COMMUNICATIONS EQUIP. W., INC.(IND) v. Western Elec. Co.

• Decision Date: 16 November 1970
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 21170.
• Citation: 320 F. Supp. 1277
• Parties: In the Matter of COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT WORKERS, INC. (IND) v. WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY, Inc.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Maryland

320 F. Supp. 1277

In the Matter of COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT WORKERS, INC. (IND) v. WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY, Inc.

Civ. A. No. 21170.

United States District Court, D. Maryland.

November 16, 1970.

Harry Goldman, Jr., Baltimore, Md., and Henry Mayer and Mayer, Weiner & Mayer, New York City, for petitioner.

Leonard E. Cohen, Joseph Bernstein and Monte Fried, Baltimore, Md., and Robert A. Levitt, New York City, for respondent.

NORTHROP, Chief Judge.

The petitioner union, Communications Equipment Workers, Inc. (Ind), (hereinafter known as "Union"), brings this action to contest an arbitration award that the Western Electric Company, Inc., the respondent herein, (hereinafter known as "Company"), properly graded the attributes "Education" and "Responsibility for Material or Product" for the job of Extruder Equipment Operator, M. S. 10480.

All hourly rated jobs at the Baltimore Works of the Company, including the job in question, are graded in accordance with the "Plan for Grading Non-Supervisory Hourly Rated Jobs," which is dated September 3, 1940. This plan was specifically incorporated in Article 14 of respondent's and petitioner's collective bargaining agreement dated April 24, 1967. The purpose of the "Plan" is set out as follows:

It is generally agreed that there are differences in value among various jobs, some being of greater value than others. This difference in value is known to be related to the different amounts of education, experience, etc., required for successful performance of the job. Job grading, or the determination of the value of a job, can accordingly be accomplished by judging the amounts of education, experience, etc., required.

The "Plan" uses eleven attributes to determine the value of a particular job. These attributes are:

Education

Experience

Initiative and Ingenuity

Physical Demand

Mental or Visual Demand

Responsibility for Equipment or Proccess

Responsibility for Material or Product

Responsibility for Safety of Others

Responsibility for Work of Others

Working Conditions

Unavoidable Hazards

Each of these eleven elements is scored by degree, from first to fifth, and a given point value is assigned to that degree. By totaling up the point values for all eleven attributes, a figure is arrived at which corresponds to a job grade which, in turn, corresponds to a particular rate of pay. Any dispute arising as to the application of the "Plan" to a specific job is to be settled in accordance with the grievances and arbitration procedures established in Article 10 and Article 11 of the labor contract.

The dispute herein arose in 1967 when the Job Grading Department undertook to reexamine the job of extruder equipment operator because its duties had changed and particularly because the size of the crews had been reduced. At that time the job in question was in Labor Grade 36. The Department after its examination changed the scoring of three of the eleven attributes, although the grade level remained the same. The Union subsequently challenged the changing of two of the three attributes. These two attributes are the ones in question in this case. It is the petitioner's contention that the grade of the attribute "Education" should not have been lowered from the second degree to the first degree and that the Attribute "Responsibility for Material or Product" should have been graded in the fourth degree rather than the third degree. A change in either one or both of the attributes would have placed the job in question into the next highest grade. This dispute was presented to a Board of Arbitration under the procedures outlined in Article 11 of the collective bargaining agreement. The Board upheld the Company's classification in a decision reported on July 15, 1969, with a dissenting opinion by the Union arbitrator. It is the Board's opinion that this court is asked to set aside.

The Union's specific challenge goes to the procedure the Company employed in evaluating the job. It is the Union's contention that the Company's use of the so-called "Code of Interpretation" in its evaluation of the job was improper in that the code was a document unilaterally created by the Company that did not have any basis in the collective bargaining agreement. In addition, the Union contends that the Board of Arbitration, in giving credence to the Code, acted outside its scope of authority and in direct contravention to the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement. Article 11(9) (a) provides that the Board of Arbitration shall have no authority to "add to, substract from or in any way modify the provisions of this Agreement."

The Company submits that the "Job Evaluation Plan," like most such plans, cannot be applied and administered without the exercise of judgment to resolve ambiguities or to fill in gaps. It alleges that for nearly 30 years the "Plan" has been applied and administered by the Company's job grading organization— the Wage Practices Department. During this time it contends that the Wage Practices Department has developed and applied interpretations which have resolved ambiguities in accordance with the basic intent of the "Plan". Moreover, the Company contends that these interpretations were formally codified and presented to the Union early in March 1967, prior to the execution of the current labor agreement and that no objections to these interpretations were made at that time. Under Article 14 (1.2) of the labor contract, the Company is directed to "continue as heretofore its administration of the job evaluation plan currently in effect." Since these codified interpretations were merely a reflection of the practice that was in effect for many years prior to their adoption, the Company contends that they are by implication made a part of the labor contract.

The issue presented before this court, therefore, is whether the Board relied on the Code of Interpretation in formulating its opinion and if it did, whether such reliance was improper.

As a general rule, courts are reluctant to overturn or set aside an arbitrator's decision. As a matter of judicial policy, courts will give deference to an arbitrator's opinion. A wide range of discretion is vested in them. When called upon to reverse an award, courts have adopted various standards. Among those variously employed have been: the reviewing court should not disturb the award (a) so long as the interpretation was not arbitrary, Local 7-644 Oil, Chemical & Atomic Workers Int'l Union v. Mobil Oil Co., 350 F.2d 708, 712 (7th Cir. 1965); (b) even where the award permits an inference that the arbitrator may have exceeded its authority, Brotherhood of R. R. Trainmen v. St. Louis S. W. Ry., 220 F.Supp. 319, 325 (E.D.Tex.1963); or (c) merely because the court believes that sound legal principles were not applied, Dallas Typographical Union v. A. H. Belo Corp., 372 F.2d 577, 581 (5th Cir. 1967).

Even in earlier days when courts were less hospitable to arbitration, it was decided that they would not set aside an arbitrator's award for mere errors of fact or law; and mistakes in the admission of evidence or misinterpretation of the contract giving rise to the arbitration would not vitiate the award.

A court should, however, interfere where the arbitrator (a) clearly went beyond the scope of the submission, Textile Workers Union of Am. v. American Thread Co., 291 F.2d 894, 896 (4th Cir. 1961); (b) where the authority to make the award cannot be found or legitimately assumed from the terms of the arbitration agreement, Truck Drivers and Helpers Union v. Ulry-Talbert Co., 330 F.2d 562, 563 (8th Cir. 1964); or (c) if the arbitrator made a determination not required for a resolution of the dispute, Socony Vacuum v. Socony Mobil Oil Co., 369 F.2d 480, 482 (2d Cir. 1966).

All matters of construction and interpretation are for the arbitrator to decide and are not subject to review by this court. International Brotherhood of Paper Mill Workers v. St. Regis Paper Co., 362 F.2d 711, 714 (5th Cir. 1966). Likewise, there should be no review by a court on the merits of an arbitrator's decision. In re American Machine & Foundry Workers, 256 F.Supp. 161 (S. D.N.Y.1963), aff'd, 329 F.2d 147 (2d Cir. 1964). To review the merits would create havoc with awards by arbitrators chosen to settle labor disputes.

In 1960, the Supreme Court in the Steelworkers Trilogy established a strong judicial preference for and deference to arbitration in labor disputes. United Steelworkers of America v. American Mfg. Co., 363 U.S. 564, 80 S.Ct. 1343, 4 L.Ed.2d 1403(1960); United Steelworkers of America v. Warrior & Gulf Navigation Co., 363 U.S. 574, 80 S.Ct. 1347, 4 L.Ed.2d 1409 (1960); United Steelworkers of America v. Enterprise Wheel and Car Corp., 363 U.S. 593, 80 S.Ct. 1358, 4 L.Ed.2d 1424 (1960). In Enterprise Wheel and Car Corp., the Court stated that the judicial function is limited to the determination of whether the arbitrator's award "draws its essence from the collective bargaining agreement" and that "so far as the arbitrator's decision concerns construction of the contract, the courts have no business overruling him because their interpretation of the contract is different from his." 363 U.S. at 597, 599, 80 S.Ct. at 1362.

In Warrior & Gulf Navigation Co., the Supreme Court stated: "Gaps in the agreement may be left to be filled in by reference to the practices of the particular industry and of the various shops covered by the agreement." 363 U.S. at 580, 80 S.Ct. at 1352. The Court also stated:

The labor arbitrator's source of law is not confined to the express provisions of the contract, as the industrial common law—the practices of the industry and the shop—is equally a part of the collective bargaining agreement although not expressed in it. Id. at 581-582, 80 S.Ct. at 1352.

Under the Trilogy and its progeny, it is abundantly clear that an arbitrator is given a wide latitude of discretion in interpreting an agreement.

Succinctly stated, the cases...