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Case Questions
8.1, IUE and General Electric Co., p. 279
1. (Q.)
(A.) lective bargaining agreement. In this
2. (Q.)
(A.)
3. (Q.) Based on the facts, could the disciplined employee have brought a successful Section
8(a)(3) charge against the employer?
(A.) No. There is no information in the facts that this employee was disciplined for his union
8.2, NLRB v. Yellow Freight Systems, Inc. p. 283
1. (Q.) Summarize the facts and procedural background of the case.
(A.) Lonnie Bedell testified that in April 1986, he observed Joanne DeGrosa sobbing in the
company parking lot. DeGrosa told Bedell that she had been sexually harassed by two
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2. (Q.) Under the Spielberg-Olin deferral to existing arbitration awards policy, was the ALJ
obligated to defer t
and was discharged for just cause?
(A.)
Students may be asked what the employer could have done to make sure that the
Board deferred to the arbitration decision. The answer requires application of the
Spielberg-Olin standards. Should the possibility exist that a discharged employee also
3. (Q.) Can additional facts change the credibility determinations of witnesses?
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(A.) Certainly. In the instant case the ALJ had reason to question the credibility of the
8.3, Eastern Associated Coal Corporation v. UMW, District 17, p. 292
1. (Q.) What is t
public policy?
(A.) The employer contended that a public policy against reinstatement of transportation
2. (Q.) Did the Supreme Court accept the emp
(A.)
argument did not take into account Section 2(7) of the Testing Act, which provides that
Chapter Questions and Problems, p. 292
1. (Q.) Was conciliation and mediation affected by the 1947 Act? How?
2. (Q.) Is compulsory arbitration constitutional?
(A.)
3. (Q.) Is a voluntary arbitration decision enforceable? How?
4. [Enforcement of arbitration awards, Section 8.5.] No. Under the American Manufacturing
decision of the Steelworkers Trilogy,
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5. [NLRB deferral to arbitration, Section 8.4.] Section 8.4 of the text sets forth the Spielberg-Olin
standards that govern whether the Board should defer to an existing arbitration award. The
Board must consider (1a) whether the contractual issue is factually parallel to the unfair
labor practice issue and (1b) whether the arbitrator was presented generally with the facts
6. [Necessity for a dispute to invoke arbitration, Section 8.5.] The courts may compel parties to
perform arbitration provisions of a labor agreement when a suit is brought pursuant to
Section 301 of the LMRA. In addition, under Sinclair Refining it is the cou
7. [Enforcement of arbitration awards, appropriate bargaining units, and Boys Markets injunctions,
Sections 8.2, 7.7 and 8.5.] The authority granted to the Board under Section 9 of the NLRA
enables an NLRB decision to override a contrary decision by an arbitrator. Because the
decisions of the Board and the arbitrator are juxtaposed in this case, the Court must refuse
8. [Deferral to arbitration, Section 8.4.] Generally, under Spielberg the Board will defer to an
arbitration award where the proceedings appear to have been fair and regular, all parties
agree to be bound, and the decision is clearly not repugnant to the purpose and policies of
the Act [Section 8.4]. Olin requires that the arbitrator must have considered the alleged
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9. [Labor arbitration of statutory discrimination claims, Section 8.7.] The appeals court said
Gardner-Denver, in that the relevant union contract references state and
federal law in describing the contractually prohibited discrimination but does not empower
10. [Deferral to arbitration, Section 8.4.] The standard for determining whether the Board will
defer to existing grievance machinery is set forth in United Technologies Corporation [Section
8.4]. In this case the Board eliminated the distinction between types of unfair labor practice
charges for which it would defer and returned to the rule of Collyer and National Radio.
Accordingly, the factors to be considered are from Collyer and include whether the dispute
11. [NLRB deferral to arbitration, Section 8.4.] The factors to be considered are from Collyer and
include whether the dispute arose within the confines of an established collective bargaining
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agreement, whether there is a claim of employer animosity toward employee rights,
The parties share the expenses, including the cost of compensation for the arbitrator,
when a grievance is taken to arbitration. If this case were to go to arbitration the union
If the matter were handled by the NLRB, there is no cost to the union. The NLRB provides