LOCAL 7-644, OIL, CHEMICAL & ATOMIC WKRS. INT. U. v. Mobil Oil Co., 14930.

• Decision Date: 09 September 1965
• Docket Number: No. 14930.,14930.
• Citation: 350 F.2d 708
• Parties: LOCAL 7-644, OIL, CHEMICAL AND ATOMIC WORKERS INTERNATIONAL UNION, AFL-CIO, a Voluntary Unincorporated Association, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. MOBIL OIL COMPANY, a Division of Socony Mobil Oil Company, Inc., a Corporation, Defendant-Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

350 F.2d 708 (1965)

LOCAL 7-644, OIL, CHEMICAL AND ATOMIC WORKERS INTERNATIONAL UNION, AFL-CIO, a Voluntary Unincorporated Association, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. MOBIL OIL COMPANY, a Division of Socony Mobil Oil Company, Inc., a Corporation, Defendant-Appellee.

No. 14930.

United States Court of Appeals Seventh Circuit.

July 29, 1965.

Rehearing Denied September 9, 1965.

John M. Schobel, St. Louis, Mo., Thomas Q. Keefe, East St. Louis, Ill., for appellant, Gruenberg, Schobel & Souders, St. Louis, Mo., of counsel.

Robert L. Broderick, E. St. Louis, Ill., J. Terrell Vaughan, St. Louis, Mo., for appellee, Armstrong, Teasdale, Roos, Kramer & Vaughan, St. Louis, Mo., Pope & Driemeyer, East St. Louis, Ill., of counsel.

Before DUFFY, SCHNACKENBERG, and SWYGERT, Circuit Judges.

SWYGERT, Circuit Judge.

This is an appeal from the district court's order denying enforcement of an arbitration award made pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement entered into between plaintiff Local 7-644, Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers International Union, AFL-CIO and defendant Mobil Oil Company, a division of Socony Mobil Oil Company, Inc. The action in the district court was instituted under section 301 of the Labor Management Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. § 185.

The principal questions are whether the arbitrator ignored the issue submitted to him for decision and whether he exceeded his authority by ordering enforcement of a contractual term not agreed to by the parties, but created by himself.

Mobil and Local 7-644 had been parties to a labor agreement that expired June 1, 1962. When they were unable to agree on a new contract, the union conducted an economic strike for approximately six months. The strike began August 7, 1962, and ended February 4, 1963. During the strike the company and the union continued to bargain not only for a new agreement but also for back-to-work conditions which would prevail if and when the strike ended. The company took the position that its employees' 1963 vacations should be reduced by one-half because they had not worked during the six months they were on strike. The union argued that there should be no reduction. The company's position was stated in a letter dated January 31, 1963, addressed to the union and signed by its manager, H. R. Lutz.¹

On February 4, 1963, a new one-year working agreement was entered into and the employees returned to work. Article XII of the contract dealt with vacations. On the same day the contract was signed, the company posted a notice containing return-to-work instructions. The notice included the statement, "Your 1963 vacation will be reduced by half due to the six-month strike." Thereafter the union filed a grievance alleging that the company had violated Article XII. In accordance with the provisions of the contract an arbitrator was selected to resolve the grievance. The issue was framed by agreement as follows: "Did the Company violate the controlling agreement(s) in the manner in which it applied the vacation provisions thereof to the 1963 vacations of employees in the bargaining unit? If so, what remedy is proper?" The arbitration clause of the contract provided that the decision of the arbitrator should be conclusive.

The arbitrator conducted two hearings. At the conclusion of the first hearing he rendered an opinion in which he considered Article XII and the so-called Lutz letter. He also discussed the evidence relating to both matters. Essentially, the arbitrator stated that if Article XII gave the company the right to treat the 1963 vacations as it did, there was no need to determine whether the Lutz letter had been accepted by the union and thereby had become a part of the back-to-work agreement.

The arbitrator reached the conclusion that Article XII did not directly specify any minimum number of days that must be worked in one year in order for an employee to qualify for a vacation the next year. The arbitrator noted that Article XII contained the provision that vacations with pay will be arranged "in accordance with the Company's established plan" and that no evidence had been presented with regard to the existence of a separate company vacation plan. He then proceeded to discuss the Lutz letter and the back-to-work negotiations. On the issue of whether the terms contained in the letter had been accepted by the union, the arbitrator stated that after careful study of the transcript and exhibits he was of the opinion that the evidence was "completely and hopelessly in direct conflict." He found that the evidence was so inconclusive on this issue that it afforded no basis for a resolution of the grievance. He therefore requested that the parties attempt to agree on whether there was in existence a company established plan requiring a minimum number of days worked in a preceding year in order for an employee to earn a full vacation. The arbitrator indicated that if the parties were unable to agree on the facts relating to this question, he would conduct a further hearing and hear testimony.

When the parties were unable to resolve the question, the arbitrator held a supplemental hearing. At this hearing, the company proffered additional evidence on the back-to-work negotiations concerning a reduction of 1963 vacations. The arbitrator explained that he had already finally decided the issue on the disputed back-to-work...