Source: https://openjurist.org/255/f3d/683/lloyd-cramer
Timestamp: 2020-04-04 15:18:56
Document Index: 405978400

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 653', '§ 301', '§ 185', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 301', '§ 653', '§ 653', '§ 653', '§ 24']

255 F3d 683 Lloyd Cramer | OpenJurist
255 F. 3d 683 - Lloyd Cramer
255 F3d 683 Lloyd Cramer
LLOYD W. CRAMER; DANIEL E. LIPICH, PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS,
CONSOLIDATED FREIGHTWAYS INC., DEFENDANT-APPELLEE.
DENNIS R. BLEVINS; RAY R. CASIO; STEVE CUNNINGHAM; RICK DEWOODY; ALEJANDRO GARCIA; DAVID V. GARCIA; RAUL C. GARCIA; JAMES A. GRECO; BRUCE A. HARVEY; JOHN K. HATFIELD; ROBERT W. HATFIELD; LEE A. INGRAM; ZENO KING, JR.; JOHN L. LACROIX; GREGORY A. LANDAVAZO; MELVIN LEO LEWIS; ENRIQUE LOPEZ; HERBERT MARCUS; IGNACIO V. OCHOA; BRIAN K. PAGNE; MANUEL PARRA; JAMES A. PROITTE; CARLOS RIVERA; HAROLD JAMES TAYLOR, JR.; THOMAS A. SCOTT; DAVID W. STEPHENS; J.B. STEWART; ALFONSO WAGNER; LARRY A. WELLS; ROBERT P. WILLIAMS; ERIC J. WRIGHT; WILLIAM A. YESFORD; MIGUEL ABARAJAS; SANDRA RAY AMBROSE; GUILLERMO AMESOLA; ABELARDO APUAN; MICHAEL VINCENT ARBANAS; CARLOS ARGANDORA; JOSE ABRIERO; MARCARIO ACELLANO; FERNANDO AVILA; MICHAEL E. BANNAN; ARNOLD A. BARAJAS; ROBERT BARRAS; MIKE BARTLEY; DAVID BARTON; JAN K. BEBER; WILLIAM OTIS BEGGS; CRAIG ANTHONY BERLENE; PAUL EUGENE BOATWRIGHT; BRIGIDO BOLIVAR; RAYMOND BONIA; RICHARD BOON; ROGER J. BRASS; GARY BROOKS; MICHAEL D. BROWN; JOANNE BRUMMER; SCOTT BUBIER;
EDUARDO S. CARDENAS; MANUEL CARDONA; MARIO CARILLO; HARRIS A. CARTER; RICHARD CENICEROS; JACK CLARK; KENNETH L. CLARK; FERNANDO A. CLAVIJO; ROBERT L. CLINTON; RICHARD CONTRERAS; RANCE D. COOPER; ANTHONY CORDERO; ARMANDO CORDERO; JOHN L. CORDERO; RUDY H. COUTHART; CHARLES DAVIDSON, II; THOMAS DERSGHY; PHILIP DIGENOVA; CHARLES DIRNER; JIMMY DIXON; AL DORAME; EDDIE SHEPHERD; CLIFFORD J. FELTON; MIKE FITZGERALD; JOSE LUIS FLORES; RAFAEL O. FLORES; ED FOOR; JERRY FRANCE; ALBERT ALEX FRANCO; RAMON B. FRANCO; MICHAEL GAMBINO; ANTHONY GAPDORA; ROBER T. GARCIA; DONALD K. GLOVER; DAVID P. GOMEZ; MANUEL E. GONZALES; GERALD W. GOODWIN; DEVIN JONATHAN GORDON; JONATHAN J. GORDON; JERRY GOFORTH; BERNAL GREGETZ; JOSE GUTIERREZ; JESSE D. HALEY; JAMES HARPER, JR.; SANDRA HEATLEY; PATRICK L. HERON, JR.; RANDALL WILLIAM HOBBS; NARVELL E. HOOKS; STEVE HOPKINS; TIM HOSEA; GAYLE LYNN HAMPTON; JAMES HURLBURT; JOHN W. JACKSON; JAMES ROBINSON; WILLIAM JARRELL; ALFREDO JIMENEZ; GARY E. JOHNSON; PETER KARABAN; ROBERT M. KIRKLAND; LARRY RISSEL; CARY KNIGHT; ANNE M. KNUTZEN; PATRICK J. KNUTZEN; ERVIN KROLL; FRANK P. LAGUMINA; HERCLIO LEMUS; ELORIA REYES; RICHARD E. LUCERO; ENRIQUE MANCILLA; CLIFFORD E. MAPLES; GUILLERMO MARTIN; REGUIO MARTIN; GILBERT M. MARTINEZ; RONALD A. MATTHEWS; DAVID E. MAY; MICHAEL J. MCCARTHY; DON R. MCCLARY; WILLIAM R. MCFARLAND; SAUL A. MCKECHAN; P.L. MEDINA; PEDRO A. MONGE; ALFRED MONTOYA; ARTHUR MORA; MARCOS MORALES; ROY L. MCFOOT; DEWAYNE MORTENSEN, II; MARK MULHERN; OSCAR MUNOZ; JOHN MURRAY; RAYNO NORDUCCI; HECTOR OCHOA; JORGE OCHOA; MICHAEL O'NEAL; LUIS E. ORTEGA; GILBERT GEORGE ORTIZ; VICTOR PARKER; DAVID PERALES; ISIDRO PERALES; ROBERT PORTILLO; ROBIN J. QUIGLEY; JOSEPH R. QUILTY, II; ROBERT REYNOSO; BRYAN RICHARD; CARLOS OROZCO RIVAS; GILBERT C. RIVERA; HOWARD ROBINSON; AUDIAS RODRIGUEZ; HUGO RODRIGUEZ; RUBEN RODRIGUEZ; TOMAS A. RODRIGUEZ; JOHN ROJAS; JAVIER ROMAN; ARMANDO ROMERO; ROBERT A. ROSAS; EUGENE A. ROSE; FRANCISCO J. RUIZ; C.W. RYAN; CATHERINE SCHATZ; DENNIS SCHATZ; STEVEN SCHILLING; NORMAN W. SCHOOLCRAFT; ERNIE SCOLARI; JOHN P. SOROUSE; JOSEPH SELCHO; JAMES SHINN; NATHAN SHROPSHIRE; RICHARD F. SHUMWAY; DAVID MANUAL SIERRAS; DAVID H. SMITH, JR.; ROBERT P. SMITH; CLARENCE SATTERLAND; JAMES BOBBY L. STONE; ALEJANDRO TIRADO; FABRIZIO TORRES; BRIAN UNZICKER; FRANK VALDEZ; MARIO A. VASQUEZ, JR.; MARIO A. VASQUEZ, SR.; RICHARD J. VARGAS; ALEXANDER VILLA, JR.; GUADALUPE REYES WAGGONER; WAYMOND A. WALKER; ROBERT WELSH; WILLIAM M. WESTON, JR.; ROBERT FRITZ WESTREICHER; JUDY LEN WILSON; GARY WAYNE YATES; DENNA JEAN YASANIA; DONALD RAY YODER; LYLE ARCHIBALD; EWALD BARTH; LEROTY O. BELL; HENRY CAMACHO; NICK J. CARENDER; K.W. CARRITHERS; JOSE CASILLAS; ARMANDO CORONADO; RICHARD COTA; DONALD K. CRONK; RICHARD JOSEPH DIAZ; JACK E. DOBSON; FRANCISCO ESPARZA; JOSE C. FLORES; ERNEST W. FRICK; RUDY GOMEZ; JOSEPH GONZALES; MICHAEL GROOM; JOAQUIN HERNANDEZ; JOHN ALFRED HILL; TERRY L. JOHNSON; OSCAR H. MARTIN; ELY MCDONAGLE; FULTON L. MITCHELL; GRADY RICHARD NUTT; GILBERT ORTIZ, JR.; MICHAEL T. PAUCH; JEFFREY M. PHILLIPS;
MICHAEL R. PRESTON; BILLY C. RATLEDGE; ALFRED G. RODRIGUEZ; GILBERT ROSALES; OLIVER SONJY; JOHN STURGES; DONALD F. WOODS; F. THOMAS THORNE; RONALD M. AUBERT HARVEY GEORGE BEACH; PAUL EDWARD BECKER; HAROLD BURNLEY; KIM HARSHA; JOSEPH CHAVEZ; PAUL E. COX; JOSEPH DEFRANCIS; BILL JOE MCFARLAND; WILLIAM E. MULDOON; JOSE A. UDELL PETERSON; ANDREW SLAUGHTER; AMOS TAYLOR; JIM H. WILLOUGHBY; RICHARD ALVARADO; HENRY H. ANDRADE; GARY A. RAMIREZ; ARMAND S. RAMIREZ; MASAO SHOBE; NOBLE A. CARSON; ERIC G. FROMM; LUE G. GARY; RICHARD ANTHONY LEON; JAMES R. O'NEILL; JERRY STROTHER TODD T. STEVENS, PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS,
CONSOLIDATED FREIGHTWAYS CORPORATION, A DELAWARE CORPORATION; CNF TRANSPORTATION, INC., A DELAWARE CORPORATION, AKA CONSOLIDATED FREIGHTWAYS, INC.; MARK EPSTEIN, AN INDIVIDUAL; DOUGLAS SCHUSTER, AN INDIVIDUAL; DOE SECURITY INSTALLATION COMPANY, DEFENDANTS-APPELLEES.
CHARLES R. DAVIDSON, II; GUILLERMO ALFARO; DAVID FITZHUGH; STEVEN B. BUGARIAN; IGNACIO LAWTON; DREW WHEAT; DONALD STUBBLEFIELD, PLAINTIFFS,
THERESA HOFFMAN; MASAO SHOBE, PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS,
No. 98-55657, No. 98-56041, No. 98-56154
Argued and Submitted En Banc December 18, 2000--San Francisco, California
Under California Penal Code §§ 653n, "[a]ny person who installs or who maintains . . . any two-way mirror permitting observation of any restroom, toilet, bathroom, washroom, shower, locker room, fitting room, motel room, or hotel room, is guilty of a misdemeanor." Thus, Consolidated's installation of the two-way mirror was a direct violation of California criminal law.
Soon after discovery of the camera, truck driver Lloyd Cramer, an employee at the Mira Loma terminal, brought a class action suit in state court alleging invasion of privacy on behalf of all "individuals lawfully on the premises . . . who had a reasonable expectation of privacy while using[Consolidated's] restrooms." Guillermo Alfaro, another Consolidated employee, and 281 others brought a separate suit seeking damages for invasion of privacy and infliction of emotional distress. They also sought injunctive relief to end the use of the surveillance devices.
The history of §§ 301 preemption doctrine is well known, but worth summarizing again to explain how we have arrived at the current state of the law and to provide context for our discussion. As this court has noted, "[f]amiliarity [with the subject matter] has not bred facility." Galvez v. Kuhn, 933 F.2d 773, 774 (9th Cir. 1991).
Section 301 is on its face a jurisdictional statute, under which "[s]uits for violation of contracts between an employer and a labor organization representing employees in an industry affecting commerce as defined in this chapter, or between any such labor organizations, may be brought in any district court of the United States having jurisdiction of the parties." 29 U.S.C. §§ 185(a). Soon after passage of the LMRA, the Supreme Court ruled that §§ 301 authorized the federal courts to develop a federal common law of CBA interpretation. Textile Workers Union v. Lincoln Mills, 353 U.S. 448, 451 (1957). The Court subsequently held that this federal common law preempts the use of state contract law in CBA interpretation and enforcement. Local 174, Teamsters of Am. v. Lucas Flour Co., 369 U.S. 95, 103-04 (1962).
In Allis-Chalmers Corp. v. Lueck, 471 U.S. 202 (1985), the Court expanded application of §§ 301 preemption beyond cases specifically alleging contract violation to those whose resolution "is substantially dependent upon analysis of the terms of an agreement made between the parties in a labor contract." Id. at 220. Allis-Chalmers involved an employee's suit alleging his employer had handled his claim for disability benefits in bad faith, thereby violating state tort law. Id. at 206. Because the method of handling disability claims was specified in the CBA governing Lueck's employment, the Court interpreted his claim as essentially a recharacterized action for breach of the CBA, and held that it was preempted under §§ 301. Id. at 215 ("[I]t is a question of federal contract interpretation whether there was an obligation under this labor contract to provide the payments in a timely manner, and, if so, whether Allis-Chalmers' conduct breached that implied contract provision.").
The Court reiterated its test for preemption in Caterpillar, Inc. v. Williams, 482 U.S. 386 (1987). Although acknowledging that "the pre-emptive force of §§ 301 is so powerful as to displace entirely any state cause of action for violation of contracts between an employer and a labor organization," the Court explained that §§ 301 preempts only "claims founded directly on rights created by collective-bargaining agreements, and also claims `substantially dependent on analysis of a collective-bargaining agreement.' " Id. at 394 (quoting Franchise Tax Bd. v. Construction Laborers Vacation Trust, 463 U.S. 1, 23 (1983) (internal quotation marks omitted); Elec. Workers v. Hechler, 481 U.S. 851, 859 n.3 (1987)). The Court made clear that the complaints of employees covered by a CBA were not preempted if their claims were unrelated to the terms of the CBA, specifically rejecting the employer's contention that "all employment-related matters involving unionized employees be resolved through collective bargaining and thus be governed by a federal common law created by §§ 301." Id. at 396 n.10 (internal quotation marks omitted). Moreover, the Court held that a defense based on the terms of a CBA is not enough to require preemption: "[A ] defendant cannot, merely by injecting a federal question into an action that asserts what is plainly a state-law claim, transform the action into one arising under federal law, thereby selecting the forum in which the claim shall be litigated." Id. at 399.
Attempting to clarify when claims are preempted under §§ 301, Lingle v. Norge Division of Magic Chef, Inc., 486 U.S. 399 (1988), held that states may provide substantive rights to workers that apply without regard to a CBA; a state court suit seeking to vindicate these rights is preempted only if it "requires the interpretation of a collective-bargaining agreement." Id. at 413. In Lingle, the plaintiff's union had filed a grievance alleging discharge without just cause against her employer pursuant to a CBA at the same time the plaintiff had filed a suit in state court for retaliatory discharge. The Court held that the plaintiff's suit was not preempted:"[E]ven if dispute resolution pursuant to a collective-bargaining agreement, on the one hand, and state law, on the other, would require addressing precisely the same set of facts, as long as the statelaw claim can be resolved without interpreting the agreement itself, the claim is `independent' of the agreement for §§ 301 pre-emption purposes." Id. at 409-10. The Court took pains to note that even if the CBA refers to the state law substantive right at issue, the claim is not preempted so long as it may be litigated without reference to the CBA. "[T]he mere fact that a broad contractual protection against discriminatory -or retaliatory -discharge may provide a remedy for conduct that coincidentally violates state law does not make the existence or the contours of the state law violation dependent upon the terms of the private contract." Id. at 412-13.
The demarcation between preempted claims and those that survive §§ 301's reach is not, however, a line that lends itself to analytical precision. As the Supreme Court acknowledged in Livadas, "[T]he Courts of Appeals have not been entirely uniform in their understanding and application of the principles set down in Lingle and [Allis-Chalmers]." Id. at 124 n.18. And little wonder. "Substantial dependence" on a CBA is an inexact concept, turning on the specific facts of each case, and the distinction between "looking to" a CBA and"interpreting" it is not always clear or amenable to a bright-line test. See Balcorta v. Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp., 208 F.3d 1102, 1108-09 (9th Cir. 2000); Ramirez v. Fox Television Station, Inc., 998 F.2d 743, 748 (9th Cir. 1993). Nevertheless, the interpretive principles the Supreme Court has articulated help guide us through the analytical thicket.
Moreover, alleging a hypothetical connection between the claim and the terms of the CBA is not enough to preempt the claim: adjudication of the claim must require interpretation of a provision of the CBA. A creative linkage between the subject matter of the claim and the wording of a CBA provision is insufficient; rather, the proffered interpretation argument must reach a reasonable level of credibility.3 Cf. Livadas, 512 U.S. at 124-25. The argument does not become credible simply because the court may have to consult the CBA to evaluate it; "look[ing] to" the CBA merely to discern that none of its terms is reasonably in dispute does not require preemption. Id. at 125.
Given this analytical framework, we conclude that several of our Circuit's opinions -all of which were decided before Livadas -state preemption principles that need to be clarified and corrected. In Utility Workers of America, Local No. 246 v. Southern California Edison Co., 852 F.2d 1083 (9th Cir. 1988), we held a union's allegation that an employer's unilaterally instituted drug testing policy violated the California Constitution was preempted because resolution of the claim was substantially dependent on analysis of the applicable CBA; but we went on to suggest that the claim was preempted because it "constitute[d] a properly negotiable subject for purposes of collective bargaining."4 Id. at 1086. Similarly, in Laws v. Calmat, 852 F.2d 430 (9th Cir. 1988), we upheld dismissal on §§ 301 preemption grounds of an employee's suit challenging his employer's drug and alcohol testing program and his subsequent suspension for failing to participate. We held the testing to be "a working condition whether or not it is specifically discussed in the CBA," and noted that "[a]lthough the manner of discovering employee intoxication is not in the current CBA, the reference to `intoxication' seems to identify this arena as a subject for the collective bargaining process." Id. at 433; see also Schlacter-Jones v. General Tel., 936 F.2d 435, 441 (9th Cir. 1991) (characterizing plaintiff's claim in part as one that "cannot be assessed without examining the CBA to determine whether the Drug Policy was a valid term and condition of employment"); Stikes v. Chevron USA, Inc., 914 F.2d 1265, 1268, 1270 (9th Cir. 1990) (relying in part on Utility Workers and Laws to find privacy claim preempted; stating that "even if the California courts were to find the privacy right non-waiveable, the right is not absolute and its scope would involve consideration and possible interpretation of the collective bargaining agreement."). Taken together, these cases suggest that the preemptive force of §§ 301 is so strong that preemption must occur simply because the state right in question "is a properly negotiable subject for purposes of collective bargaining." Utility Workers, 852 F.2d at 1086.
Consolidated's insistence that we must refer to the CBA because one provision mentions drug use and another contemplates the use of surveillance videotapes in certain specified circumstances does not change our analysis. Neither of these provisions purports to have any bearing on secret spying on Consolidated's employees in company restrooms -no matter how well-intentioned Consolidated's alleged purpose may have been in doing so. Indeed, the surreptitious nature of the violation of plaintiffs' privacy belies any notion of bargaining or consent to hidden cameras behind two-way mirrors. Consolidated cannot create a dispute as to the meaning of the terms of the CBA by picking out terms that refer to videotapes and drug use, particularly when a cursory examination of those provisions makes clear they apply to a completely different context and set of circumstances.6 In short, this is a classic example of a defendant's attempt to "inject[ ] a federal question into an action that asserts what is plainly a state-law claim [in order to] transform the action into one arising under federal law, thereby selecting the forum in which the claim shall be litigated." Caterpillar, 482 U.S. at 399. The Supreme Court has instructed that we are not to reward defendants who engage in such hypothetical exercises. See id.7
Even if the CBA did expressly contemplate the use of two-way mirrors to facilitate detection of drug users, such a provision would be illegal under California law, and it is well established in California that illegal provisions of a contract are void and unenforceable. See Hedges v. Frink , 163 P. 884, 885 (Cal. 1917); Holm v. Bramwell, 67 P.2d 114, 117 (Cal. Dist. Ct. App. 1937). Section 653n of the California Penal Code makes the installation and maintenance of two-way mirrors permitting the observation of restrooms illegal without reference to the reasonable expectations of those so viewed. Determination of guilt under the statute is not dependent on context or subjective factors; use of the mirrors is a per se violation of the penal code, and an assumption that the mirrors will not be used is per se reasonable. See In re Deborah C., 635 P.2d 446, 452 n.9 (Cal. 1981); People v. Metcalf, 98 Cal. Rptr. 925, 927 (1971).8
Under settled Supreme Court precedent, "§§ 301 does not grant the parties to a collective-bargaining agreement the ability to contract for what is illegal under state law." AllisChalmers, 471 U.S. at 212; see also Galvez v. Kuhn, 933 F.2d 773, 777 (9th Cir. 1991) (noting that a state prohibition of illegal conduct applies regardless of the terms of a particular contract). Consolidated was therefore required to abide by the provisions of California penal law, and its employees had a right to assume their employer would obey the law.9 This assumption is inherently reasonable. Indeed, any contrary assumption would be irrational, because illegal behavior is unreasonable. See Miller v. AT&T Network Sys. , 850 F.2d 543, 550 n.5 (9th Cir. 1988) (explaining that criminal behavior is, by virtue of its illegality, per se unreasonable). Even if the CBA purported to reduce or limit this expectation in some way, that reduction would be illegal and therefore unenforceable. Because installation of two-way mirrors is immutably illegal, and freedom from the illegality is a "nonnegotiable state-law right[ ]," a court reviewing plaintiffs' claims that their privacy rights were violated need not interpret the CBA to arrive at its conclusion. Allis-Chalmers, 471 U.S. at 213. By definition, therefore, plaintiffs in this action were reasonable in expecting to be free of the two-way mirrors and hidden video cameras installed in the restrooms.
In any event, Consolidated relies on the expansive language in our earlier decisions which we have today disavowed --indicating that challenges to drug testing must be preempted because drug testing is "a properly negotiable subject for purposes of collective bargaining." Utility Workers, 852 F.2d at 1086. As discussed above, this language is not controlling; indeed, the Supreme Court came to precisely the opposite conclusion in Lingle: "[E]ven if dispute resolution pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement, on the one hand, and state law, on the other, would require addressing precisely the same set of facts, as long as the state law claim can be resolved without interpreting the agreement itself, the claim is `independent' of the agreement for §§ 301 purposes. " 486 U.S. at 409-10. That a claim involves an issue theoretically subject to collective bargaining is irrelevant if the specific claim at issue may be resolved without interpretation of the CBA. See Balcorta, 208 F.3d at 1108 n.10.
Nor does California state court precedent support Consolidated's argument about the necessarily contextual nature of determinations concerning privacy rights. The California Supreme Court held in Hill v. National Collegiate Athletic Association, 865 P.2d 633 (Cal. 1994), that the NCAA's drug testing program did not violate student athletes' rights to privacy. This holding was based in part on the open and consensual nature of the testing, the complete information about the testing given to the athletes and the opportunity afforded them to refuse to participate. Id. at 26. Nothing in Hill suggests that all privacy determinations turn on issues of consent. Significantly, the court noted that the plaintiffs did not allege the NCAA's program was "contrary to law or public policy."10 Id., 26 Cal.Rptr.2d 834, 865 P.2d at 660. In this case, conversely, plaintiffs made just such an allegation. Furthermore, their contention is supported by California law. The California Supreme Court has described §§ 653n as "express[ing] a legislative policy against `clandestine observation of public restrooms,' rendering it`reasonable for users thereof to expect that their privacy will not be surreptitiously violated.' " Deborah C., 635 P.2d at 452 n.9 (quoting Metcalf, 98 Cal. Rptr. at 927). Issues of privacy implicated by drug testing programs may well be contextdependent. Issues of privacy implicated by the use of two-way mirrors for surreptitious surveillance are not.
We note that the Supreme Court recognized in Livadas that where the claim cannot be resolved without interpreting the CBA, "[h]olding the plaintiff's cause of action substantively extinguished may not . . . always be the only means of vindicating the arbitrator's primacy as the bargainedfor contract interpreter." Livadas, 512 U.S. at 124 n.18 (citing Collyer Insulated Wire, Gulf, & W. Sys. Co., 192 N.L.R.B. 837 (1971) (establishing the practice of holding in abeyance NLRB unfair labor practice cases involving interpretation of the CBAs where there is an applicable arbitration clause and requiring that the parties arbitrate any such interpretation question and then return to the Board for adjudication of any remaining legal and factual issues within the Board's jurisdiction)). Because we find that here there is no need to interpret the CBA to resolve the plaintiffs' claims, we do not address under what circumstances a practice of deferring the litigation pending an arbitrator's resolution of the contract interpretation issues rather than extinguishing the claim might be appropriate.
California law clearly protects individuals from covert observation in certain traditionally private places, such as restrooms and fitting rooms. See Cal. Penal Code §§ 653n. Rather than merely hold that Consolidated's covert actions here were illegal, the Court today holds that even in future contract negotiations, the parties could not reduce privacy expectations in the bathrooms of California workplaces. See Slip Op. at 695-96 ("Even if the CBA purported to reduce or limit this expectation in some way, that reduction would be illegal and therefore unenforceable."). It is not clear to me that California courts would preclude such negotiations between well-represented parties if there were a compelling reason to permit observation. See, e.g., Hill v. NCAA, 865 P.2d 633, 655 (Cal. 1994) ("[T]he presence or absence of opportunities to consent voluntarily to activities impacting privacy interests obviously affects the expectations of the participant."); In re Deborah C., 635 P.2d 446, 452 n.9 (Cal. 1981) ("[S]section 653n is limited to a method of hidden spying . . .[not] that restrooms and fitting rooms are immune from all observation.").
No doubt, the majority is correct in the formulation of the rule we should apply in this case: the plaintiffs' state law claim is preempted under Section 301 of the Act if Consolidated can assert a "reasonable" invocation of a provision of the CBA which makes the resolution of the plaintiffs' claim depend on its interpretation. Majority Opinion at 7523. Such formulation is familiar and is substantially similar to that used in other Circuits. E.g., Martin v. Shaw's Supermarkets, Inc., 105 F.3d 40, 42 (1st Cir. 1997) ("[S]section 301 preempts a state-law claim wherever a court, in passing upon the asserted state-law claim, would be required to interpret a plausibly disputed provision of the collective bargaining agreement." (emphasis added)); Brazinski v. Amoco Petroleum Additives Co., 6 F.3d 1176, 1181 (7th Cir. 1993) (noting that state law privacy claim was preempted because "it was arguably within the scope of the [collective bargaining] agreement" (emphasis added)). Regrettably, the majority fails in its application of the rule to the CBA at issue in this case.
Remarkably, the majority chooses to reach alternative holdings. In Part III, it concludes, with little elaboration, that Consolidated cannot assert even a reasonable interpretation of the CBA that makes its interpretation necessary to resolve the plaintiffs' claim. Majority Opinion at 7527. ("[A] cursory examination of those provisions makes clear they apply to a completely different context and set of circumstances."). In Part IV, the majority holds that, even if Consolidated could make such an argument, the California Penal Code trumps. Majority Opinion at 7529 ("Even if the CBA did expressly contemplate the use of two-way mirrors to facilitate detection of drug users, such a provision would be illegal under California law . . . ."). Neither holding is compelling.
As to the analysis in Part III, the elements of a right to privacy cause of action under California law require these plaintiffs to show, among other things, 1) that they had a subjective expectation of privacy in the restroom, and 2) that their subjective expectation of privacy was reasonable. Alarcon v. Murphy, 248 Cal.Rptr. 26, 29 (Cal. Ct. App. 1988) ("To determine whether there has been a violation of Alarcon's constitutional right of privacy, we determine whether his personal and objectively reasonable expectation of privacy has been infringed . . . ." (emphasis added)).
To what sources of information must we look in order to determine, under California law, whether an employee has a subjective and objectively reasonable expectation of privacy? The California Supreme Court tells us this much:"[T]he presence or absence of opportunities to consent voluntarily to activities impacting privacy interests obviously affects the expectations of the participant." Hill v. NCAA, 865 P.2d 633, 655 (Cal. 1994). And where might have the plaintiffs here had the "opportunit[y] to consent voluntarily " to the videotaping of which they complain? They had such an opportunity every time they entered the terminal in which they were videotaped. The record shows that Consolidated placed no fewer than six signs in and around the terminal housing the restroom which read: "NOTICE! 24 Hour Surveillance Recorded on Videotape." This is hardly irrelevant to their objective and subjective expectations of privacy.1
Not only is there a reasonable argument that the plaintiffs consented in the CBA to the videotaping, but Consolidated's argument in this regard is much stronger than arguments other courts have accepted for the purposes of finding preemption. For example, in a case remarkably similar to this one, the Seventh Circuit held that a suit which alleged that a company had violated state law privacy rights by installing video cameras in a restroom was preempted because the CBA may have authorized the practice, even though there was "not one word in the compact about cameras, locker rooms, or surveillance in general." In re Amoco Petroleum Additives Co., 964 F.2d 706, 709-10 (7th Cir. 1992). The court based preemption on a "management-rights" clause that the company argued left everything "neither regulated nor forbidden" to "its discretion." Id. at 709. The court further noted that several courts had held state law privacy suits over employee drug tests preempted "whether or not the collective bargaining agreement expressly mention[ed] drug tests." Id. at 710. Needless to say, Consolidated's argument regarding the interpretation of the CBA in this case, which does expressly authorize videotaping, is far more plausible than these.5
To repeat: the elements of a right to privacy cause of action under California law require these plaintiffs to show two things: 1) that they had a subjective expectation of privacy in the restroom, and 2) that their subjective expectation of privacy was reasonable.6 Alarcon , 248 Cal.Rptr. at 29. The majority concludes that, because Consolidated's videotaping is presumably a misdemeanor under California Penal Code §§ 653n,7 any expectation of privacy the plaintiffs had in the restroom was reasonable as a matter of law. Fair enough. But this only establishes the second prong of the required showing; it does not establish the first prong, whether the plaintiffs had a subjective expectation of privacy in the restroom. Before the plaintiffs can establish that, the Court must resort to interpretation of the CBA to determine whether they consented to the videotaping.
Nonetheless, this is the interpretation of California law urged upon us by the majority in this case. As support, the majority can only muster the following assertion:"Nothing in Hill suggests that all privacy determinations turn on issues of consent." Majority Opinion at 7531. This is true. Hill never used the word "all." Instead, it used the word"obviously": "[T]he presence or absence of opportunities to consent voluntarily to activities impacting privacy interests obviously affects the expectations of the participant." Hill, 865 P.2d at 655 (emphasis added). What was "obvious" to the California Supreme Court in Hill should be obvious to everyone else who considers the question: a person's subjective expectation of privacy from an intrusion turns on whether he consented to the intrusion. The majority's conclusion otherwise can only be explained as an attempt to rewrite California law.
The reporters are replete with cases employing such an interpretative method. E.g., Republic Pictures Corp. v. Rogers , 213 F.2d 662, 665 (9th Cir. 1954) ("[C]courts are loathe to impose limitations or restrictions upon the parties which are not expressly contained in their agreement or which do not arise by necessary implication, and without such implied restrictions the contract could not be effectively performed . . . ."); see also Margaret N. Kniffin, 5 Corbin on Contracts §§ 24.28 (Revised Ed. 1998) ("If the parties in their contract have specifically named one item . . . a reasonable interpretation is that they did not intend to include other, similar items not listed.").
At another point, the majority also appears to argue that the plaintiffs' state law rights can be preempted only by a "clear and unmistakable" waiver, rather than a "reasonable" argument regarding waiver, in the CBA. Majority Opinion at 7523, 7528 n.7. This would be the case, however, only if the plaintiffs' state law rights were"nonnegotiable." The Supreme Court made this clear in Lingle v. Norge Division of Magic Chef, Inc., 486 U.S. 399 (1988). The state law right at issue in Lingle, freedom from retaliatory discharge, was "nonnegotiable, " id. at 407 n.7, because "under [state] law, the parties to a collective-bargaining agreement may not waive the prohibition against retaliatory discharge," id. at 409 n.9. Thus, "[b]efore deciding whether such a state-law bar to waiver could be pre-empted under federal law by the parties to a collective-bargaining agreement, we would require `clear and unmistakable' evidence in order to conclude that such a waiver had been intended. " Id. at 409 n.9 (citations omitted). There is no "state-law bar to waiver " of the right to privacy in California. To the contrary, the California Supreme Court has held that the right to privacy can be extinguished by consent:"[T]he presence or absence of opportunities to consent voluntarily to activities impacting privacy interests obviously affects the expectations of the participant." Hill, 865 P.2d at 655.
The majority appears to argue that the elements of a right to privacy cause of action under California law do not require the plaintiffs to show that they had a subjective expectation of privacy in the restroom. Majority Opinion at 7531-32 n.10. The majority appears to suggest that this is the case because Hill altered the elements recited in Alarcon. Id. I respectfully disagree. Nowhere in Hill did the Supreme Court state that it was overruling the understanding in Alarcon. Moreover, although Hill did not use the phrase "subjective expectation of privacy," it included as the second element of the cause of action "a reasonable expectation of privacy on the plaintiff's part." Hill, 865 P.2d at 655. I take this to mean that the plaintiff must show both that he had an expectation of privacy and that it was reasonable. This view is confirmed by the fact that the Court explained this element by noting that "the presence or absence of opportunities to con sent voluntarily to activities impacting privacy interests obviously affects the expectations of the participant." Id. Indeed, in fashioning the elements of the right to privacy under the California Constitution, the Supreme Court drew upon both the California common law right to privacy and the federal constitutional right to privacy, id. at 848-53, both of which include a subjective expectation of privacy as one of their elements. Id. at 849-50 ("The plaintiff in an invasion of privacy case must have conducted himself or herself in a manner consistent with an actual expectation of privacy, i.e., he or she must not have manifested by his or her conduct a voluntary consent to the invasive actions of the defendant."); California v. Greenwood, 486 U.S. 35, 39 (1988) ("[T]he Fourth Amendment [is violated] only if respondents manifested a subjective expectation of privacy . . . that society accepts as objectively reasonable.").