SILVER MOTOR FREIGHT TERMINAL v. TEAMSTERS LOCAL

Decision Date26 March 1982
Docket NumberNo. C-3-80-368.,C-3-80-368.
Citation537 F. Supp. 188
PartiesSILVER MOTOR FREIGHT TERMINAL, INC., et al., Plaintiffs, v. TEAMSTERS LOCAL UNION NO. 957, et al., Defendants.
CourtU.S. District Court — Southern District of Ohio

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

James R. Kirkland, Dayton, Ohio, for plaintiffs.

Bruce E. Pence, Sorrell Logothetis, Dayton, Ohio, for defendants.

DECISION AND ENTRY ON PENDING MOTIONS; QUILLEN'S MOTION TO DISMISS ORIGINAL COMPLAINT DEEMED MOOT AND NOT RULED UPON; DEFENDANTS' MOTION TO DISMISS AMENDED COMPLAINT SUSTAINED IN PART AND OVERRULED IN PART; QUILLEN DISMISSED AS A PARTY DEFENDANT; PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO FILE A MEMORANDUM SUSTAINED; PROCEDURE SET FOR RULING UPON MOTION TO DISMISS BY DEFENDANT INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS; CONFERENCE CALL SET

RICE, District Judge.

This case arises out of efforts, in the latter half of 1979, to unionize a freight hauling company, which said efforts allegedly violated federal and state law. Plaintiffs filed a complaint, and Defendant Wendell Quillen filed a motion to dismiss that complaint (doc. 9). However, Plaintiffs filed a complete amended complaint (doc. 14), by leave of this Court (doc. 12), which contains allegations identical to those found in the original complaint, save for the addition of a ninth count for relief. Defendants have filed motions to dismiss the amended complaint (docs. 17, 18). Accordingly, the motion to dismiss the original complaint is deemed moot and need not be considered by this Court. The Plaintiffs named in the amended complaint include the Silver Motor Freight Terminal, Inc. (Silver), Roger C. Allen and Bessie Allen, the president and secretary-treasurer of Silver, respectively, during the period in question, and Darice Spurlock and Danny Parrish, employees of Silver during the pertinent period. Three Defendants are named in the amended complaint: the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America (International), the Teamsters Local Union No. 957 (the Local), and Wendell Quillen, the secretary-treasurer of the Teamsters Local.

Currently pending before this Court is a motion, by Defendants Quillen and the Teamsters Local, to dismiss Counts 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 and 9 of the amended complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6). For the reasons set forth below, said motion, treated as one to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, is sustained in part and overruled in part.

I. ALLEGATIONS IN THE AMENDED COMPLAINT

The pending motion to dismiss (doc. 17) only addresses counts 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, and 9 of the amended complaint. The allegations in said counts will be summarized below.1

As previously stated, all the events alleged in the complaint concern efforts by the Defendants to persuade Silver to enter into a collective bargaining agreement with them, and to encourage employees of Silver to join the Union.

Count Three alleges that Quillen passed out union authorization cards to Silver employees (including Spurlock and Parrish), and made false representations concerning the demands he would make upon Silver, in order to encourage Silver to enter into an agreement. Quillen also allegedly made false promises to Spurlock and Parrish concerning strike benefits and jobs for displaced employees. As a result of these misrepresentations, Spurlock and Parrish are alleged to have signed the cards. Said acts by Quillen and the Teamsters Local are alleged to have violated the "National Labor Relations Act and state law." (amended complaint, ¶ 31).

Count Four alleges that Quillen passed out false and misleading strike signs to Silver employees, and caused picketing to be performed in front of the Silver premises. Said acts are alleged to have violated § 8(b)(7) of the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA), 29 U.S.C. § 158(b)(7).

Count Five alleges that Roger Allen, despite the aforementioned picketing, attempted to deliver freight on his own without the aid of Silver employes. Nevertheless, Quillen and various Silver employees picketed the business where Allen attempted, unsuccessfully, to unload said freight. Said picketing by Defendants is alleged to have violated § 8(b)(4) of the LMRA, 29 U.S.C. § 158(b)(4).

Count Six alleges that Quillen made various malicious and slanderous statements about Roger Allen to Plaintiff Spurlock, in violation of state tort law.

Count Seven alleges that all the named Defendants, jointly and individually, conspired to deprive Plaintiffs Roger Allen and Bessie Allen "of their property rights in violation of the National Labor Relations Act." (amended complaint, ¶ 51).

Count Eight alleges that the malicious threats and harassment of Plaintiffs Roger Allen and Bessie Allen by Quillen caused them to suffer emotional and mental distress, and that Defendants interfered with Plaintiffs' business relationships, in violation of state law.

Finally, Count Nine alleges that, due to the Defendants' actions, Bessie Allen suffered personal injuries when he attempted to personally haul freight.

Plaintiffs Silver and Roger Allen ask for damages in the amount of $500,000 each, while Plaintiffs Bessie Allen, Spurlock and Parrish seek damages in the amount of $100,000 each. Jurisdiction before this Court is asserted pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331, and 29 U.S.C. §§ 158(b), 185 & 187. (amended complaint, ¶¶ 8-9).

II. DEFENDANTS' MOTION TO DISMISS THE AMENDED COMPLAINT IS SUSTAINED IN PART AND OVERRULED IN PART

Defendants Quillen and the Teamsters Local Union No. 957 have moved to dismiss the above counts of the amended complaint, pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6), for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. While denominated as a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, the Court notes that the reasons set forth in support of said motion challenge this Court's subject matter jurisdiction, and do not, strictly speaking, challenge the existence of a federal cause of action under the pertinent statutes. Accordingly, this Court will treat, and dispose of, said motion as one made under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1) (lack of subject matter jurisdiction), not Rule 12(b)(6). See, Williamson v. Tucker, 645 F.2d 404, 415-16 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 102 S.Ct. 396, 70 L.Ed.2d 212 (1981) (distinguishing Rule 12(b)(1) motions from Rule 12(b)(6) motions). So treating the motion to dismiss, the Court addresses the grounds advanced by Defendants in support of their motion, by considering each count in the amended complaint seriatim.

A. COUNT 3
1. This Court Lacks Jurisdiction over Defendant Quillen with Respect to Alleged Violations of the LMRA

The individual Defendant Quillen asserts that this Court lacks jurisdiction over him with respect to the alleged violations of the LMRA set forth in Count 3. Defendant advances his theory by focusing on the language of the jurisdictional provisions cited by Plaintiffs. Under § 301(a) of the LMRA, 29 U.S.C. § 185(a), individuals can bring suit for violations "of contracts between an employer and a labor organization. ..."2 Under § 303 of the LMRA, 29 U.S.C. § 187, suit may be brought against "any labor organization" which commits certain unfair labor practices.3 In the case herein, Defendant Quillen argues, neither provision permits Plaintiffs to sue him.

Defendant Quillen's arguments are well taken. Plaintiffs herein do not purport to be suing for breach of any contract between Silver and a union, thus foreclosing any suit under § 301(a). Similarly, it is well settled that the express terms of § 303 only permit suit against a union, not an individual. See Broadmoor Homes, Northern v. Cement Masons, Local 594, supra, 507 F.Supp. 55, 56-57 (N.D.Cal.1981); Oshkosh Truck Corp. v. Int'l. Union, 67 F.R.D. 122, 123 (E.D.Wis. 1975). Thus, Plaintiffs cannot sue an individual union member, such as Quillen, under § 303.4 For this reason, Quillen likewise cannot be sued for the federal law violations alleged in Counts 4, 5, & 7.

2. This Court Lacks Jurisdiction Over Defendant Teamsters Local with Respect to Alleged Violations of the LMRA

Defendant Teamsters Local argues that, for two reasons, the allegations of LMRA violations set forth in Count 3 are not cognizable in this Court. First, said violations are not subject to suit under either § 301 or § 303. Second, the jurisdiction of this Court to hear said violations would, in any event, be pre-empted by the exclusive jurisdiction of the National Labor Relations Board.

The first reason advanced by Defendant is well taken, and is dispositive. Therefore, the second reason need not be addressed. As stated above, the absence of an allegation of a breach of a labor contract in the case herein precludes the assertion of jurisdiction pursuant to § 301. Under the express terms of § 303, suit must be brought for an alleged violation of § 158(b)(4) hereinafter referred to as § 8(b)(4) of the LMRA. See footnote 3, supra. Section 8(b)(4) makes it an unfair labor practice for a union to, inter alia, engage in "secondary picketing."5

Count 3 sets forth alleged misrepresentations concerning authorization cards and the efforts of Quillen to unionize Silver employees. The count only states that those acts violated "the National Labor Relations Act and state law." However, as Defendant points out, § 8(b)(1) of the LMRA, 29 U.S.C. § 158(b)(1), not § 8(b)(4), prohibits labor unions from coercing employees in the exercise of their rights to organize, or not to organize. Any violations of said rights of employees must be predicated on § 8(b)(1), not on other provisions of the LMRA. See, e.g., NLRB v. Gissel Packing Co., 395 U.S. 575, 89 S.Ct. 1918, 23 L.Ed.2d 547 (1969) (misrepresentations concerning authorization cards violated § 8(a)(1), employer analogue to § 8(b)(1)). Hence, the only statutory provision which the Teamsters Local could have violated under Count 3 is § 8(b)(1). Since § 8(b)(1) is not cited in § 303, Defendant Teamsters Local must be...

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