Mamula v. United Steelworkers of America

• Citation: 198 F. Supp. 652
• Decision Date: 11 October 1961
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 61-1.
• Parties: Nicholas MAMULA, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STEELWORKERS OF AMERICA, an unincorporated Labor Union, and I. W. Abel, International Secretary-Treasurer thereof, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania

198 F. Supp. 652

Nicholas MAMULA, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STEELWORKERS OF AMERICA, an unincorporated Labor Union, and I. W. Abel, International Secretary-Treasurer thereof, Defendants.

Civ. A. No. 61-1.

United States District Court W. D. Pennsylvania.

October 11, 1961.

Harry Alan Sherman, Pittsburgh, Pa., for plaintiff.

Wilner, Wilner & Kuhn, Pittsburgh, Pa., for defendants.

WILLSON, District Judge.

Plaintiff, Nicholas Mamula, is a citizen of Pennsylvania residing in Beaver County and at the time the suit was filed was President of Local Union 1211, District 20 of the United Steelworkers of America, an unincorporated labor union which is one of the defendants, the other defendant being its International Secretary-Treasurer, I. W. Abel. The jurisdiction of the court is based on the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959, 73 Stat. 519, 29 U.S.C.A. § 401 et seq. It is well to note at the outset that the case was commenced by the filing of a complaint seeking a temporary restraining order. On January 3, 1961, when the complaint was filed, there was pending an election for District Director of District 20 pursuant to the constitution of the International Union, United Steelworkers of America, last revised and adopted at the general meeting held September 23, 1960. The International Union is composed of some 38 Districts situate in the United States and Canada. The constitution provides that each District elect a District Director every 4 years and the Directors are International officers. The election was to be held on February 14, 1961.

After hearing, this court denied the temporary restraining order but without prejudice, and subsequently the case came on non-jury. The parties have been heard, evidence has been taken and counsel have submitted their briefs.

In his complaint plaintiff alleges that he was a member in good standing of Local 1211 of the defendant, United Steelworkers of America (hereinafter called Steelworkers), and that he was qualified under its constitution to be a candidate for the office of District Director of District 20. The complaint further says that the defendant Steelworkers, by the provisions of its constitution, particularly Article V, Sections 4 and 5, has chosen to permit the nomination for office of District Director by the vote of local unions within the District, requiring, however, a minimum of nominations by 5 local unions for a person to go on the District ballot. The complaint further alleges that the constitution of the defendant does not establish any procedure for the conduct of nominations for the office of District Director. Plaintiff alleges also that he was nominated during various meetinge by various locals of District 20 for the office of District Director. But says plaintiff, as permitted by the constitution of the Steelworkers, at the meetings of th locals, his name was placed in nomination and then according to the evidence, an immediate viva voce vote was taken by the members present and, although plaintiff was defeated, he claims, nevertheless, that under the procedure he is still a nominee of the respective locals and should have been placed on the District ballot. At the trial the parties stipulated that:

"* * * in United Steelworkers District 20, which contains 35 local unions, Plaintiff's name was placed in nomination at nomination meetings of six locals, Nos. 1211, 1082, 1268, 1212, 1261 and 3461, that at none of these was there any separate meetings for the voting on the choice of the Local's nominee, and that in four of the six Locals there was no secret ballot on the choice of the nominee. In addition, Plaintiff produced testimony that at a nomination meeting of a seventh Local Union, No. 1236, Plaintiff's name was placed in nomination, and that there was no separate meeting for choice of nominee and no secret ballot. * * *"

It seems to this court that the issue is squarely raised in this case as to whether the absence of any provision in the Steelworkers' constitution governing the conduct of the nomination and election procedures for International officers renders the Steelworkers' constitution incompatible with the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959. Defendants' counsel concedes that the constitution does not contain any detailed provisions governing this subject. They also concede that there is no uniform procedure among the local unions on this subject. Counsel even goes further and says that the provisions of the local union's constitution and by-laws relating to nominations and elections of local union officers and the governing provisions of Article VII, Section 8, of the Steelworkers' constitution on the subject are not by their terms applicable to the nomination of International officers. The result, says defendants' counsel, is that each local union conducts its nomination meeting in conformity with its own practices, subject only to the notice requirements and procedures set forth in Article V, Sections 4 and 5 of the Steelworkers' constitution and instructions sent out by the International Secretary-Treasurer. In this case those instructions were sent out November 10, 1960.

Defendants contend that the statute does not provide or require that nominations be made by secret ballot and that therefore the procedure adopted by the locals, specifically Local 1211, in the nomination of a candidate for District Director and his subsequent election on February 14, 1961, were valid under the statute and under the constitution of the Steelworkers and the by-laws of Local 1211. I have concluded to the contrary.

The Bill of Rights section of the Statute, 29 U.S.C.A. § 411, Section 101 of the Landrum-Griffin Act in part provides:

"(a) (1) Equal rights.—Every member of a labor organization shall have equal rights and privileges within such organization to nominate candidates, to vote in elections or referendums of the labor organization, to attend membership meetings, and to participate in the deliberations and voting upon the business of such meetings, subject to reasonable rules and regulations in such organization's constitution and bylaws. * * *"

It is plaintiff's rights under that particular section which the court believes have been violated. It is further concluded that the constitution of the Steelworkers is lacking and deficient in failing to set forth nominating procedures for its International officers in order that members' rights under Section 101 will be protected.

The crux of the incompatibility of the Steelworkers' constitution with the statute is found in Sections 4 and 5 of Article V entitled "Nominations and Elections of International Officers, * * *". The first sentence in Section 4 says that a local union shall have the right to nominate a member for each office to be filled. Section 5 says no person shall be a candidate who has not been nominated by 40 or more locals but in the case of candidate for District Director, nominations by 5 locals shall be sufficient.

The rules then direct a local union to choose from among its members but one person to be its nominee for International office. In reality then, in electing International officers, two elections are held. The first election is by the local union for its nominee for International office. When those selections are made by the various local unions and the name forwarded...