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Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 8', '§ 160', '§ 1', '§ 151', '§ 8', '§ 8', '§ 157', '§ 8', '§ 7', '§ 7', '§ 1', '§ 151', '§ 7', '§ 7', '§ 7', '§ 7', '§ 151', '§ 8', '§ 158', '§ 101', '§ 101', '§ 160', '§ 101', '§ 101', '§ 101', '§ 402', '§ 8', '§ 7', '§ 7', '§ 160', '§ 1', '§ 151', '§ 7', '§ 7']

Anheuser-busch, Incorporated, Petitioner, v. National Labor Relations Board, Respondent.national Labor Relations Board, Petitioner, v. Anheuser-busch, Incorporated, Respondent, 338 F.3d 267 (4th Cir. 2003) :: Justia
Justia › US Law › Case Law › Federal Courts › Courts of Appeals › Fourth Circuit › 2003 › Anheuser-busch, Incorporated, Petitioner, v. National Labor Relations Board, Respondent.national Lab...
Anheuser-busch, Incorporated, Petitioner, v. National Labor Relations Board, Respondent.national Labor Relations Board, Petitioner, v. Anheuser-busch, Incorporated, Respondent, 338 F.3d 267 (4th Cir. 2003)
US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit - 338 F.3d 267 (4th Cir. 2003) Argued: February 26, 2003
COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED ARGUED: Arthur G. Telegen, FOLEY HOAG, L.L.P., Boston, Massachusetts, for Anheuser-Busch.
Anheuser-Busch Incorporated ("Busch") petitions this Court for review of a Decision and Order entered against it by the National Labor Relations Board (the "Board"). Anheuser-Busch, Inc., 337 N.L.R.B. No. 2 (Dec. 19, 2001) (the "Order").1 By its Order, the Board affirmed an earlier decision of an Administrative Law Judge (the "ALJ"), who concluded that Busch, on four occasions, had violated § 8(a) (1) of the National Labor Relations Act (the "Act").2 The Board has cross-applied for enforcement of its Order. As explained below, we deny the petition for review and grant the Board's cross-application for enforcement.
In assessing the Teamsters's allegations, the ALJ ruled that, under the Supreme Court's seminal decision in NLRB v. J. Weingarten, Inc., 420 U.S. 251, 95 S. Ct. 959, 43 L. Ed. 2d 171 (1975), and pursuant to the Board's related precedents, "an employee has the right to specify the representative he or she wants, and the employer is obligated to supply that representative absent some extenuating circumstances." ALJ Decision at 6. Pursuant to this principle, the ALJ concluded that, although Finn may have been eating lunch when Burlingame initially wanted to question Lamirande, Finn was nevertheless "available" as a representative. Id. Finn had previously circumscribed his lunch breaks in order to represent employees. In any event, Finn would have completed his lunch break within fifteen minutes of Lamirande's initial request. By its Order, the Board agreed with the ALJ's ruling that Busch had committed two unfair labor practices in denying Lamirande's requests to be represented by a particular shop steward. Order at 1.
In considering a petition for review, we are obliged to uphold the Board's legal interpretations if they are "rational and consistent" with the Act. Sam's Club, a Div. of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. NLRB, 173 F.3d 233, 239 (4th Cir. 1999) (internal quotation marks omitted). Indeed, if the Board's resolution is a "defensible construction of the statute," it is entitled to deference, because the "function of [effectuating] national labor policy is often a difficult and delicate responsibility, which the Congress committed primarily to the [Board], subject to limited judicial review." Arrow Auto. Indus., Inc. v. NLRB, 853 F.2d 223, 237 (4th Cir. 1988) (internal quotation marks omitted). In deciding legal issues, however, the Board should apply its principles consistently. Sara Lee Bakery Group, Inc. v. NLRB, 296 F.3d 292, 295 (4th Cir. 2002). And when the Supreme Court has already interpreted a statutory provision, the Board's interpretation and application of the statute will be judged in relation to the Court's rulings. Lechmere, Inc. v. NLRB, 502 U.S. 527, 536-37, 112 S. Ct. 841, 117 L. Ed. 2d 79 (1992). Findings of fact made by an ALJ and affirmed by the Board are conclusive, so long as they are "supported by substantial evidence on the record considered as a whole." 29 U.S.C. § 160(e). And we have characterized substantial evidence as being "such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion." NLRB v. Peninsula Gen. Hosp. Med. Ctr., 36 F.3d 1262, 1269 (4th Cir. 1994) (internal quotation marks omitted).
In Weingarten, the Supreme Court held that an employee has a right to union representation at any investigatory interview threatening disciplinary action. 420 U.S. at 253, 95 S. Ct. 959. An employer thus commits an unfair labor practice in denying an employee's request for such representation. Id. Here, the Board decided that, in light of the Supreme Court's decision in Weingarten and the Board's experiences in resolving Weingarten-type disputes, an employee is entitled, absent extenuating circumstances, to the union representative of his choice. As explained below, we see the Representation Rule as a reasonable interpretation and application of the Act.
First, the Act — as interpreted by the Supreme Court in Weingarten — generally contemplates that an employee will have his choice as to union representation. Indeed, § 1 of the Act provides that the Act's purpose is to protect "the exercise by workers of full freedom of association, self-organization, and designation of representatives of their own choosing." 29 U.S.C. § 151 (emphasis added). In Weingarten, the Court emphasized that the right to union representation "plainly effectuates the most fundamental purposes of the Act," which is to enable workers to seek mutual aid and protection without undue interference by their employers. 420 U.S. at 262, 95 S. Ct. 959. The choice of a representative plainly furthers the ability of workers to seek such aid and protection.11
Second, the Act attempts to rectify the inherent power imbalance of the workplace, and an employee's ability to choose his own union representative serves this goal. When an employee requests union representation in an investigatory interview, the employee is seeking assistance to deal with a "confrontation with his employer." Id. at 260, 95 S. Ct. 959. In such a confrontation, the employee is generally at some disadvantage, and the recognition of his right to choose his representative serves, to some extent, to mitigate this inequality. As the Court stated in Weingarten, " [r]equiring a lone employee to attend an investigatory interview which he reasonably believes may result in the imposition of discipline perpetuates the inequality the Act was designed to eliminate." Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 262, 95 S. Ct. 959 (internal quotation marks omitted). It is thus reasonable that, absent extenuating circumstances, an employee should be entitled to designate the union representative who will assist him during his employer's investigatory interview.12
Busch next contends that the Representation Rule is inconsistent with Board precedent. See Sara Lee Bakery Group, Inc. v. NLRB, 296 F.3d 292, 295 (4th Cir. 2002) (holding that Board must apply its principles consistently). In assessing this challenge to the Board's ruling, we note that the Court in Weingarten rejected a similar contention regarding the Board's consistency in adhering to precedent. There, the employer pointed to several Board decisions, which had held that a union representative was not required to be present at an investigatory interview. The Court decided that, because an administrative rule normally "involves an evolutionary process," the Board was entitled to modify its rule over time. Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 265, 95 S. Ct. 959. The Court observed that it would "misconceive the nature of administrative decisionmaking" to hold "that the Board's earlier decisions froze the development of this important aspect of the national labor law." Id. at 265-66, 95 S. Ct. 959.
Although the Board's Coca-Cola and Pacific Gas decisions indicate that employees are not entitled to choose a representative, the Board, in more recent decisions, has refined its rule regarding union representation. For example, in GHR Energy Corp., 294 N.L.R.B. 1011 (1989), the Board was faced with a situation where the requested union representative was available. In those circumstances, the Board ruled that the employer had violated the Act in denying an employee his chosen representative. Id. at 1042 (finding that the employer's "refusal to permit [an employee] to exercise his right to select a union representative in accordance with the Weingarten doctrine ... violated § 8(a) (1) of the Act"). Thus, by 1989, the Board had firmly indicated that, so long as the requested union representative is reasonably available, an employer should accommodate an employee's request for a particular representative. See also Consolidation Coal Co., Robinson Run Mine No. 95, 307 N.L.R.B. 976 (1992) (ruling that employer committed unfair labor practice in denying employee's request when union representative was available and ready to proceed).
Busch also asserts that the Representation Rule cannot be applied to this case because it would be a retroactive application of the Rule. See ARA Serv., Inc. v. NLRB, 71 F.3d 129, 135 (4th Cir. 1995) (stating that Board cannot retroactively apply new rules). At the time of its Coca-Cola and Pacific Gas decisions, the Board had not decided that an employee is entitled to the union representative of his choice. Since then, however, the Board has refined its approach to union representation, developing its present position over the course of many years and several decisions. In light of these developments, the Representation Rule does not signify a substitution of new law for old law. See ARA Serv., Inc., 71 F.3d at 135 (" [Only w]hen a Board decision creates a new rule... by overruling past precedents relied upon by the parties [is] the propriety of its retroactive application called into question."). In sum, we conclude that the Board appropriately found Busch to have committed unfair labor practices by failing to accommodate Lamirande's requests for a particular representative.19
In similar circumstances, we rejected an employer's challenge — based on a due process contention — that the Board had found an unfair labor practice not alleged in the complaint. In Standard-Coosa-Thatcher Carpet Yarn Division v. NLRB, 691 F.2d 1133, 1136 n. 3 (4th Cir. 1982), the Board's General Counsel charged that an employer had threatened its employee with a loss of benefits if she voted in favor of a union. After hearing and considering evidence, the ALJ and the Board concluded that the employer had actually enticed the employee with a promise of benefits if she voted against the union. The employer objected to this finding, asserting that it was at variance with the complaint. We disagreed, concluding that the employer had ample notice that an unfair labor practice was alleged with respect to the specific conversation between the employer and the employee. Thus, the employer had received due process in the Board proceeding even though the ALJ's finding was phrased differently from the allegation of the complaint. Id. (citing NLRB v. Tamper, Inc., 522 F.2d 781, 790 (4th Cir. 1975)).
Busch next contends that the record fails to support the ALJ's finding that Lux threatened Rimualdo for engaging in protected activity. Under § 8(a) (1), the filing of "grievances and Board charges are protected activities under the Act." Equitable Gas Co., Div. of Equitable Res., Inc. v. NLRB, 966 F.2d 861, 866 (4th Cir. 1992) (citing 29 U.S.C. § 157 and NLRB v. City Disposal Sys., Inc., 465 U.S. 822, 836, 104 S. Ct. 1505, 79 L. Ed. 2d 839, (1984)). An employer thus "violates § 8(a) (1) by threatening reprisals for engaging in such protected activity." Id. (citing NLRB v. U.S. Postal Serv., 906 F.2d 482, 486 (10th Cir. 1990)). Here, the ALJ decided that Lux was threatening Rimualdo because of the pending charges before the Board. In so concluding, the ALJ simply credited Rimualdo's and Hart's versions of the Stamping Incident, rejecting the conflicting evidence offered by Busch. When an administrative record is fraught with conflicting testimony, we are obliged to defer to the Board's resolution of such conflicts. See NLRB v. Air Prods. & Chems., Inc., 717 F.2d 141, 145 (4th Cir. 1983). We are thus constrained to conclude that the ALJ's finding — i.e., that Lux threatened Rimualdo for engaging in protected activity — is supported by substantial evidence.
Busch also asserts that the remedy crafted by the Board is overbroad, in that it is not properly tailored to fit the unfair labor practice it was intended to redress. See Ultrasystems W. Constructors, Inc. v. NLRB, 18 F.3d 251, 258 (4th Cir. 1994). By its Order, the Board required the posting of a notice advising Baldwinsville brewery workers that Busch was prohibited from threatening to "discharge an employee if he or she engages in a concerted protected activity, including engaging in such activity when speaking at corporate communications meetings." Order at 1. It is elementary that the Board possesses broad discretion in crafting its orders, Ultrasystems, 18 F.3d at 258, and there is no requirement that such an order be tailored so as to preclude only the unlawful conduct arising from a particular incident or employee. NLRB v. Mexia Textile Mills, 339 U.S. 563, 568, 70 S. Ct. 833, 94 L. Ed. 1067 (1950). In these circumstances, and in light of these principles, the terms of the Order are not overbroad.
The majority's "Representation Rule" impermissibly expands the right first announced by the Supreme Court in N.L.R.B. v. J. Weingarten, Inc., 420 U.S. 251, 95 S. Ct. 959, 43 L. Ed. 2d 171 (1975).1 The employer in Weingarten accused one of its employees of stealing. The employer's security agent interviewed the employee about the allegations. Although the employee repeatedly requested a union steward to assist her during the interview, the security agent refused. After verifying the employee's defense, the security agent apologized to the employee and assured her that the matter was closed.
The Supreme Court held that a union employee is entitled to have union representation during an investigatory interview that the employee reasonably believes might result in disciplinary action. Id. at 262, 95 S. Ct. 959. This proposition has generally become known as the "Weingarten right" or the "Weingarten rule." See, e.g., B. Glenn George, Visions of a Labor Lawyer: The Legacy of Justice Brennan, Wm. & Mary L.Rev. 1123, 1171 (1992). The Court in Weingarten based its conclusion on the provisions of § 7 of the Act, the same provision at issue in this case. Section 7 states in pertinent part:
(Emphasis added). The Court reasoned that an employee's right to union representation during an investigatory meeting is based on the guarantee that employees have under § 7 to act in concert "for mutual aid or protection." Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 260, 95 S. Ct. 959.
Id. at 260-61, 95 S. Ct. 959.
The Court found that providing a union representative during an investigative interview effectuates some of the primary purposes of § 1, 29 U.S.C. § 151, of the Act.2 Id., at 262, 95 S. Ct. 959. Such protection, the Court reasoned, is consistent with the Act's goal of eliminating the "inequality of bargaining power between employees... and employers." As Justice Brennan explained for a majority of the Court:
Id. at 262-63, 95 S. Ct. 959. Thus, the Court found that affording a "lone employee" a union representative during an investigatory interview in which the risk of discipline reasonably inheres falls within the protection of § 7 "read in the light of the mischief to be corrected and the end to be attained." Id. at 262, 95 S. Ct. 959.
The Weingarten rule stands for the weighty proposition that an employee should not be forced to undergo an investigatory interview without the assistance of a union steward, who ensures that both the employee and the bargaining unit are treated justly. The majority's new rule does not advance the interests of the bargaining unit as a whole. Therefore, the "Representation Rule" exceeds the scope of § 7 of the Act and is an impermissible extension of the Weingarten rule.5 See Maislin Industries v. Primary Steel, Inc., 497 U.S. 116, 131, 110 S. Ct. 2759, 111 L. Ed. 2d 94 (1990) ("Once we have determined a statute's clear meaning, we adhere to that determination under the doctrine of stare decisis, and we judge an agency's later interpretation of the statute against our prior determination of the statute's meaning.").6
I also dissent because the facts of this case reveal that Busch afforded Lamirande all the important protections that § 7 of the Act and the Weingarten rule provide. Lamirande, who soon before this incident was elected as a union steward,7 was accused of endangering the safety of other workers at the Busch plant. Busch chose to interview Lamirande about the incident, even though it was not required to under the law. Instead, it could have immediately commenced a disciplinary proceeding. See Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 259, 95 S. Ct. 959.
To suggest that Busch somehow tried to intimidate or overpower Lamirande or tried to disadvantage him during the two interviews by not allowing him to have Steward Finn as his representative lacks any support in the record. There was clearly no "mischief to be corrected" by having Steward Finn rather than Steward Vogel represent Lamirande. All the underlying policy reasons for the Weingarten rule were attained, i.e., Steward Vogel safeguarded not only the particular interests of Lamirande but also the interests of the entire bargaining unit by ensuring "that [Busch did] not initiate or continue a practice of imposing punishment unjustly." Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 260-61, 95 S. Ct. 959. Because Lamirande was competently represented in both interviews by a duly elected steward, he was not the "lone employee" whom Weingarten and § 7 protect.
Finally, the majority's "Representation Rule" is inconsistent with the important protections the Weingarten rule was intended to foster. As the majority rightly notes, an employer is not obligated to summon a particular steward requested by an employee under any circumstance. Ante at 275, n. 11. Instead, the employer has the prerogative to forgo the interview process altogether and proceed to discipline the employee immediately. The Court in Weingarten understood the disadvantages of this scenario. By establishing the Weingarten rule, the Court attempted to create a policy that was "useful to both employee and employer." Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 262, 95 S. Ct. 959. The Court explained the benefit of the rule:
Id. at 263, 95 S. Ct. 959.
The Board subsequently made technical corrections and modified, in minor part, its rulings against Busch Anheuser-Busch, Inc., 337 N.L.R.B. No. 121 (July 5, 2002). In referring to the Order, we are referring to it as modified.
The Act is codified at 29 U.S.C. §§ 151-169, and § 8(a) (1) is codified at 29 U.S.C. § 158(a) (1)
The Teamsters initiated these proceedings by filing charges with the appropriate Regional Director, who decided to issue and prosecute the Complaint See 29 C.F.R. § 101.8 (stating that if charges appear to have merit, Regional Director institutes formal action by issuing complaint and notice of hearing). The Teamsters then participated in the proceedings before the ALJ. Id. § 101.10; 102.38. It is appropriate for Busch to have petitioned for review in this Court because the company transacts business in Virginia. See 29 U.S.C. § 160(f) (stating that petition may be filed in any circuit where party "transacts business").
In resolving a complaint, an ALJ is obliged to set forth his findings of fact and conclusions of law, in addition to preparing a recommended order. 29 C.F.R. § 101.11. An ALJ's decision, including his recommended order, is then filed with the Board Id. If a party files exceptions, the Board reviews the exceptions and issues a decision and order. Id. § 101.12(a). If no exceptions are filed, the ALJ's decision and recommended order become the decision and order of the Board. Id. § 101.12(b).
A shop steward is a union member who, among other duties, is authorized to act as an employee's representative in an investigatory interview See generally 29 U.S.C. § 402(q).
The Complaint issued by the Board's Regional Counsel revised this allegation slightly, asserting that Busch had threatened Rimualdo because "he had given testimony to the Board" during a prior investigation.
Each of the four unfair labor practices found by the ALJ and the Board involve § 8(a) (1) of the Act, which provides that it is an unfair labor practice for an employer "to interfere with, restrain, or coerce employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed in [§ 7]." Pursuant to § 7 of the Act, employees have the right to engage in concerted activities "for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection."
Our dissenting colleague suggests that our shorthand use of the phrase "Representation Rule" refers to a rule we invented in this proceeding See ante at 287. To the contrary, this is the Board's rule. In focusing on our rhetoric, our colleague has obscured the real issue in this case: whether the Board's Representation Rule is "rational and consistent" with the Act. Put differently, we are not assessing whether the Act entitles an employee to choose among available union representatives, but rather whether the Board's interpretation is a "defensible construction of the statute." Arrow Auto. Indus., Inc., 853 F.2d at 237.
Absent extenuating circumstances, an employer has no interest in selecting between available representatives. By contrast, employees do have an interest in selecting between representatives. For example, an employee may know that a representative is already familiar with the investigation, or may generally feel more comfortable with a particular shop steward. In fact, in this instance, one of the reasons Lamirande requested Finn was that Finn was aware of the facts involved in the Contractor Incident. ALJ Decision at 3 (stating that when Vogel first spoke with Lamirande, Lamirande stated: "I would like to see Dan Finn because he is aware of my situation").
In reaching this conclusion, we are not placing an undue burden on employers. An employer need not always summon a requested representative. The employer may deny an employee's request for a particular representative, forego the interview process, and render a decision based on the information it has already obtained Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 258, 95 S. Ct. 959. Or, if extenuating circumstances exist (i.e., if the requested representative is unavailable), the employer may reject the employee's request and proceed accordingly.
The ALJ acknowledged that a "short delay" would have resulted if Busch, before seeking Finn's presence at the interview, had waited until he completed lunch. ALJ Decision at 6 (emphasis added). However, because Finn had previously circumscribed his lunch breaks to represent employees; because Finn would have finished his break in fifteen minutes; and because the allegations against Lamirande did not demand "instant attention," the ALJ concluded that Busch did not have "sufficient reason to deny Lamirande the representation he wanted." Id. Thus, the ALJ found that "the fact that Finn was [at lunch] for a short period of time [did not make] him any less `available' than Vogel." Id. Busch does not maintain that substantial evidence fails to support this finding, and we have no basis for rejecting it. It is difficult to understand our colleague's assertion that " [t]he ALJ clearly erred in deciding that Steward Finn was not less `available' than Steward Vogel." Ante at 285. Our review of findings of fact is limited to whether such findings are "supported by substantial evidence on the record considered as a whole." 29 U.S.C. § 160(e). And, as is often noted, although substantial evidence requires more than a mere scintilla, it is less than a preponderance. Weis Markets, Inc. v. NLRB, 265 F.3d 239, 243 (4th Cir. 2001). The ALJ was in a better position to assess the representatives' respective availability, and there is sufficient support in the record to justify the ALJ's finding in this regard.
The Representation Rule may well be consistent with the prevailing industrial practice Cf. Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 267, 95 S. Ct. 959 (reasoning Board's construction was in "full harmony with actual industrial practice"). At a minimum, the Rule is consistent with an agreement between Busch and the Teamsters for future Weingarten situations. ALJ Decision at 3; see also Coca-Cola Bottling Co. of Los Angeles, 227 N.L.R.B. 1276 (1977) (stating that, if requested representative had not been on vacation, employer would have adhered to its past practice and granted employee's request for particular representative). The separate opinion suggests that the Board's Representation Rule will discourage employers from conducting investigatory interviews. Ante at 286. Congress, however, has decided that such policy concerns are best addressed by the Board. Indeed, our standard of review, i.e., whether the Board's rule is "rational and consistent" with the Act, ensures that the Board, rather than the courts, has the authority to resolve such concerns. See Arrow Auto. Indus., Inc., 853 F.2d at 237.
The ALJ in New Jersey Bell also distinguished Pacific Gas because the Pacific Gas employee had requested a representative who did not normally represent employees at the interview location, and the union already had a system in place whereby an on-site representative was available.
In New Jersey Bell, the Board disagreed with the ALJ's determination that the employer had violated the Act. It concluded that, because the requested representative had exceeded the scope of representation in a prior interview, the employer had established special circumstances for its denial.
In support of its position here, Busch also relies on the Board's decisions in Williams Pipeline Co., 315 N.L.R.B. 1 (1994) and LIR-USA Manufacturing, Co., 306 N.L.R.B. 298 (1992). In Williams Pipeline Co., however, the Board merely recognized that an employer does not have to postpone an investigatory interview when another union representative is available. 315 N.L.R.B. at 5. And in LIR-USA, the ALJ simply noted that an employer is not obligated to accommodate an employee's request when a requested representative is unavailable. 306 N.L.R.B. at 302. Neither of these decisions is contrary to the Representation Rule.
The majority insists that the "Representation Rule" is the Board's invention rather than its own Ante at 285, n. 10. The majority's insistence on this somewhat semantical point is curious. First, the majority, not the Board, coined the phrase "Representation Rule." Second, even though the majority may not have "invented" the "Representation Rule," the majority has placed its imprimatur on the new rule by finding it to be rational and consistent with the Act. Third, future litigants seeking protection or further extension of the "Representation Rule" will surely cite the majority's opinion rather than the Board's order.
The majority's suggestion that § 1 grants an individual employee his personal choice of union representation,see ante at 275, is misplaced. Section 1 declares it the policy of the United States to eliminate hindrances to the "free flow of commerce" generally by encouraging collective bargaining and "the exercise by workers of full freedom of association, self-organization, and designation of representatives of their own choosing." 29 U.S.C. § 151 (emphasis added). This right to designate representatives arises in the context of the collective activities of workers in a group. As Justice Marshall explained in a case decided the day before Weingarten, the NLRA, to secure the collective strength of the bargaining unit, establishes a regime of majority rule wherein the rights of some individuals might be subordinated to the interests of the majority. Emporium Capwell Co. v. Western Addition Community Organization, 420 U.S. 50, 95 S. Ct. 977, 43 L. Ed. 2d 12 (1975).
There are, no doubt, instances when an employee would have a material reason for preferring one representative over a proffered representative. If, for instance, the employee and the proffered representative have a long history of animosity toward each other, the employer, after being informed of this circumstance, should replace the proffered representative with another representative. This replacement would be required not only because the proffered representative would be biased against the individual employee but also because the proffered representative's bias could affect his ability to represent the interests of the unit as a collective whole during the investigatory interview. No such circumstance exists in this case. If it had, it would be consistent with the Weingarten rule and § 7 to require the replacement "in the light of the mischief to be corrected and the end to be attained."
The majority also asserts that the "Representation Rule" is justified because it would allow an employee to choose a steward who is already familiar with his case. That simply is not the type of important right protected by Weingarten. In fact, the ALJ in this case found it unimportant that a particular steward might already be "up to speed." J.A. 13. The type of prompt, nonadversarial interview envisioned by Weingarten does not require that a steward have in-depth knowledge about the incident under review.
We are obliged to uphold the Board's interpretation of a statute only if it is rational and consistent with the Act See Sam's Club v. N.L.R.B., 173 F.3d 233, 238 (4th Cir. 1999). Reviewing courts are not to stand aside and rubber stamp Board determinations that are contrary to the language or tenor of the Act. Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 266, 95 S. Ct. 959.
Moreover, I dissent because the majority's "Representation Rule," even if it could be construed as a permissible interpretation of § 7, cannot be enforced retroactively against Busch. An important consideration in determining whether to give retroactive application to a new rule is deciding whether the rule proposed is an "abrupt break with well-settled policy" or is merely an "attempt to fill a void in an unsettled area of law."ARA Services, Inc. v. N.L.R.B., 71 F.3d 129, 134 (4th Cir. 1995).
The ALJ also decided that Busch should have delayed the interview and that nothing about the circumstances required instant attention. Busch asserts correctly that these are legitimate prerogatives reserved to the employer under Weingarten.
The majority contends that three prior Board decisions on which it relies require only that the requested representative be "reasonably" available Ante at 277. This characterization is incorrect. In GHR Energy Corp., 294 N.L.R.B. 1011 (1989), the requested representative arrived at the interview before the representative proffered by the employer. In New Jersey Bell Telephone Co., 308 N.L.R.B. 277, 282 (1992), and Consolidation Coal Co., 307 N.L.R.B. 976, 978 (1992), the requested representatives were "equally available" and "present and ready to go forward."
The majority asserts that the ALJ was in a better position to assess the respective availability of the two stewards and therefore substantial evidence exists in the record justifying the ALJ's finding that Steward Finn was not less "available" than Steward Vogel Ante at 276, n. 14.
The majority suggests that it lacks authority to stop such an undesirable result, because Congress has delegated such policy considerations to the Board Ante at 277, n. 15. As previously explained, ante at 284, the court is not allowed to merely rubber stamp the Board's interpretation of a statute. Instead, a court must judge an agency's interpretation against the Supreme Court's prior determination of the statute's meaning. Maislin Industries, 497 U.S. at 131, 110 S. Ct. 2759. In Weingarten, the Supreme Court clearly promoted the investigatory interview as a prompt, efficient, desirable means of handling disputes for both the employer and the employee. Weingarten, 420 U.S. at 262-63, 95 S. Ct. 959. The "Representation Rule" might cause employers to bypass the interview process and thereby disadvantage employees. This potential further suggests that the "Representation Rule" is not a permissible interpretation of the Act.