Kolinske v. Lubbers
| Decision Date | 17 June 1983 |
| Docket Number | No. 82-1203,82-1203 |
| Citation | 229 U.S.App. D.C. 157,712 F.2d 471 |
| Parties | 113 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2957, 229 U.S.App.D.C. 157, 97 Lab.Cas. P 10,215 Raymond T. KOLINSKE v. William A. LUBBERS, General Counsel, National Labor Relations Board, International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implement Workers of America, UAW, Appellant. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — District of Columbia Circuit |
Merrill J. Whitman, Detroit, Mich., for appellant. John A. Fillion, Leonard R. Page, Michael B. Nicholson, Detroit, Mich., and Laurence Gold, Washington, D.C., were on brief, for appellant. Abraham L. Zwerdling and Stephen I. Schlossberg, Detroit, Mich., also entered appearances for appellant.
David T. Bryant, Springfield, Va., with whom Rex H. Reed, Springfield, Va., was on brief, for appellee.
Before TAMM and GINSBURG, Circuit Judges, and JOHN A. PECK, * U.S. Senior Circuit Judge for the Sixth Circuit.
Opinion for the court filed by Circuit Judge TAMM.
Appellee Raymond Kolinske brought suit in district court alleging that the defendant International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers of America ("UAW") violated his constitutional rights and breached its duty of fair representation when it refused to pay Kolinske strike benefits because he refused to participate in any strike activities except to honor the picket line. The district court granted appellee summary judgment, holding that the UAW's eligibility rules for strike benefits, when imposed on a non-member like appellee, violated appellee's first amendment freedom of association. The district court also ruled that the union breached its duty of fair representation. Unlike the district court, we find that the authorization provided by federal law in the agency shop clause used by the UAW does not transform the agency shop clause or the UAW's eligibility rules for strike benefits into state action. In addition, we hold that the duty of fair representation does not extend to this dispute, because the dispute involves only the relationship between appellee and his collective bargaining representative and lacks a substantial impact on his relations with his employer.
Until 1971 the production and maintenance workers at the Petoskey, Michigan, plant of the McLaughlin Company were represented by the Pioneer Union, an independent union. Under the collective bargaining agreement negotiated by the Pioneer Union, the McLaughlin Company maintained a so-called "union shop" and required workers within the bargaining unit to join and pay dues to the Pioneer Union as a condition of retaining employment. Appellee Raymond Kolinske, who worked for McLaughlin from 1958 to 1979, 1 was an active member of the Pioneer Union and served on its bargaining committee.
In 1971 appellant UAW and its Local 1669 replaced the Pioneer Union as the collective bargaining representative for the production and maintenance workers at McLaughlin's Petoskey plant. The collective bargaining agreement negotiated in 1975 between the UAW and the company contained an "agency shop clause" 2 that did not require employees covered by the collective bargaining agreement to join the union, although non-members were required to pay fees to Local 1669 equivalent to union dues as a condition of employment. Appellee never joined the UAW but paid the agency fees to Local 1669 as required by the union's contract with McLaughlin.
The UAW contract with McLaughlin expired in the spring of 1978. Negotiations failed to secure an acceptable contract, and Local 1669 went out on strike for sixteen days before a new agreement was reached. During the strike the UAW distributed strike assistance payments to employees eligible under union guidelines to receive them. Both union members and non-members were eligible for strike benefits, provided that an employee participated in strike activities. Although appellee honored the picket line, he refused express requests to participate in any other activity such as picketing or kitchen duty, connected with the union's work stoppage. He rejected union efforts to accommodate his fears of harassment during picketing, and since appellee offered no other assistance to striking workers, he was refused UAW strike benefits.
The strike benefits denied appellee have been paid by the UAW since its founding in 1935 to aid UAW locals engaged in strikes or affected by lockouts. Benefits are paid out of a fund created by setting aside a portion of members' dues and non-members' agency fees. Although members and non-members initially pay their dues or fees to their local unions, a portion of dues or fees allocated to funding strike benefits is remitted to the UAW, which administers the strike fund through its Strike Insurance Department. See Affidavit of Douglas Caravaggio, International Representative, International Union, UAW, Exhibit D, Record Excerpts Volume ("Record") at 90. During the period of Kolinske's employment with McLaughlin, thirty percent of both dues and agency fees were transferred to the UAW strike fund. Kolinske v. UAW, 530 F.Supp. 728, 731 (D.D.C.1982).
Eligibility for strike benefits is determined by guidelines established by the UAW. The amount received by any striker may vary, depending on the striker's marital status and number of dependents, and is subject to a maximum payment of $50.00 weekly. See UAW Administrative Letter No. 5, at 10 (Sept. 6, 1977), Record at 88. Other conditions of eligibility include registration, non-delinquency in dues or agency fees, active employment immediately prior to the strike, and participation in strike activity. Id. at 8-9, Record at 86-87. Under the UAW guidelines, strike participation can take several forms: picketing, performing kitchen duty to feed those picketing, distributing strike assistance checks, or ferrying strikers to state welfare offices to receive food stamps. Summary of UAW Strike Assistance Rules, pt. 5, Record at 84. Although non-member agency fee payers like appellee are not allowed to participate in union affairs, they are eligible to receive the "material benefits" that members receive by reason of their dues payments. UAW Constitution of 1978, art. 6, § 20, Record at 95. Because the UAW has interpreted "material benefits" to include strike benefits, id., appellee was eligible for strike benefits, provided he otherwise satisfied conditions for receiving such payments.
The UAW's stated purpose in requiring workers to participate in strike activities before receiving benefits is to increase the effectiveness of its collective bargaining efforts. Affidavit of Douglas Caravaggio at 4, supra, Record at 81. Based on its long experience with collective bargaining, the UAW has found that maximum participation in strike activities increases solidarity among strikers, thereby enhancing the effectiveness of the strike as a negotiating tool. Id., Record at 81. Past experience has also shown the UAW that if strikers perceive that some workers are not carrying a fair share of the burden of the strike, their willingness to participate in the strike is adversely affected. Id. at 5, Record at 82. The wide range of activities permitted as part of strike participation is part of a UAW policy to accommodate those workers who have religious, moral, or ideological objections to picketing, or who are otherwise unable to picket. Id., Record at 82.
Following the UAW's rejection of appellee's demand for strike benefits, appellee filed two unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board ("NLRB") against the UAW and its Local 1669, charging that the UAW's refusal to pay strike benefits and its continued collection of his agency fees to support the strike benefits fund constituted a violation of section 8(b)(1)(a) of the National Labor Relations Act ("NLRA"), 29 U.S.C. § 158(b)(1)(A) (1976). 3 The Regional Director of the NLRB investigated the charges and refused to issue a complaint, finding that the UAW's eligibility requirements for strike benefits were lawful and evenhandedly enforced. The General Counsel of the NLRB affirmed the findings of the Regional Director and the charges were dismissed.
Kolinske then initiated suit in federal district court against the UAW and the General Counsel for the NLRB. In his complaint appellee alleged that both defendants had violated his rights under section 7 of the NLRA, 29 U.S.C. § 157 (1976), 4 and the first and fifth amendments to the Constitution, and that the UAW had further wronged him by breaching its duty of fair representation owed him. The district court dismissed the action against the Regional Director of the NLRB, holding that it was without jurisdiction to review his decision not to issue a complaint under section 3 of the NLRA. Kolinske v. Lubbers, 516 F.Supp. 1171, 1175 (D.D.C.1981). Appellee has not appealed that decision of the district court. At the same time, however, the district court denied UAW's motion to dismiss, holding that the UAW's use of agency fees constituted state action subject to constitutional scrutiny and that the union's denial of strike benefits established a cognizable breach of the duty of fair representation. Id. at 1180-81. On cross-motions for summary judgment, the district court ruled that the UAW's refusal to pay strike benefits violated appellee's first amendment rights and breached its duty of fair representation. Kolinske v. UAW, 530 F.Supp. at 733-35. The district court awarded appellee damages of $130.00, the amount of strike benefits which he would have received had he participated in strike activities originally. Id. at 735. The UAW appealed to this court, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 (1976).
At the threshold we address the district court's finding that the eligibility requirements imposed by the UAW constituted state action. Because the UAW is a private entity, our inquiry must be directed to the central issue...
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