Blake & Sons Glass

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 12, 1991

304 N.L.R.B. 992 (N.L.R.B. 1991)

992
304 NLRB No. 125
DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Blake & Sons Glass, Inc. and Glaziers, Architec-
tural Metal and Glassworkers Local Union No.
357, Brotherhood of Painters and Allied
Trades, AFL–CIO. Case 7–CA–31680
September 12, 1991
DECISION AND ORDER
BY CHAIRMAN STEPHENS AND MEMBERS
DEVANEY AND OVIATT
Upon a charge filed by the Union March 21, 1991,
the General Counsel of the National Labor Relations
Board issued a complaint April 29, 1991, against the
Company, the Respondent, alleging that it has violated
Section 8(a)(5) and (1) and Section 8(d) of the Na-
tional Labor Relations Act. Although properly served
copies of the charge and complaint, the Respondent
has failed to file an answer.
On June 25, 1991, the General Counsel filed a Mo-
tion for Default Judgment. On June 28, 1991, the
Board issued an order transferring the proceeding to
the Board and a Notice to Show Cause why the motion
should not be granted. The Respondent filed no re-
sponse. The allegations in the motion are therefore un-
disputed.
The National Labor Relations Board has delegated
its authority in this proceeding to a three-member
panel.
Ruling on Motion for Default Judgment
Section 102.20 of the Board’s Rules and Regulations
provides that the allegations in the complaint shall be
deemed admitted if an answer is not filed within 14
days from service of the complaint, unless good cause
is shown. The complaint states that unless an answer
is filed within 14 days of service, ‘‘all of the allega-
tions in the Complaint shall be deemed to be admitted
true and may be so found by the Board.’’ Further, the
undisputed allegations in the Motion for Default Judg-
ment disclose that the Acting Regional attorney, by let-
ter dated May 22, 1991, and the Regional attorney, by
letter dated June 10, 1991, notified the Respondent that
unless an answer was received by specified dates, a
Motion for Default Judgment would be filed.
In the absence of good cause being shown for the
failure to file a timely answer, we grant the General
Counsel’s Motion for Default Judgment.
On the entire record, the Board makes the following
FINDINGS OF FACT
I. JURISDICTION
The Company, a Michigan corporation, with its
principal office and place of business in Port Huron,
Michigan, is engaged in the building and construction
industry as a fabricator and installer of glass, plastic,
and architectural metal and materials, and related prod-
ucts. During the fiscal year ending September 30,
1990, a representative period, the Respondent in the
course and conduct of its business operations pur-
chased and caused to be transported and delivered at
its Port Huron location and jobsites in Michigan goods
and materials valued in excess of $50,000 which goods
and materials were transported and delivered to the Re-
spondent’s place of business and jobsites in Michigan
from other enterprises located in the State of Michigan,
each of which other enterprises had received the goods
and materials delivered to the locations directly from
points located outside of the State of Michigan. We
find that the Company is an employer engaged in com-
merce within the meaning of Section 2(6) and (7) of
Act and that the Union is a labor organization within
the meaning of Section 2(5) of the Act.
II. ALLEGED UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES
The following employees of the Respondent con-
stitute units appropriate for the purposes of collective
bargaining within the meaning of Section 9(b) of the
Act:
Unit A
All glaziers, glass (except auto glass), plastic and
architectural metal/material installers, including
residential workers; but excluding office clerical
employees, guards and supervisors as defined in
the Act.
Unit B
Inside employees including all warehousemen,
paint handlers, belt machine operators, No. 1 cut-
ters, auto glass installers, bevelers, silverers,
scratch polishers, blockers, glass designers, art
glass and lead glaziers, webber machine operators,
metal fabricators and assemblers, head packers,
porters, and insulated glass fabricators (washer
and sealer); but excluding office clerical employ-
ees, guards and supervisors as defined in the Act.
Since approximately 1966, and continuing to date,
by virtue of successive collective-bargaining agree-
ments between the Respondent and the Union (the
most recent of which being by its terms effective from
June 11, 1988, to and including May 31, 1993), the
Union has been the exclusive representative for the
purposes of collective bargaining of the employees in
the units and, by virtue of Section 9(a) of the Act, has
been the exclusive representative of all employees in
the units for the purpose of collective bargaining with
respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment,
and other terms and conditions of employment.
About January 18, 1991, the Respondent laid off all
of its employees employed in the units. About January
19, 1991, and continuing to date, the Respondent has
failed and refused to make appropriate fringe benefit
993BLAKE & SONS GLASS
1 Any additional amounts due on trust fund payments shall be computed in
the manner prescribed in Merryweather Optical Co., 240 NLRB 1213 (1979).
payments as required by the collective-bargaining
agreements with respect to employees that the Re-
spondent has employed since January 19, 1991, in the
units referred to above. By this failure and refusal to
make appropriate fringe benefit payments, the Re-
spondent unilaterally modified the current collective-
bargaining agreement without complying with Section
8(d) of the Act. The Respondent took these actions
without prior notice to the Union or without the Union
being given meaningful opportunity to bargain con-
cerning such matters.
About March 15, 1991, and continuing to date, the
Respondent repudiated the collective-bargaining agree-
ments and withdrew recognition of the Union as the
exclusive collective-bargaining representative of the
employees employed within the units.
We find that by these actions the Respondent has
failed and refused to bargain collectively and in good
faith with the Union as the exclusive representative of
the employees in the units in violation of Section
8(a)(5) and (1) and Section 8(d) of the Act.
CONCLUSION OF LAW
By laying off all of its employees employed in the
units without prior notice to the Union or without the
Union being given the meaningful opportunity to bar-
gain; by failing and refusing to make appropriate
fringe benefit payments as required by the collective-
bargaining agreements without complying with the
provisions of Section 8(d) of the Act; and by repudiat-
ing the collective-bargaining agreement and withdraw-
ing recognition of the Union as the exclusive collec-
tive-bargaining representative of the employees em-
ployed within the units, the Respondent engaged in un-
fair labor practices affecting commerce within the
meaning of Section 8(a)(5) and (1) and Section 8(d) of
the Act.
REMEDY
Having found that the Respondent has engaged in
certain unfair labor practices, we shall order it to cease
and desist and to take certain affirmative action de-
signed to effectuate the policies of the Act.
We shall order the Respondent to bargain with the
Union concerning the layoff of its employees, and to
reinstate the laid-off employees with backpay in ac-
cordance with F. W. Woolworth Co., 90 NLRB 289
(1950), plus interest as computed in New Horizons for
the Retarded, 283 NLRB 1173 (1987).
We shall further order the Respondent to make the
employees whole by making the contractually required
fringe benefit payments1 which have not been paid and
that would have been paid absent the Respondent’s
unilateral discontinuance of the payments. We shall
also order the Respondent to reimburse its employees
for any expenses they incurred because of its unlawful
failure to make the required payments, as set forth in
Kraft Plumbing & Heating, 252 NLRB 891 fn. 2
(1980), enfd. mem. 661 F.2d 940 (9th Cir. 1981). All
payments to employees shall be made with interest as
prescribed in New Horizons for the Retarded, supra.
Lastly, we shall order the Respondent to recognize
the Union as the exclusive collective-bargaining rep-
resentative of the employees in the units as required in
the collective-bargaining agreements.
ORDER
The National Labor Relations Board orders that the
Respondent, Blake & Sons Glass, Inc., Port Huron,
Michigan, its officers, agents, successors, and assigns,
shall
1. Cease and desist from
(a) Unilaterally laying off employees without pro-
viding the Union with notice and the meaningful op-
portunity to bargain about the layoff of employees.
(b) Refusing to bargain collectively with Glaziers,
Architectural Metal and Glassworkers Local Union No.
357, Brotherhood of Painters and Allied Trades, AFL–
CIO by failing and refusing to make appropriate fringe
benefit payments as required by its collective-bargain-
ing agreements with the Union. The units are:
Unit A
All glaziers, glass (except auto glass), plastic and
architectural metal/material installers including
residential workers; but excluding office clerical
employees, guards and supervisors as defined in
the Act.
Unit B
Inside employees including all warehousemen,
paint handlers, belt machine operators, No. 1 cut-
ters, auto glass installers, bevelers, silverers,
scratch polishers, blockers, glass designers, art
glass and lead glaziers, webber machine operators,
metal fabricators and assemblers, head packers,
porters, and insulated glass fabricators (washer
and sealer); but excluding office clerical employ-
ees, guards and supervisors as defined in the Act.
(c) Repudiating the collective-bargaining agreements
with the Union and withdrawing recognition of the
Union as the exclusive collective-bargaining represent-
ative of the employees employed within the units.
(d) In any like or related manner interfering with,
restraining, or coercing employees in the exercise of
rights guaranteed them by Section 7 of the Act.
2. Take the following affirmative action necessary to
effectuate the policies of the Act.
(a) Immediately recognize and, on request, bargain
collectively and in good faith with Glaziers, Architec-
tural Metal and Glassworkers Local Union No. 357,
994 DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
2 If this Order is enforced by a judgment of a United States court of appeals,
the words in the notice reading ‘‘Posted by Order of the National Labor Rela-
tions Board’’ shall read ‘‘Posted Pursuant to a Judgment of the United States
Court of Appeals Enforcing an Order of the National Labor Relations Board.’’
Brotherhood of Painters and Allied Trades, AFL–CIO
as the exclusive representative of the units with respect
to wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of em-
ployment.
(b) Reinstate the employees laid off January 18,
1991.
(c) Make the employees in the units whole by pay-
ing in the manner set forth in the remedy section of
the decision all the contractually required fringe bene-
fit funds as provided in the collective-bargaining agree-
ments which have not been paid and that would have
been paid absent the Respondent’s unilateral dis-
continuance of the payments.
(d) Make all employees whole for any losses of pay
and benefits they may have suffered.
(e) Post at its facility in Port Huron, Michigan, cop-
ies of the attached notice marked ‘‘Appendix’’2 Copies
of the notice, on forms provided by the Regional Di-
rector for Region 7, after being signed by the Re-
spondent’s authorized representative, shall be posted
by the Respondent immediately upon receipt and main-
tained for 60 days in conspicuous places including all
places where notices to employees are customarily
posted. Reasonable steps shall be taken by the Re-
spondent to ensure that the notices are not altered, de-
faced, or covered by any other material.
(f) Notify the Regional Director in writing with 20
days from the date of this Order what steps the Re-
spondent has taken to comply.
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 the National Labor Relations Act and has or-
dered us to post and abide by this notice.
WE WILL NOT lay off employees in the units de-
scribed below without prior notice to the Union or
without the Union being given a meaningful oppor-
tunity to bargain. The units are:
Unit A
All glaziers, glass (except auto glass), plastic and
architectural metal/material installers including
residential workers; but excluding office clerical
employees, guards and supervisors as defined in
the Act.
Unit B
Inside employees including all warehousemen,
paint handlers, belt machine operators, No. 1 cut-
ters, auto glass installers, bevelers, silverers,
scratch polishers, blockers, glass designers, art
glass and lead glaziers, webber machine operators,
metal fabricators and assemblers, head packers,
porters, and insulated glass fabricators (washer
and sealer); but excluding office clerical employ-
ees, guards and supervisors as defined in the Act.
WE WILL NOT refuse to abide by and adhere to our
collective-bargaining agreement by failing to pay the
required fringe benefit payments for the employees
employed in the units described above.
WE WILL NOT repudiate the collective-bargaining
agreements with Glaziers, Architectural Metal and
Glassworkers Local Union No. 357, Brotherhood of
Painters and Allied Trades, AFL–CIO and WE WILL
NOT withdraw recognition of the Union as the exclu-
sive collective-bargaining representative of the employ-
ees employed in the units.
WE WILL make whole the above unit employees,
with interest for losses sustained by our failure to
maintain fringe benefits.
WE WILL reinstate the employees laid off January
18, 1991.
WE WILL make all employees whole, with interest,
for any losses of pay and benefits they may have suf-
fered.
WE WILL recognize that the Union is the exclusive
collective-bargaining representive of the employees in
the units.
BLAKE & SONS GLASS, INC.