AIR LINE PILOTS ASS'N, INT. v. Scheduled Skyways

• Decision Date: 22 June 1983
• Docket Number: 83-5005.,Civ. No. 82-5147
• Citation: 567 F. Supp. 171
• Parties: AIR LINE PILOTS ASSOCIATION, INTERNATIONAL and Mark E. Ingram, Plaintiffs, v. SCHEDULED SKYWAYS, INC., et al., Defendants. SCHEDULED SKYWAYS, INC., Plaintiff, v. NATIONAL MEDIATION BOARD and Air Line Pilots Association, International, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Western District of Arkansas

567 F. Supp. 171

AIR LINE PILOTS ASSOCIATION, INTERNATIONAL and Mark E. Ingram, Plaintiffs, v. SCHEDULED SKYWAYS, INC., et al., Defendants.

SCHEDULED SKYWAYS, INC., Plaintiff, v. NATIONAL MEDIATION BOARD and Air Line Pilots Association, International, Defendants.

Civ. Nos. 82-5147, 83-5005.

United States District Court, W.D. Arkansas, Fayetteville Division.

June 22, 1983.

James Youngdahl, Youngdahl & Larrison, Little Rock, Ark., and Gary Green and Robert A. McCullough, Air Line Pilots Association, Int'l, Washington, D.C., for plaintiff in No. 82-5147.

Jefferson D. Kirby, III, Ford & Harrison, Atlanta, Ga., and Jim Hunter Birch, Rose Law Firm, Little Rock, Ark., for defendants in No. 82-5147 and plaintiff in No. 83-5005.

Robert A. McCullough, Legal Dept. Air Line Pilots Association, Int'l, Washington, D.C., Jay Youngdahl, Youngdahl & Larrison, for Air Line Pilots Assn., Int'l, Little Rock, Ark., and Jose I. Sandoval, Atty., Dept. of Justice for National Mediation

Board, Civ. Div., Washington, D.C., for defendants in No. 83-5005.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

H. FRANKLIN WATERS, Chief Judge.

Introduction

These consolidated matters arise out of a dispute, sometimes bitter, between Scheduled Skyways, Inc. (Skyways), and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), and some of Skyways' employees arising out of an attempt by the employees favorable to ALPA and by ALPA to unionize the Skyways pilots. The dispute resulted in the filing of Case No. 82-5147 by ALPA and Mark E. Ingram, a discharged pilot of Skyways, seeking judgments and orders of the Court: declaring that Skyways' discharge of Ingram was motivated by his union activities in violation of 45 U.S.C. § 152, Third and Fourth; declaring that Skyways by certain described actions sought to coerce plaintiffs and the Skyways pilots in their efforts to organize and select a collective bargaining representative and to bargain collectively, thereby violating the above cited statute; permanently enjoining Skyways and persons acting for them from unlawfully interfering with, influencing, or coercing the pilots in the exercise of their statutory rights to organize; ordering Skyways to reinstate Ingram; ordering Skyways to post a copy of the Court's order in a conspicuous place on company facilities; awarding Ingram compensatory damages more specifically described in the complaint and punitive damages for willful and deliberate violations of the Railway Labor Act, and awarding Ingram reasonable attorney's fees.

The plaintiff sought a preliminary injunction and after an evidentiary hearing held on October 4, 1982, the Court declined to grant the injunction for reasons stated on the record.

Subsequently, on January 13, 1983, Skyways filed Civil Action No. 83-5005 against ALPA and the National Mediation Board (NMB), seeking declaratory and injunctive relief, contending that the NMB's certification of ALPA as the designated and authorized bargaining agent for certain of Skyways' employees was invalid for the reason that at the time of such action the NMB consisted of only one member, the remaining two members having earlier resigned. ALPA counterclaimed in this action seeking preliminary and permanent injunctions prohibiting Skyways from taking certain specifically described actions which it alleges interferes with the employees and ALPA's right to organize the Skyways pilots. It also seeks in the counterclaim judgment for compensatory damages and punitive damages resulting from what it alleges to be Skyways' willful and deliberate violations of the Railway Labor Act.

Each of the parties to this action have filed motions for summary judgment and/or motions for judgment on the pleadings, contending that the Court should grant the relief prayed for by each of them as a matter of law. The attorneys for the parties have submitted extensive and excellent briefs in support of their motions and in opposition to the motions filed by their adversaries. The Court has carefully considered the very substantial issues raised by the parties, and is prepared to rule.

Facts

The facts necessary to rule on the various motions are not substantially, if at all, in dispute. As indicated, Skyways is a regional common carrier by air, admittedly engaged in interstate commerce and admittedly subject to the provisions of the Railway Labor Act, 45 U.S.C. § 151 et seq. ALPA is a union of airline pilots, recognized or certified as the collective bargaining representative for airline pilots employed by a number of air carriers across the country. The National Mediation Board is an agency of the United States created by amendments to the Railway Labor Act, specifically 45, United States Code § 154. It is authorized by the Act to exercise various powers and perform various functions in connection with representation disputes and the certification of labor unions to act as collective bargaining representatives for the employees of covered common carriers.

On July 23, 1981, the services of the NMB were invoked by ALPA to investigate and determine whether ALPA was to be certified to represent certain employees of Skyways in collective bargaining. In its application for investigation of representation dispute filed on that date, ALPA claimed that: "A dispute has arisen among the employees of Scheduled Skyways as to who are the representatives of these employees designated and authorized in accordance with the requirements of the Railway Labor Act."

Pursuant to the Act, the NMB investigated the claim and subsequently determined that an election was necessary. On September 3, 1982, the NMB mailed ballots to Skyways pilots and co-pilots for purposes of conducting the election. The ballots were counted on September 27, 1982, and the count showed that 43 of 73 eligible voters voted in favor of ALPA. On September 28, 1982, the NMB issued a certification stating "that ALPA has been duly designated and authorized to represent for the purposes of the RLA, the craft or class of Pilots and Co-Pilots, employees of Scheduled Skyways, its successors and assigns." The certification stated that it was being issued "by order of the NATIONAL MEDIATION BOARD."

Skyways does not, at least at this point, challenge the results of the Board's investigation and subsequent election, but, instead, alleges that the Board's action is void because at no time during the proceedings did the NMB have more than one member, although the creating statute (45 U.S.C. § 154) established a three-member board and provided, inter alia, that: "Two of the members in office shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of the business of the board."

In this regard, all parties agree that prior to June 1, 1982, one of the three members of the board resigned, and on that date a second member resigned, leaving only one member from June 1 until October 12, 1982, when an additional member was sworn into office. See Affidavit of Rowland K. Quinn, Jr., Executive Secretary of the National Mediation Board, Government Exhibit "B" to its motion for a stay of proceedings or, in the alternative, for an enlargement of time, filed in the consolidated actions May 12, 1983. Skyways has refused to bargain with ALPA or the pilots allegedly represented by it pending a determination of the validity of the purported certification.

Discussion of Applicable Law and Decision of the Court

It is appropriate to first discuss and dispose of the NMB's motion for a stay of proceedings or, in the alternative, for an enlargement of time. On May 12, 1983, the date that the NMB's response to the motion for summary judgment in Case No. 83-5005 was due, the attorney for the NMB filed such motion, requesting that this Court stay proceedings in this matter until the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit decided the case of Railroad Yardmasters of America v. Robert O. Harris and the National Mediation Board, an appeal of a decision by Judge June Green of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia deciding adversely to the NMB the exact question raised in this case in relation to the "quorum question." It is contended by the government that this case should be stayed to "conserve judicial resources and avoid possibly conflicting judicial decisions on an issue of national import ..." The government contends that the NMB has decided a great number of issues during the period when it had only one member and that a decision by this Court adverse to the NMB or in conflict with the decision in the D.C. Circuit "would disrupt the NMB's role as mediator in the particular sensitive area of labor-management relations."

In this regard, the Court believes that this hotly-contested dispute should be decided by this Court and, if necessary, by the Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, as expeditiously as possible so that all of the parties to this action can determine "where they stand" and can proceed accordingly. The matter is set for trial in the near future, and it is only fair to the parties that they be advised of their respective legal positions as quickly as possible so that the uncertainties of this unfortunate dispute can be resolved. For these reasons, the Court has previously advised the parties by telephone that the motion for a stay would be denied. A briefing schedule was set which has now been complied with by the attorneys for all parties.

The Court will first discuss Skyways' contention that the NMB's certification of ALPA is invalid for the reason that the board only had one member at the time that the certification was purportedly made.

However, before reaching this issue, the Court must first decide whether Skyways has "standing" to raise this issue. The NMB vigorously argues that it does not, contending, among other things, that there is no case or controversy for this Court to decide and that Skyways has not alleged a personal stake in the outcome of the controversy sufficient to warrant invocation of the federal court...