Brennan v. SINDICATO EMPLEADOS de EQUIPO PESADO, ETC.

• Citation: 370 F. Supp. 872
• Decision Date: 10 January 1974
• Docket Number: Civ. No. 344-71.
• Parties: Peter J. BRENNAN, Secretary of Labor, United States Department of Labor, Plaintiff, v. SINDICATO EMPLEADOS de EQUIPO PESADO, CONSTRUCCION Y RAMAS ANEXAS de PUERTO RICO, INC., Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Puerto Rico

370 F. Supp. 872

Peter J. BRENNAN, Secretary of Labor, United States Department of Labor, Plaintiff, v. SINDICATO EMPLEADOS de EQUIPO PESADO, CONSTRUCCION Y RAMAS ANEXAS de PUERTO RICO, INC., Defendant.

Civ. No. 344-71.

United States District Court, D. Puerto Rico.

January 10, 1974.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Ignacio Rivera-Cordero, Asst. U. S. Atty., San Juan, P. R., for plaintiff.

Demetrio Fernandez, Rio Piedras, P. R., for defendant.

FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

CANCIO, Chief Judge.

This cause came on to be heard upon the motion of the Secretary of Labor, United States Department of Labor, filed on April 23, 1973, for entry of an order directing the nominations and election of officers for the defendant union conducted under the supervision of the Secretary of Labor on November 26, 1972, be declared null and void, directing that a new election of officers be conducted under the supervision of the Secretary of Labor, and praying that the defendant union and its officers be enjoined and restrained from any violations of section 401(g) of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (29 U.S.C. § 481(g)), pending the completion of such new election; and similarly that defendant union and its officer be enjoined and restrained from improper interference or reprisal against any member for exercising rights under Title IV of the Act and further interfering with representatives of the Secretary of Labor in the supervision of the election. The trial on the issues raised by said motion was duly held on May 17, 1973, and August 23, 1973.

The Court, upon consideration of the pleadings, evidence and post-trial memoranda submitted by counsel, and the entire record in the case, makes the following findings of fact and conclusions of law:

Findings of Fact

1. On May 13, 1971, plaintiff filed a complaint alleging failure of defendant union to conduct an election of officers not less often than once every three years by secret ballot among its members in good standing in violation of section 401(b) of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (29 U.S.C. § 481(b)).

2. On May 31, 1972, the parties signed a stipulation agreeing that there would be nominations and election of all officers of the defendant union not later than November 30, 1972, and that the Secretary of Labor would supervise the conduct of the nominations and election proceedings. An order was entered by the Court on June 8, 1972, directing the conduct of the election pursuant to the terms of the stipulation, and election to be conducted under the supervision of the Secretary, ". . . in accordance with the provisions of Title IV of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (29 U.S.C. § 401 et seq.), and, insofar as lawful and practicable, in conformity with the Constitution and By-Laws of defendant . ."

3. Mr. George E. Frank, Area Director of the Labor-Management Services Administration, Santurce, Puerto Rico, was appointed as supervisor by the United States Department of Labor. He scheduled a pre-nomination election conference held on October 10, 1972, attended by some members of the Board of Directors of defendant union, counsel for the defendant union, and other union members and candidates for office. The scheduling and procedures for the supervised nominations and election were discussed by the participants at that meeting.

4. Agreements reached at the prenomination election meeting on October 10, 1972, were confirmed by letter dated October 20, 1972, by Mr. Frank, addressed to members of the Board of Directors of defendant union and other participants at that conference. Included in the agreements as confirmed in the aforesaid letter were provisions that the nomination meeting would start at 9 a. m. on October 29, 1972, and that ". . . each other matter included in the assembly's agenda should take place after totally completing the nominations and the election of the Election Committee"; that there would be no ". . . speeches before or during the nominations proceedings and the election of the Election Committee"; that no ". . . propaganda was to be made on the premises of the defendant union prior to or during the nomination proceedings and the election of the Election Committee"; and that only bona fide members of defendant union would be allowed to participate in the nomination process and would be allowed into the assembly room where the nominations were to take place.

5. By letter dated November 9, 1972, addressed to the Board of Directors of defendant union by Mr. Frank, certain amendments to the agreements reflected in the October 20 letter were confirmed, including an amendment relating to the number of official ballots and sample ballots that were to be printed.

6. No disagreement with the terms and conditions under which the Secretary of Labor would supervise defendant's nominations and election, as reflected in the discussed correspondence, were registered by any representatives of the defendant union. Mr. Frank proceeded with his supervision of the nominations and election as scheduled, with the understanding and expectation that the agreements reached at the pre-nomination election conference would be adhered to.

7. Although there had been agreement reached at the pre-nomination election conference that only eligible members of defendant union would be allowed entry and participation in the nomination process, the defendant union initially allowed all individuals entry into the union hall where the nominations were to be conducted without any attempt to check the eligibility of members to participate in the nomination proceedings. It failed to provide tables to check eligibility requested by the election supervisor and began the meeting. When informed of the need to check eligibility, the chairman of the nomination meeting would not agree to require the attendees to leave the union hall so that eligibility could be checked before re-entry, but instead submitted the matter to a vote of the membership. Only after intervention of counsel of the defendant union were attendees persuaded to submit themselves to a check of eligibility before being allowed entry and participation in the nomination proceedings.

8. After receiving miscellaneous reports attending to other matters unrelated to the nomination proceedings, and prior to any nomination of candidates and election of the Election Committee, the President of respondent union, Mr. Félix Morales, addressed the assembly for approximately forty-five minutes. Mr. Morales' speech praised the accomplishments of the union under his long leadership, attacked the policies and personalities of the anticipated opposition candidates, and criticized the involvement of the Federal Government in the election proceedings and the behavior and decisions of the election supervisor.

9. Contrary to the agreement as to the nomination meeting agenda, Mr. Félix Morales, President of the defendant union and acting as chairman of the nomination meeting, called for miscellaneous reports, including a treasurer's report, reports regarding sick members and miscellaneous correspondence and resolutions, at the beginning of the nomination meeting. Although Mr. Frank advised representatives of the defendant union at the nomination meeting that prior agreements were being abrogated and that the nominations of candidates were to be the first order of business, no corrective action was taken by the defendant union.

10. The defendant union sponsored weather forecasts during the months of August, September and October 1972. These broadcasts were carried four times a day at 6:30 a. m., 8:30 a. m., 1:30 p. m., and 6:30 p. m. over radio stations WIAC, AM and FM, in San Juan, WISA, AM and FM in Isabela, WEUC in Ponce and WPRA in Mayaguez, and were paid for with $3,900 in union funds. Each broadcast contained not only reference to the medical and insurance plans of the members of the defendant union and the road building activities of the union, but also three times during each broadcast referred to the fact that the union was managed by Félix Morales and that arrangements were being made for the scheduled election.

11. Newspaper advertisements published on September 7, 9 and 10, 1972, attacked the candidacy of Mr. Morales' opponent, Luis Medina Lago. There was a publication of a resolution by the defendant union in the magazine Native Industries in August 1972. Native Industries is a magazine published in Puerto Rico with a circulation of over 10,000 principally to manufacturers and employers; there is no distribution to laborers. The resolution as published in Native Industries only reported on an alleged improper and unjustified work stoppage purportedly in violation of an agreement by the defendant union and a particular employer. However, this same advertisement publicizing the resolution was published at union expenses in three San Juan newspapers on September 7, 1972, in EL IMPARCIAL, on September 9, 1972, in EL DIA, and on September 10, 1972, in THE SAN JUAN STAR. The cost of these newspaper advertisements amounted to $2,629 and was paid for with union funds. The resolution as published in the newspapers was essentially the same advertisement that appeared in the magazine Native Industries, with the exception that the following two paragraphs were added when the resolution was published in the newspapers:

On Tuesday, August 22, 42 workers of the firm R. B. Potashnick paralyzed the work of the Highway and invaded the office of the President of the Sindicato, Felix Morales, so that he would back the work stoppage in violation of the agreement.

For said motive, Felix Morales presented to the Assembly No. 255 of said Sindicato held on Sunday, August 27 of the current year, a resolution which received the endorsement of the Assembly with the dissident vote of Luis A. Medina Lago.

Mr. Medina Lago was a candidate for President, opposing Mr. Morales in the...