Hanson Genine Parts

National Labor Relations Board - Board DecisionsMar 10, 1981

254 N.L.R.B. 1235 (N.L.R.B. 1981)

HANSON JNC. Interna- 10 Amer- 8(a)(5) (1) 2(6) uncontro- 1, $50,000 1235 GENUINE PARTS. Hanson Genuine Parts, Inc. and Local 241, tional Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of ica, UAW. Cases 18-CA-6513 and 18-CA- 6706 March 10, 1981 DECISION A N D ORDER Upon charges filed on December 28, 1979, and May 22, 1980, by Local 241, International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, UAW, herein called the Union, and duly served on Hanson Genuine Parts, Inc., herein called Respondent, the General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board, by the Regional Director for Region 18, issued a consolidated complaint and notice of hear- ing on June 23, 1980, against Respondent, alleging that Respondent had engaged in and was engaging in unfair labor practices affecting commerce within the meaning of Section and and Section and (7) of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended. Copies of the charge and consolidated complaint and notice of hearing before an adminis- trative law judge were duly served on the parties to this proceeding. Respondent, however, failed to file an answer to the consolidated complaint. With respect to the unfair labor practices, the consolidated complaint alleges in substance that Respondent failed and refused the current collec- tive-bargaining agreement, refused the Union con- tractually permitted access to Respondent's em- ployees, failed and refused to make retirement plan contributions as required by the collective-bargain- ing agreement, and refused to furnish information requested by the Union relevant to its role as the exclusive bargaining representative of employees in the appropriate unit. On October 28, 1980, counsel for the General Counsel filed directly with the Board a Motion for Summary Judgment. Subsequently, on November 12, 1980, the Board issued an order transferring the proceeding to the Board and a Notice T o Show Cause why the General Counsel's Motion for Sum- mary Judgment should not be granted. Respondent failed to file a response to the Notice T o Show Cause and, accordingly, the allegations of the Motion for Summary Judgment stand verted. Upon the entire record in this proceeding, the Board makes the following: Ruling on the Motion for Summary Judgment Section 102.20 of the Board's Rules and Regula- tions, Series 8, as amended, provides as follows: 254 NLRB No. 158 The Respondent shall, within days from service of the complaint, file an answer there- to. The respondent shall specifically admit, deny, or explain each of the facts alleged in the complaint, unless the respondent is without knowledge, in which case, the respondent shall so state, such statement operating as a denial. All allegations in the complaint, if no answer is filed, o r any allegation in the complaint not specifically denied or explained in the answer filed, unless the respondent shall state in the answer that he is without knowledge, shall be deemed to be admitted to be true and shall be so found by the Board, unless good cause to the contrary is shown. The consolidated complaint and notice of hear- ing served on Respondent by certified mail on or about June 23, 1980, specifically stated that unless an answer to the complaint was filed within 10 days from the service thereof "all of the allegations contained in the complaint shall be deemed to be admitted to be true and shall be so found by the Board." Further, on October 2, 6, 9, 15, and 17, 1980, Respondent was advised by Region 18 that an answer to the complaint had not been received, and that summary judgment would be sought unless an answer was duly filed. As noted above, Respondent has not filed an answer to the com- plaint, nor responded to the Notice T o Show Cause. No good cause to the contrary having been shown, in accordance with the rule set forth above, the allegations of the complaint are deemed to be admitted and are found to be true. Accordingly, we grant the General Counsel's Motion for Sum- mary Judgment. On the basis of the entire record, the Board makes the following: I. THE BUSINESS OF RESPONDENT Hanson Genuine Parts, Inc., is, and has been at all times material herein, a Minnesota corporation, with an office and place of business in Duluth, Minnesota, herein called its facility. Respondent has been engaged in the retail and wholesale sale and distribution of automotive parts and related products. During the 12 months preceding the issu- ance of the complaint, Respondent, in the course and conduct of its business operations, purchased and received at its Duluth, Minnesota, facility products, goods, and material valued in excess of either directly from points outside the State of Minnesota o r from other enterprises locat- ed within the State of Minnesota, each of which other enterprises had received the said products, $50,000 2(6) e c t , 11. 2(5) 111. UNFAIR 9(b) parts- svecified ~ealers-U:A.W. 1, ' 8(a)(l) 1V. UNFAIR 111, 8(a)(5) 1236 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD goods, and materials directly from points outside the State of Minnesota. Also during the 12-month period, Respondent, in the course of its business operations, sold and shipped products at its Duluth, Minnesota, facility valued in excess of di- rectly to points outside the State of Minnesota. We find, on the basis of the foregoing, that Re- spondent is, and has been at all times material herein, an employer engaged in commerce within the meaning of Section and (7) of the and that it will effectuate the policies of the Act to assert jurisdiction herein. THE LABOR ORGANIZATION INVOLVED Local 241, International Union, United Auto- mobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, UAW, is a labor organization within the meaning of Section of the Act. THE LABOR PRACTICES A. The Unit The following employees of Respondent consti- tute a unit Appropriate for collective-bargaining purposes within the meaning of Section of the Act: All full-time and regular part-time counter employees, machine shop employees and inventory control employees employed by the Employer; excluding office clerical em- ployees, casual employees, guards and supervi- sors as defined by the National Labor Rela- tions Act, as amended. At all times material herein, a majority of the employees in the above-described unit have desig- nated or selected the Union as their representative for the purposes of collective bargaining with Re- spondent. B. The Request To Bargain and Respondent's Refusal The collective-bargaining agreement in effect be- tween the Union and Respondent provided, inter alia, that Respondent deduct union dues and fees from employees' wages and remit said dues and fees, together with a list of names of employees from whom such deductions were made, to the Union; give the Union access to employees at Re- spondent's facility during working hours; and make contributions on behalf of employees to the Arrowhead Automobile Re- tirement Income Plan. Since on or about November 15, 1979, and con- tinuing to date, Respondent has failed and refused to withhold union dues from employees' wages and to remit said dues to the Union, and has refused the Union access to Respondent's employees. Since on or about January 1980, and continu- ing to date, Respondent has failed to withhold and remit contributions to the Arrowhead Automobile Dealers-U.A.W. Retirement Income Plan. Since on or about March 11, 1980, Respondent has failed to furnish information requested by the Union regarding the date of hire, name, address, classification, and rate of pay of an employee, and regarding Respondent's insurance and benefit pro- gram. On or about February 7, 1980, Respondent en- tered into a settlement agreement in Case 18-CA- 6513, which was approved by the Regional Direc- tor for Region 18 on February 25, 1980, providing, inter alia, that Respondent would cease and desist from engaging in the above-described conduct. After execution of the above-described settlement agreement, Respondent violated and continued to violate the terms of the settlement agreement by the acts and conduct described above, thereby nul- lifying and failing and refusing to give force and effect to the settlement agreement. On or about June 23, 1980, the Regional Director for Region 18 issued an order revoking approval of and vacating and setting aside the settlement agreement in Case 18-CA-6513. A copy of said order was served on Respondent by certified mail on or about June 23, 1980. Accordingly, we find that, by the aforesaid con- duct, Respondent has violated and continues to violate the aforesaid settlement agreement and has failed and refused and continues to fail and refuse to bargain collectively with the Union as the exclu- sive representative of the employees in the appro- priate unit, and that, by such refusal, Respondent has engaged in and is engaging in unfair labor prac- tices within the meaning of Section and (5) of the Act. THE EFFECT OF THE LABOR PRACTICES UPON COMMERCE The activities of Respondent set forth in section above, occurring in connection with its oper- ations described in section I, above, have a close, intimate, and substantial relationship to trade, traf- fic, and commerce among the several States and tend to lead to labor disputes burdening and ob- structing commerce and the free flow of com- merce. V. THE REMEDY Having found that Respondent has engaged in and is engaging in unfair labor practices within the meaning of Section and (1) of the Act, we HANSON 2(6) 2(5) parts- asa 2(11) 9(b) 9(a) Merryweather Company, 12 ( 8(a)(5) 8(a)(l) 2(6) l q c ) 1237 GENUINE PARTS, INC. shall order that it cease and desist therefrom, and, upon request, bargain collectively with the Union as the exclusive representative of all employees in the appropriate unit, and give effect to all the terms and conditions of the parties' contract. In order to dissipate the effect of these unfair labor practices, we shall order Respondent to make whole its employees by paying the contributions to the Arrowhead Automobile Dealers-U.A.W. Re- tirement Income Plan which should have been made pursuant the terms of their written agree- ment, retroactive to January 1, 1980. ' The Board, upon the basis of the foregoing facts and the entire record, makes the following: 1. Hanson Genuine Parts, Inc., is an employer engaged in commerce within the meaning of Sec- tion and (7) of the Act. 2. Local 241, International Union, United Auto- mobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, UAW, is a labor organization within the meaning of Section of the Act. 3. All full-time and regular part-time counter employees, machine shop employees, and inventory control employees employed by the Em- ployer, excluding office clerical employees, casual employees, guards and supervisors defined by Section of the Act, constitute a unit appropri- ate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section of the Act. 4. At all times material herein, the above-named labor organization has been the exclusive repre- sentative of all employees in the aforesaid appropri- ate unit for the purpose of collective bargaining within the meaning of Section of the Act. 5. By failing and refusing to withhold union dues from employees' wages, and failing to remit said dues to the Union, refusing the Union access to Re- spondent's employees, failing and refusing to make specified contributions on behalf of its employees to the Arrowhead Automobile Dealers-U.A.W. Retirement Income Plan, refusing to furnish the date of hire, name, address, classification, and rate of pay of a newly hired employee, and failing to furnish information requested by the Un'ion con- ' Because the provisions of employee benefit fund agreements are vari- able and complex, the Board does not provide, at the adjudicatory stage of a proceeding, for the addition of interest at a fixed rate on unlawfully withheld fund payments. We leave to the compliance stage the question of whether Respondent, Hanson Genuine Parts, Inc., must pay additional amounts into the fund in order to satisfy our "make whole'' remedy. These additional amounts may be determined, depending on the circum- stances of each case, by reference to provisions in the documents govern- ing the fund at issue and, where there are no governing provisions, to evidence less directly attributable to the unlawful withholding action, which might include the loss of return on investment of the portion of funds withheld, additional administrative costs, etc., but not collateral losses. Optical 240 NLRB 13 1979). cerning Respondent's insurance and benefit pro- gram, Respondent has refused to bargain collec- tively with the above-named labor organization as the exclusive bargaining representative of all em- ployees of Respondent in the appropriate unit. Re- spondent has thereby engaged in and is engaging in unfair labor practices within the meaning of Sec- tion of the Act. 6. By the aforesaid refusal to bargain, Respond- ent has interfered with, restrained, and coerced, and is interfering with, restraining, and coercing, employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed them in Section 7 of the Act, and thereby has en- gaged in and is engaging in unfair labor practices within the meaning of Section of the Act. 7. The aforesaid unfair labor practices are unfair labor practices affecting commerce within the meaning of Section and (7) of the Act. ORDER Pursuant to Section of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, the National Labor Re- lations Board hereby orders that the Respondent, Hanson Genuine Parts, Inc., Duluth, Minnesota, its officers, agents, successors, and assigns, shall: 1. Cease and desist from: (a) Refusing to bargain collectively with Local 241, International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, UAW, by failing and refusing to with- hold and remit union dues, refusing the Union access to Respondent's employees, refusing to make contributions on behalf of its employees in the above-described unit to the Arrowhead Auto- mobile Dealers-U.A.W. Retirement Income Plan, refusing to furnish the date of hire, name, address, classification, and rate of pay of a newly hired em- ployee, and by failing to furnish information re- quested by the Union concerning Respondent's in- surance and benefit program. (b) In any like or related manner interfering with, restraining, or coercing employees in the ex- ercise of the rights guaranteed them in Section 7 of the Act. 2. Take the following affirmative action which the Board finds will effectuate the policies of the Act: (a) Upon request, bargain with the above-named labor organization as the exclusive representative of all employees in the aforesaid appropriate unit with respect to rates of pay, wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment, and, if an understanding is reached, embody such under- standing in a signed agreement. (b) Deduct dues and fees from employees' wages, and remit said dues and fees to the Union, I238 Dealers- ." (f) "Appendi~."~ 60consecutive ORDER RELATIONS parts- DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD together with a list of names of employees from whom such deductions were made. (c) Allow the Union access to employees at Re- spondent's facility during working hours. (d) Make whole its employees by making contri- butions into the Arrowhead Automobile U.A.W. Retirement Income Plan in the manner set forth in the section of this Decision entitled "The Remedy (e) Furnish information requested by the Union regarding the dates of hire, names, addresses, clas- sifications, and rates of pay of employees. Furnish information requested by the Union regarding Respondent's insurance and benefit plan. (g) Preserve and, upon request, make available to the Board or its agents, for examination and copy- ing, all payroll records, social security payment re- cords, timecards, personnel records and reports, and all other records necessary to analyze the amounts due under the terms of this Order. (h) Post at its facility in Duluth, Minnesota, copies of the attached notice marked Copies of said notice, on forms provided by the Regional Director for Region 18, after being duly signed by Respondent's representative, shall be posted by Respondent immediately upon receipt thereof, and bemaintained by it for days thereafter, in conspicuous places, including all places where notices to employees are customarily posted. Reasonable steps shall be taken by Re- spondent to insure that said notices are not altered, defaced, or covered by any other material. (i) Notify the Regional Director for Region 18, in writing, within 20 days from the date of this Order, what steps have been taken to comply here- with. In the event that this Order is enforced by a Judgment of a United States Court of Appeals, the words in the notice reading "Posted By Order of the National Labor Relations Board" shall read "Posted Pursu- ant to a Judgment of the United States Court of Appeals Enforcing an Order of the National Labor Relations Board." APPENDIX NOTICE TO EMPLOYEES POSTED BY OF THE NATIONAL LABOR BOARD An Agency of the United States Government WE WILL NOT refuse to bargain collectively concerning rates of pay, wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment with Local 241, International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Im- plement Workers of America, UAW, as the exclusive representative of the employees in the bargaining unit described below. WE WILL NOT in any like or related manner interfere with, restrain, or coerce our employ- ees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed them by Section 7 of the Act. WE WILL, upon request, bargain with the above-named Union, as the exclusive repre- sentative of all employees in the bargaining unit described below, with respect to rates of pay, wages, hours, and other terms and condi- tions of employment, and, if an understanding is reached, embody such understanding in a signed agreement. The bargaining unit is: All full-time and regular part-time counter employees, machine shop employees and inventory control employees employed by the Employer; excluding office clerical employees, casual employees, guards and su- pervisors as defined by the National Labor Relations Act, as amended. WE WILL deduct dues and fees from em- ployees' wages, and remit said dues and fees to the Union, together with a list of names of em- ployees from whom such deductions were made. WE WILL allow the Union access to employ- ees at our facility during working hours. WE WILL make whole our employees by making contributions to the Arrowhead Auto- mobile Dealers-U.A.W. Retirement Income Plan. WE WILL furnish information requested by the Union regarding the dates of hire, names, addresses, classifications, and rates of pay of employees. WE WILL furnish information requested by the Union regarding our insurance and benefit plan.