Facilities Management Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Apr 18, 1973

202 N.L.R.B. 1144 (N.L.R.B. 1973)

1144 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
Facilities Management Corporation and Jack Corneli-
us and Hawaii Teamsters & Allied Workers, Local
996, affiliated with International Brotherhood of
Teamsters , Chauffeurs , Warehousemen and Help-
ers of , America, Joint Petitioners. Case
37-RC-1778
April 18, 1973
DECISION AND ORDER
By MEMBERS JENKINS, KENNEDY, AND
PENELLO
Upon an amended petition duly filed under
Section 9(c) of the National Labor Relations Act, as
amended, a hearing was held before Hearing Officer
William Lloyd McIntire. Following the hearing and
pursuant to Section 102.67 of the National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations and State-
ments of Procedure, Series 8, this case was trans-
ferred to the Board for decision. Thereafter, briefs
were filed by the Employer and the Petitioners.
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 3(b) of the
National Labor Relations Act, as amended, the
National Labor Relations Board has delegated its
authority in this proceeding to a three-member panel.
The Board has reviewed the Hearing Officer's
rulings made at the hearing and finds that they are
free from prejudicial error. The rulings are hereby
affirmed.
Upon the entire record in this case, the Board
finds:
The Petitioners seek to represent certain of the
Employer's employees on Wake Island. The Employ-
er contends that the Act does not apply to Wake
Island and therefore moves that the petition be
dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Alternatively, the
Employer urges the Board to exercise its discretion to
decline jurisdiction.
The Employer, a California corporation, is engaged
in the business of furnishing maintenance, repair,
and support services for the United States Air Force
at Wake Island. During the fiscal year ending July 1,
1 19 UST 7560, TIAS 6598, 658 UNTS 365 , U S Department of State,
"Treaties in Force on Jan 1, 1972 "
1972, the Employer purchased from outside of Wake
Island goods or services valued in excess of $50,000.
The goods and services furnished by the Employer
exceeded $500,000.
On December 28, 1968, the United States and the
Republic of the Philippines completed a treaty
concerning offshore labor in "certain areas of the
Pacific and Southeast Asia."'
On June 24, 1972, the Department of the Interior
entered into an agreement with the Department of
the Air Force for the administration of Wake Island.
Pursuant to the agreement, the Air Force promulgat-
ed a Wake Island Code.2
Wake Island, which has a total area of 2-1/2 square
miles, is located in the central Pacific Ocean, 2,300
miles west of Honolulu and 1,987 miles southeast of
Tokyo. According to the Petitioners, Wake Island is
purely an airport facility and has no local permanent
residents.
The only installation on Wake Island is the Air
Force base and access to the Island is difficult in that
there is no scheduled air or water carrier service.
According to the Employer, individuals wishing to
visit Wake Island must secure permission from the
Air Force and either provide their own transporta-
tion or obtain it from the Air Force.
Assuming, arguendo, that the Board has statutory
jurisdiction over Wake Island, we nevertheless find
merit in the Employer's alternative contention that
the Board should decline to assert jurisdiction.
Accordingly, in view of various factors herein,
particularly the fact that Wake Island has no local
permanent residents and is remote, difficult of
access, and contains nothing but a military installa-
tion, we conclude that it will not effectuate the
purposes of the Act to assert jurisdiction herein. We
shall therefore grant the Employer's motion to
dismiss the petition.
ORDER
It is hereby ordered that the petition filed herein
be, and it hereby is, dismissed.
2 37 F R. 12384 title 32-National Defense, chapter VII-Department of
the Air Force, subchapter N-Wake Island, part 935-Wake Island Code
202 NLRB No. 164