Intl. Brotherhood Of Teamsters 584

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Oct 28, 1975

221 N.L.R.B. 125 (N.L.R.B. 1975)

INTL. BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS 584 125
Local Union No. 584, International Brotherhood of
Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Help-
ers of America and The Hertz Corporation. Case
29-CD-171
October 28, 1975
DECISION AND ORDER
BY CHAIRMAN MURPHY AND MEMBERS
FANNING AND JENKINS
Upon charges filed by The Hertz Corporation,
herein called Hertz, the General Counsel of the
National Labor Relations Board, by the Regional
Director for Region 29, issued a complaint on
September 27, 1974, against Local Union No. 584,
International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs,
Warehousemen and Helpers of America, herein
called Local 584 or''Respondent, alleging that the
Respondent had engaged in and was engaging in
unfair labor practices within the meaning of Section
8(b)(4)(ii)(D) of the National Labor Relations Act, as
amended. In substance, the complaint alleges that
the Respondent has violated the Act by engaging in
threats to picket and to stop work at Hertz' service,
repair, and maintenance facilities located at 5657
58th Street and 5624 58th Street, Maspeth, Queens,
city and State of New York, with an object of forcing
and requiring Hertz to continue to assign the work of
servicing and repairing nonmilk trucks at the above
facilities to employees who are members of Respon-
dent rather than to employees who are members of
Local Union No. 447 of District 15 of the Interna-
tional Association of Machinists and Aerospace
Workers, AFL-CIO (herein called Local 447, IAM).
The Respondent filed an answer to the complaint,
denying the commission of any unfair labor practice.
A hearing was held on November 4, 1974, in the
above-entitled proceeding before Administrative
Law Judge Ivar H. Peterson of the National Labor
Relations Board, at which time certain exhibits were
received into evidence and certain stipulations were
entered into on the record. Pursuant to the stipula-
tions, the parties agreed that the current collective-
bargaining agreement between The Hertz Corpora-
tion and Respondent Union, Local 584, be admitted
into evidence a$ General Counsel's Exhibit 2. They
further agreed to waive the filing of briefs to the
Administrative Law Judge and to submit the matter
directly to the Board.
I On July 23, 1974, in a proceeding pursuant to Sec. 10(k), the Board
issued its Decision and !Determination of Dispute (212 NLRB 532 (1974)) to
which it concluded that employees of Hertz who are represented by Local
447, IAM,'were entitled to perform the disputed work.
2 Case 29-CD-170 was severed from this proceeding on September 27,
1974
Thereafter, on April 28, 1975, the parties filed a
joint motion to transfer the proceeding directly to the
Board in which they agreed that the record in this
proceeding shall consist of the transcript and exhibits
in the 10(k) hearing' in Cases 29-CD-170 and 29-
CD-171,2 the complaint, Respondent's answer,3 and
the transcript and exhibits in the instant case. They
waived the issuance of an Administrative Law
Judge's Decision and the filing of exceptions thereto,
and moved that the Board issue its Decision and
Order based upon the record. They requested that
the Board set a time for the filing of briefs.
Thereafter briefs were filed by the Respondent4 and
Local 447, 1AM.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the
National Labor Relations Act, as amended, the
National Labor Relations Board has delegated its
authority in this proceeding to a three-member panel.
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board
makes the following:
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE EMPLOYER
The parties stipulated that The Hertz Corporation
is a Delaware corporation with its principal place of
business located at 660 Madison Avenue, New York,
New York, and with numerous other' places of
business, including garage maintenance facilities
located at 5624 58th Street and 5657 58th Street,
Maspeth, Queens, New York, and in all 50 States of
the United States, where it is primarily engaged in
the rental and lease of automobiles and trucks.
During the past year it derived gross revenue from its
lease and rental services in excess of $1 million and
has purchased in excess of $50,000 worth of cars and
trucks directly from firms located outside the State of
New York. The parties stipulated and we find that
Hertz is engaged in commerce within the meaning of
the Act; and we find that it will effectuate the
policies of the Act to assert jurisdiction herein.
II. THE LABOR ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
The parties stipulated, and we find, that Local 447
and Local 584 are labor organizations within the
meaning of Section 2(5) of the Act.
3 For purposes of the motion to transfer the case to the Board,
Respondent amended its answer to admit that it had in fact engaged in the
alleged 8(b)(4)(ii)(D) conduct
4 To the extent that Respondent's brief may be taken as a request for
reconsideration of the Board's determination in the prior proceeding, such
request plainly lacks ment and is hereby denied.
221 NLRB No. 18
126 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
III. UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES
A. Background and Facts of the Dispute
The Employer has had a series of collective-
bargaining agreements with Local 447 since it took
over the business of Metropolitan Distributors, Inc.,
herein called Metropolitan, in 1955. At that time, it
assumed the then existing contract that Metropolitan
had with Local 447. Prior agreements like the current
agreement cover the approximately 300 maintenance
mechanics at all of the Employer's locations in the
New York metropolitan area. The situs in dispute is
located in the Long Island City district.
Sometime in late 1959 or 1960, negotiations took
place between the Employer and Hegeman Holland
Farms, sometimes referred to as Holland or Holland
Farms, for a leasing arrangement for Holland's milk
trucks. The Employer was made aware by Holland of
an existing collective-bargaining agreement it had
with Local 584 covering the approximately nine
maintenance mechanics it utilized for service and
repair of its milk trucks.
One of the conditions imposed by Holland in
granting the lease was that Hertz assume the
aforementioned collective-bargaining agreement with
Local 584. The Employer sought and received the
assent of Local 447 to assume the Local 584
agreement. When the Employer assumed the Local
584 agreement, it also took over the Holland garage
for the purpose of maintaining, servicing, and
repairing nonmilk trucks in Holland's garage. While
the number of trucks serviced and repaired at this
garage has fluctuated over the years, at present there
are approximately 160 milk trucks and 35 nonmilk
trucks maintained and serviced at the Holland
garage by about 20 mechanics who are members of
Local 584. In late 1972, representatives of Local 447
reportedly first learned that Local 584 mechanics
were performing work on nonmilk trucks at the
Holland garage. At that time, Business Representa-
tive Ronald Touanen of Local 447 complained to
Employer's personnel director, Roger Keehn, about
the utilization of Local 584 mechanics to perform
mechanical work on the nonmilk trucks. Touanen
pointed out that the Employer's collective-bargaining
agreement with Local 447 covers the maintenance
mechanics at all of the Employer's locations in the
New York metropolitan area. Keehn promised to
discuss the matters again with Touanen, but never
did. During the spring of 1973, Local 447 requested
arbitration, but the request failed as the parties did
not reach agreement on the selection of an arbitrator.
Also during the spring of 1973, the Employer and
Holland entered into lease renewal negotiations.
Holland insisted that it would not renew the lease
unless the Employer ceased maintenance work on
nonmilk trucks in the garage before approximately
54 new milk trucks were delivered. The Employer
accepted this condition and planned to use a lot and
garage facility5 located across the street for the repair
and maintenance of its nonmilk trucks. The new milk
trucks were scheduled to be delivered during the fall
of 1973; however, due to production delays, only 6 of
the 54 trucks ordered have been delivered, with the
remainder scheduled to arrive sometime in July of
this year.
On November 7, 1973, Keehn requested that the
parties hold a meeting for the purpose of resolving
the imminent dispute over the assignment of the
work in connection with the maintenance and repair
of the nonmilk trucks. Present at the meeting were
Keehn, for the Employer; Touanen, for Local 447;
and Business Representatives Joseph Barone, for
Local 584. According to Keehn, he was threatened
with picketing by the business representatives of both
Unions if the work in dispute were not awarded to
employees who were members of their respective
Unions.
B. The Determination of the Dispute
On July 23, 1974, the Board issued its Decision and
Determination of Dispute assigning the disputed
work to the Employer's employees represented by
Local 447, IAM, and finding that Respondent was
not entitled, by means proscribed by Section
8(b)(4)(D) of the Act, to force the Employer to assign
the' disputed work to employees represented by the
Respondent.
C. The Respondent's Refusal To Comply
In addition to its threats to picket on or about
November 7, 1973, the Respondent has refused and
continues to refuse to comply with the Board's
Decision and Determination of Dispute that it is not
entitled to force or require the Employer to assign the
disputed work to employees represented by it and
that it notify the Regional Director to that effect.
D. The Unfair Labor Practices
As alleged in the complaint, the Respondent's
amended answer and its refusal to comply with the
Board's Decision and Determination of Dispute in
this proceeding clearly show that Respondent's
coercive threats of picketing and work stoppages at
the Employer's above-described service, repair, and
maintenance facilities had an object of forcing and
requiring Hertz to continue to assign the work of
5 This leased lot and garage has been used for storage and minor repairs.
INTL. BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS 584
servicing, maintaining, and repairing nonmilk trucks
at its service facility_ located at 5657 58th Street, and
at 5624 58th Street, Maspeth, Queens, city and State
of New York, to employees who are members of
Respondent Local 584 rather than to employees who
are members of Local 447. The Respondent's
admitted conduct at the above facility is proscribed
by Section 8(b)(4)(ii)(D). Accordingly, we find that
the Respondent violated the foregoing provision of
the Act by engaging in the above-specified conduct.
IV. THE EFFECT OF THE UNFAIR LABOR
PRACTICES UPON COMMERCE
The activities of the Respondent set forth in section
III, above, occurring in connection with the opera-
tions of the Employer herein involved, have a close,
intimate, and substantial relation to trade, traffic,
and commerce among the several States, and tend to
lead to labor disputes burdening and obstructing
commerce and the free flow thereof.
THE REMEDY
Having found that the Respondent violated Section
8(b)(4)(ii)(D) of the Act, we shall order it to cease
and desist therefrom and to take certain affirmative
action designed to effectuate the purposes of the Act.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
1. The Employer is engaged in commerce within
the meaning of Section 2(6) and (7) of the Act.
2. The Respondent and Local 447 are labor
organizations within the meaning of Section 2(5) of
the Act.
3. By engaging in threats to picket and to cause
work stoppages directed at Hertz with an object of
forcing or requiring Hertz to continue to assign the
work of servicing, maintaining, and repairing non-
milk trucks at its facilities located at 5657 58th Street
and at 5624 58th Street, Maspeth, Queens, city and
State of New York, to employees who are members
of Respondent Local 584 rather than to employees
who are members of Local 447, the Respondent has
engaged in unfair labor practices within the meaning
of Section 8(b)(4)(ii)(D) of the Act.
4. The aforesaid unfair labor practices are unfair
labor practices affecting commerce within the mean-
ing of Section 2(6) and (7) of the Act.
ORDER
127
Pursuant to Section 10(c) of the National Labor
Relations Act, as amended, the National Labor
Relations Board hereby orders that the Respondent,
Local Union No. 584, International Brotherhood of
Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers
of America, New York, New York, its officers,
agents, and representatives, shall:
1. Cease and desist from threatening, coercing, or
restraining The Hertz Corporation where an object
thereof is to force or require the said Employer to
assign the work of ,servicing, repairing, or maintain-
ing nonmilk trucks at its facilities located at 5657 and
5624 58th Street, Maspeth, Queens, city and State of
New York, to employees represented by Respondent,
rather than to employees represented by Local
Union No. 447 of District 15 of the International
Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers,
AFL-CIO.
2. Take the following affirmative action which the
Board finds will effectuate the purposes of the Act:
(a) Post at the business offices and meeting halls of
the Respondent, New York, New York, copies of the
attached notice marked "Appendix."6 Copies of said
notice, on forms to be provided by the Regional
Director for Region 29, after being duly signed by an
authorized representative of Respondent, shall be
posted by Respondent immediately upon receipt
thereof, and be maintained by it for 60 consecutive'
days thereafter, in conspicuous places, including all
places where notices to members are customarily
posted. Reasonable steps shall be taken by the
Respondent to insure that such notices are not
altered, defaced, or covered by any other material.
(b) Sign and mail copies of said notice to the
Regional Director for Region 29 for posting by The
Hertz Corporation, if willing, at all locations where
notices to its employees are customarily posted.
(c) Notify the Regional Director for Region 29, in
writing, within 20 days from the date of this Order,
what steps the Respondent has taken to comply
herewith.
6 In the event that 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 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."
128 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
APPENDIX
NOTICE To EMPLOYEES AND MEMBERS
POSTED BY ORDER OF THE
NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
An Agency of the United States Government
WE WILL NOT threaten, coerce, or restrain The
Hertz Corporation where an object thereof is to
force or require said Employer to assign the work
of servicing, repairing, or maintaining nonmilk
trucks at its facilities located at 5657 and 5624
58th Street, Maspeth, Queens, city and State of
New York, to employees represented by us, rather
than to employees represented by Local Union
No. 447 of District 15 of the International
Association Machinists and Aerospace Workers,
AFL-CIO.
LocAL UNION No. 584,
INTERNATIONAL
BROTHERHOOD OF
TEAMSTERS, CHAUFFEURS,
WAREHOUSEMEN AND
HELPERS OF AMERICA