Despite that, it decided to compare its current financial well-being with a 6-year old,
out-run, collective bargaining contract which was about to expire. No doubt, if the contract had
been renegotiated, whatever currency Respondent had been able to provide its unrepresented
employees would have caught the attention of the Union and it would have sought to benefit
from at least the same level of benefits Respondent was providing to its employees outside the
bargaining unit.
Moreover, I have already concluded that Respondent's behavior during these 4 days
was not the result of happenstance. It was a result of a plan begun in May at the very least.
Oaks's testimony that he sought a comparison chart for the purpose of educating himself
concerning negotiations makes no sense. It makes sense only in the context of instigating a
revolt against Union representation. Indeed, all the conduct described in the facts section of the
decision is tethered to that aim. Accordingly, I find that Respondent's conduct here was aimed
at the heart of the Act. It was a clear manipulation of its employees for selfish purposes,
undermining their §7 rights. In general, I find that each of the allegations of §8(a)(1) of the
complaint has been proven. In this regard, shift supervisor Gerry Bergum's questions of John
Preisner were clearly coercive under that section of the Act. Preisner's own feelings for the
Union were ambivalent and he would have done nothing at all had Bergum not solicited him to
create a disaffection petition. Similarly, Bergum urged Preisner to solicit others, using the
comparison sheet. This was not something Preisner would have done on his own.
Ray Dell's meeting Dan McGinnis at the Belle Fourche van drop-off point, was more of
the same. Dell even admits that he didn't know for sure what McGinnis's then-current
sentiments concerning the Union actually were. As he approached McGinnis, Dell said, "I
[know] how you[‘ve] felt about the Union the past several years, Dan ... if you still feel that way,
now is the time you can do something about this." Receiving a positive response, Dell
proceeded to tell McGinnis what to do. Even so, McGinnis hesitated. When he was called off
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the Kaycee trip so he could solicit within the plant, he still hesitated. Eventually, after an
additional meeting with Dell and Oaks, he finally relented, but didn't begin in earnest until
Wednesday. And, he did so only because he had learned from Dell and Oaks the "selling
points" provided by the comparison chart. It is clear that McGinnis would not have pursued the
petitions had Dell and Oaks not asked him to do so. Their questioning and solicitation of
McGinnis clearly violated §8(a)(1).
Mike Houston, himself, interrogated both Bierema and Holdhusen, specifically asking
whether they had signed a petition, another interrogation which breached §8(a)(1). In addition,
through the use of the comparison chart, he promised benefits to Bierema and Holdhusen if
they got rid of the Union. Houston's fingerprints are all over the solicitation process, wherever it
took him around the operation. Every time he used the comparison chart and answered
questions concerning it, he was pointing out the benefits which the employees would derive
from the Union's ouster. In fact, simultaneously they were questions and promises of benefit.
When Houston asked employees if they preferred the ESG benefits, he was in effect asking if
they were receptive to getting rid of the Union; and when he asked them that question, he was
impliedly, if not directly, promising them something valuable if they got rid of the Union. It was
all of a piece. 17
In this regard Houston made approaches to employees and Merrill, McKenna, DeKnikker
and the stripping crew. His conduct toward them is a good example of the interrogation-promise
duality. Whenever he suggested that things would be better without the Union, whether by
direct or by indirect suggestion, Houston committed a violation of §8(a)(1). He also violated that
same section of the Act when he directly solicited signatures of employees such as DeKnikker.
The same result obtains in situations where he used others to solicit signatures -- McGinnis,
Brosnahan, and Kirksey. In analyzing this fact pattern, it is not necessary, and the General
Counsel acknowledges it to be so, to find these three, plus Preisner, to be Respondent’s
agents, though the complaint (as amended) seeks that finding. But these four weren't agents so
much as they were victims of a hoodwinking. They never understood that they were being used
in an illegal fashion for the Company's benefit. The same can be said of Dell’s overtures toward
Westland.
Similarly, Bergum and Dell’s efforts, as well as the effacing Oaks follow the same route.
Indeed, their direct solicitations of employees such as Preisner, Callison and Dave Dell easily
exceeded the permissible bounds.
If Respondent had been acting innocently, it would have directed them to an NLRB
Regional Office,18 rather than sending these employees on a disaffection mission. Respondent,
with its nefarious motivation, had no interest in determining the true sentiments of the

17 Because of this observation, Respondent’s argument that it was harmless, from a §7
standpoint, for it to have sought out individuals whose antiunion sentiments were well-known,
falls woefully short of persuasive. That is so even had some of those employees been ready to
seek decertification on their own. But, as we have seen, some of those (Preisner and
McGinnis) were not yet at that stage and would not have acted had Bergum and Dell not
prodded them. In any event, the rule is that an employer may not involve itself in the
decertification process beyond ministerial assistance. The anti-union predilections of some
employees cannot be sparked to the disadvantage of the Union. In general, the employer must
keep its hands off. Section 7 rights belong to the employees; they may not be manipulated by
their employer.
18 R.L. White Co., 262 NLRB 575, 576 (1982).
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employees by permitting them a free and uncoerced vote in any decertification petition which
might be filed. Had it not embarked upon its campaign, it is possible a decertification movement
may have begun from the grass roots. Waiting for that happenstance, however, was a risky
business for it could not be assured. In addition, it would have subjected Respondent's
promises to scrutiny in an openly debated campaign. That would have meant that its benefits
for employees outside the bargaining unit might well have been incorporated into the Union's
negotiation plans. Under that scenario, it might have been obligated to provide the same
benefits to the bargaining unit as it did other employees, but still have to deal with the Union.
In addition, it did not want to file an RM petition 19 (a representation petition filed by an
employer) based upon the disaffection petitions for the same reason. The disaffection petitions
were only effective in support of a direct withdrawal of recognition. From Respondent’s
perspective, withdrawal of recognition was a far better and quicker procedure. It had the
obvious benefit of not subjecting itself to the aforementioned scrutiny. Furthermore, it was quick
and, in large measure, out of sight of the Union whose professional representative lived in
Kansas, nowhere near Colony or Belle Fourche. Indeed, instructions were given to avoid
certain employees, particularly those who held some level of union office or who were deemed
loyal to the Union. 20 The campaign was intended to be quick, relatively stealthy, and be
presented as a fait accompli. It would give the Union little time to try to figure out what had
happened. In fact, the notice advising employees not to attend the union meeting in the park
was also designed to limit the Union's knowledge about what had happened. In that sense it
had the tendency to interfere with the §7 right of a union to communicate with the employees it
represents and therefore violated §8(a)(1) of the Act by interfering with the representational
process. Frontier Hotel & Casino, 309 NLRB 761, 766 (1992); Boyer Bros., 217 NLRB 342
(1975); Precision Anodizing & Plating, 244 NLRB 846 (1979); cf. Westinghouse Electric Corp.,
243 NLRB 306 (1979).
The entire campaign and all its features violated §8(a)(1). It was a repudiation of the
principles set forth in the Act.
The Board has long considered an employer’s undue involvement in sparking employee
interest in decertifying the incumbent union or otherwise hamstringing it from within (urging
resignations, dues checkoff cancellations and the like) to be an unlawful interference with the
employees’ §7 rights. See generally Texaco, Inc., 264 NLRB 1132 (1982), enfd. 722 F.2d 1226
(5th Cir. 1984) where the Board said, at 1133:
Considering the course of events described above and the entire record herein, we agree with
the Administrative Law Judge that "Respondent did not maintain a neutral position here, and it
obviously went further than simply answering inquiries of employees." After learning from Sutton
of employee dissatisfaction, Respondent initiated and stimulated the activity that led to the
employees' withdrawal from the Union and the termination of the contract. Respondent
proposed the idea of both the employee petition and the memorandum of agreement to
terminate the contract, and also drafted and typed them. In addition, Respondent allowed
employees to solicit and sign the petition during working time and provided supervisory
assistance in making the petition available to potential signers.

19 See §9(c)(B) of the Act; also Levitz Furniture of the Pacific, 333 NLRB 717 (2001).
20 Such as the Local’s president, Pete Kiley or its secretary-treasurer, Dennis Wattier who
were rank-and-file employees or to known union supporters such as Rick Reid, Glade Lynch, or
Jerry Rose.
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Clearly, Respondent did far more than merely allow employees to exercise the rights
guaranteed them in Section 7 of the Act. Respondent actively and effectively participated in the
process of furthering employee withdrawal from the Union.
Accordingly, we adopt the Administrative Law Judge's finding that Respondent unlawfully aided
in the circulation of the petition and encouraged employees to sign. 14
------------
14 See Shenango Steel Buildings, Inc., 231 NLRB 586, 588-589 (1977); Dayton Blueprint
Company, Inc., 193 NLRB 1100, 1107-08 (1971).
In addition to Texaco and the cases cited therein, other cases covering the point include
Corrections Corporation of America, 347 NLRB No. 62 (2006); Erickson’s Sentry of Bend, 273
NLRB 63, 64 (1984); Inter-Mountain Dairymen, Inc., 157 NLRB 1590, 1609-13 (1966).
Following the presentation of the signatures on the disaffection petitions, Respondent
naturally took the next step and withdrew recognition of the Union. Since all of the disaffection
petitions were the product of the illegal union ouster campaign, they cannot, as a matter of law,
be relied upon to support the contention that they properly represent the employees' true
sympathies and desires concerning union representation. Indeed, they are nothing more than
the classic "tainted" signatures which have been induced by unfair labor practices. Therefore,
they are simply not evidence that the Union lost its presumptive majority status. See Hall
Industries, Inc., 293 NLRB 785 at 791 (1989) where the Board said, "Since the Respondent
actively stimulated the decertification effort and did so in the context of serious unfair labor
practices, its conduct in this regard is also a violation of §8(a)(1) of the Act and the
decertification petition which resulted from its effort is void ab initio.” This is no different. To
withdraw recognition in circumstances where the Union's majority status has not been properly
tested is a violation of §8(a)(5). Levitz Furniture of the Pacific, supra.
It follows that the unilateral changes in the wages, hours and terms and conditions of
employment which Respondent admits (or at least did not counter with evidence) it instituted
also violated §8(a)(5). NLRB v. Katz, 369 U.S. 736 (1961). These include the $1.25 across the
board wage increase; the improved vacation benefits, changing the health plan, modifying the
401(k) plan and abrogating the grievance procedures. In addition, it refused to comply with the
Union's request for information concerning collective bargaining by refusing to respond to the
Union's July 19 letter. In addition, it refused to respond to the Union’s additional request for
information as set forth in the attachment to the Union's letter of July 23. These refusals also
violated §8(a)(5). NLRB v. Truitt Manufacturing Co., 351 U.S. 149 (1956); NLRB v. Acme
Industrial Co., 385 U.S. 432 (1967). See also Curtiss-Wright Corp. v. NLRB, 347 F.2d 61 (3d
Cir. 1965), enfg. 145 NLRB 152 (1963).
V. The Remedy
Having found that the Respondent has engaged in certain unfair labor practices, I find
that it must be ordered to cease and desist and to take certain affirmative action designed to
effectuate the policies of the Act. It will also be ordered to cease its campaign of encouraging,
fostering and instigating an employee movement to decertify or otherwise oust the Union as the
employees’ collective bargaining representative as well as to cease coercively interrogating its
employees regarding their union sympathies and desires and promising benefits to interfere with
their §7 rights. Finally it will be ordered to cease bargaining in bad faith by withdrawing
recognition and refusing to provide information relevant to collective bargaining and to stop
making unilateral changes in the wages and terms and conditions of employment. And, given
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the serious nature of these unfair labor practices and Respondent’s demonstrated disregard for
employee rights under the Act, a broad remedial order is appropriate. Hickmott Foods, 242
NLRB 1357 (1979).
The affirmative action will include an order to recognize the Union and to resume
bargaining in good faith with the Union as the exclusive representative of its employees. In this
regard Respondent shall immediately provide the information requested by the Union in its
letters of July 19 and 23. In an effort to restore the status quo as of July 23, if the Union
requests, Respondent will also withdraw any benefits it has granted as a part of its campaign. 21
Finally, Respondent shall be directed to post a notice to employees advising them of their rights
and describing the steps it will take to remedy the unfair labor practices which have been found.
Based upon the foregoing findings of fact, legal analysis, and the record as a whole I
hereby make the following
Conclusions of Law
1. Respondent, Bentonite Performance Minerals, LLC, a Product and Service Line of Halliburton
Energy Services, Inc., is an employer engaged in an industry affecting commerce within the
meaning of §2(2), (6) and (7) of the Act.
2. International Chemical Workers Union Council/United Food and Commercial Workers Union,
CLC, Local 353C is a labor organization within the meaning of §2(5) of the Act.
3. The following is an appropriate bargaining unit:
All production and maintenance employees, including employees temporarily assigned as
watchmen, in Respondent’s mining, milling and packing operations located near Colony,
Wyoming, but excluding office and clerical employees, weigh masters, laboratory
technicians, watchmen, foremen and supervisory employees.
4. By coercive interrogation of its employees to determine their sentiments concerning union
representation; by proposing the idea of disaffection petitions; by soliciting signatures, both
directly and indirectly, of employees on those petitions; by making promises of improved
conditions if the Union was ousted as their collective bargaining representative; and by
attempting to interfere with the Union by limiting communications with the employees it
represents, Respondent violated §8(a)(1) of the Act.
5. By withdrawing recognition of the Union as the exclusive collective bargaining representative
of its Colony, Wyoming production and maintenance employees; by refusing to bargain with
the Union for a new collective bargaining contract; by making unilateral changes in the
wages and other terms and conditions of employment of those employees and by refusing
to respond to the Union’s request for information relevant to collective bargaining,
Respondent violated §8(a)(5) and §8(d) of the Act.

21 This restoration remedy is appropriate in circumstances where the Employer has
unilaterally granted benefits greater than previously enjoyed and where that grant was aimed at
undermining the Union’s representative status. See e.g., Carrier Corp., 319 NLRB 184, 199
(1995); House Calls, 304 NLRB 311, 314 (1990); Dura-Vent Corp., 257 NLRB 430, 433 (1981).
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On these findings of fact and conclusions of law and on the entire record, I issue the
following recommended 22
ORDER
Respondent, Bentonite Performance Minerals, LLC, a Product and Service Line of
Halliburton Energy Services, Inc., Colony, Wyoming, its officers, agents, and representatives,
shall
1. Cease and desist from:
a. coercively interrogating its employees to determine their sentiments concerning union
representation;
b. proposing the idea of disaffection petitions;
c. soliciting employees, either directly and indirectly, to sign disaffection petitions;
d. making promises of improved conditions if the Union was ousted as their collective
bargaining representative.
e. withdrawing recognition of the Union as the exclusive collective bargaining
representative of its employees at its Colony, Wyoming operation;
f. unilaterally, without first bargaining with the Union, granting wage increases to members
of the Colony bargaining unit.
g. unilaterally, without first bargaining with the Union, granting improved vacation benefits,
health benefits, retirement benefits or any other employment connected benefit to members
of the Colony bargaining unit;
h. refusing to provide the Union with the information it has requested which is relevant to
collective bargaining.
i. interfering with the Union’s right to communicate with the employees it represents.
j. in any other manner restraining 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. bargain collectively in good faith with the Union in the following appropriate bargaining unit:
All production and maintenance employees, including employees temporarily assigned as
watchmen, in Respondent’s mining, milling and packing operations located near Colony,
Wyoming, but excluding office and clerical employees, weigh masters, laboratory
technicians, watchmen, foremen and supervisory employees.

22 If no exceptions are filed as provided by § 102.46 of the Board’s Rules and Regulations,
the findings, conclusions, and recommended Order shall, as provided in § 102.48 of the Rules,
be adopted by the Board and all objections to them shall be deemed waived for all purposes.
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b. Upon written request by the Union, and in the manner set forth in the Remedy section,
reinstate the wage structure, the health plan, the retirement plan(s) and any other changes
of mandatory bargaining subjects which it instituted after July 23, 2007.
c. Within 14 days after service by the Region, post at its mining and milling operation near
Colony, Wyoming copies of the attached notice marked “Appendix.” 23 Copies of the notice,
on forms provided by the Regional Director for Region 27 after being signed by
Respondent's authorized representative, shall be posted by Respondent immediately upon
receipt and maintained for 60 consecutive days in conspicuous places including all places
where notices to employees are customarily posted. Reasonable steps shall be taken by
Respondent to ensure that the notices are not altered, defaced, or covered by any other
material. In the event that, during the pendency of these proceedings, Respondent has
gone out of business or closed the facility involved in these proceedings, Respondent 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 July 10, 2008.
d. Within 21 days after service by the Region, file with the Regional Director a sworn
certification of a responsible official on a form provided by the Region attesting to the steps
that the Respondent has taken to comply.
Dated, Washington, D.C. June 2, 2008
____________________________________
James M. Kennedy
Administrative Law Judge

23 If this Order is enforced by a Judgment of the United States Court of Appeals, the words
in the notice reading “POSTED BY ORDER OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD”
shall read “POSTED PURSUANT TO A JUDGMENT OF THE UNITED STATES COURT OF
APPEALS ENFORCING AN ORDER OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD.”
JD(SF)–24–08
Colony, WY
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 violated Federal labor law and has
ordered us to post and obey this notice.
FEDERAL LAW GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO
♦ Form, join or assist a union
♦ Choose representatives to bargain with us on your behalf
♦ Act together with other employees for your benefit and protection
♦ Choose not to engage in any of these protected activities.
WE WILL NOT interrogate you to determine your sentiments concerning union representation.
WE WILL NOT propose the idea of disaffection petitions in order to disestablish International
Chemical Workers Union Council/United Food and Commercial Workers Union, CLC,
Local 353C as your collective bargaining representative.
WE WILL NOT solicit you, either directly and indirectly, to sign disaffection petitions to oust your
collective bargaining representative.
WE WILL NOT make promises of improved conditions in order to induce you to oust your
collective bargaining representative.
WE WILL NOT withdraw recognition of Chemical Workers/UFCW Local 353C as the exclusive
collective bargaining representative of our employees at our Colony, Wyoming operation.
WE WILL NOT unilaterally, without first bargaining with Chemical Workers/UFCW Local 353C,
grant wage increases to members of our Colony bargaining unit.
WE WILL NOT unilaterally, without first bargaining with Chemical Workers/UFCW Local 353C,
grant improved vacation benefits, health benefits, retirement benefits or any other
employment connected benefits to members of our Colony bargaining unit.
WE WILL NOT refuse to provide Chemical Workers/UFCW Local 353C with the information it
has requested which is relevant to collective bargaining.
WE WILL NOT interfere with Chemical Workers/UFCW Local 353C’s right to communicate
with you.
WE WILL NOT in any other manner interfere with, restrain or coerce you in the exercise of the
rights guaranteed you by Section 7 of the Act and which are enumerated above.
JD(SF)–24–08
Colony, WY
WE WILL bargain collectively in good faith with Chemical Workers/UFCW Local 353C in the
following appropriate bargaining unit:
All production and maintenance employees, including employees temporarily assigned
as watchmen, at our mining, milling and packing operations located near Colony,
Wyoming, but excluding office and clerical employees, weigh masters, laboratory
technicians, watchmen, foremen and supervisory employees.
WE WILL, upon written request by Chemical Workers/UFCW Local 353C, reinstate the wage
structure, the health plan, the retirement plan(s) and any other changes in your benefits and
working conditions which we instituted after July 23, 2007.
BENTONITE PERFORMANCE MINERALS, LLC, a
PRODUCT AND SERVICE LINE OF HALLIBURTON
ENERGY SERVICES, INC.
(Employer)
Dated By
(Representative) (Title)
The National Labor Relations Board is an independent Federal agency created in 1935 to enforce the National Labor
Relations Act. It conducts secret-ballot elections to determine whether employees want union representation and it
investigates and remedies unfair labor practices by employers and unions. To find out more about your rights under
the Act and how to file a charge or election petition, you may speak confidentially to any agent with the Board’s
Regional Office set forth below. You may also obtain information from the Board’s website: www.nlrb.gov.
600 17th Street, 7th Floor, North Tower, Denver, CO 80202-5433
(303) 844-3551, Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
THIS IS AN OFFICIAL NOTICE AND MUST NOT BE DEFACED BY ANYONE
THIS NOTICE MUST REMAIN POSTED FOR 60 CONSECUTIVE DAYS FROM THE DATE OF POSTING AND MUST
NOT BE ALTERED, DEFACED, OR COVERED BY ANY OTHER MATERIAL. ANY QUESTIONS CONCERNING THIS
NOTICE OR COMPLIANCE WITH ITS PROVISIONS MAY BE DIRECTED TO THE ABOVE REGIONAL OFFICE’S
COMPLIANCE OFFICER, (303) 844-3554.