Opinion ID: 1542293
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Collective Bargaining Provisions.

Text: The Board, as stated, found that the provision in the Association's proposal of September 2, 1936, restricting recognition of the Union constituted a clear refusal to bargain. Based on that finding, the Board made four provisions of its order. Paragraph 1 ordered 19 named respondents, but not including the Association, to cease and desist from refusing to bargain collectively in respect to rates of pay, wages, hours and other conditions of employment with United, successor to the Union. Paragraph 2 required the Association, when acting for itself, the respondents named in paragraph 1, or for any of its members, for the purpose of collective bargaining, to cease and desist from refusing so to bargain with United, successor to the Union. Paragraph 8 affirmatively requires the respondents named in paragraph 1 to bargain collectively with United, successor to the Union, upon request. Paragraph 9 affirmatively required the Association, when acting as agent for any of the respondents named in paragraph 1, or any of its members, for the purpose of collective bargaining, to bargain collectively with United, successor to the Union. Respondents contend that these four paragraphs cannot be enforced because: (1) the submission of the proposal could not alone constitute a refusal to bargain; (2) if such submission was such refusal, then the rule of law that one cannot faithfully serve two masters would legalize the submission of the proposal, since in any conflict of interest between union and non-union men, the Union actually would represent itself only; and (3) the finding that United was the successor to the Union, is not sufficient to support the order, in the absence of a finding that a majority of the employees had designated United as their bargaining agent. The Board contends that (1) where a union is a majority representative, it is entitled to exclusive recognition, and that the employer's action in recognizing the union as bargaining representative of its members only constitutes a refusal to bargain collectively; and (2) the shift of membership from the Union to United does not affect the order. We hold that under the facts of this case, there is no substantial evidence to support the finding that the proposal constituted a refusal to bargain, and that paragraphs 1, 2, 8 and 9 of the order which are based thereon, cannot be enforced. The Board refused to find whether the advertisement of August 28, 1936, or the notice of September 1, 1936, were refusals to bargain. It expressly found that the events subsequent to the commencement of the strike did not disclose a refusal to bargain. It did not find that any action of respondents was a refusal to bargain, other than the submission of the proposal. It found that Association negotiated with the Union prior to, at, and subsequent to the submission of the proposal. It did not find that the Association could or should have negotiated more. It did not find that the submission of the proposal, or anything else, showed a lack of good faith in negotiating by the Association. In short, the Board in effect found that the Association did not negotiate when in fact and at the very time the proposal was submitted, the Association was negotiating in good faith. The Board's contention does not meet the precise question raised here. The Board contends that the employer's action in recognizing the union as bargaining representative of its members only constitutes a refusal to bargain. Such a question is not here presented. The question presented here is whether there is any substantial evidence to show that the employer recognized the union as bargaining agent of its members only. The Board found that Throughout the entire summer of 1936 up to September 2, the    Association treated the Union, without question, as representative of all the shed workers of the district, and the only thing suggested by the Board as evidence to show a lack of such recognition is the submission of the proposal. Findings of the Board are conclusive only when supported by substantial evidence which means such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion. Edison Co. v. Labor Board, 305 U.S. 197, 229, 59 S.Ct. 206, 217, 83 L.Ed. 126. Evidence which is unsubstantial in a jury case in court, does not become substantial merely because it is before the Board, for the evidence required to support the Board's findings must be enough to justify, if the trial were to a jury, a refusal to direct a verdict when the conclusion sought to be drawn from it is one of fact for the jury. Labor Board v. Columbian Co., 306 U.S. 292, 300, 59 S.Ct. 501, 505, 83 L.Ed. 660. Where the evidence upon any issue is all on one side or so overwhelmingly on one side as to leave no room to doubt what the fact is, the court should give a peremptory instruction to the jury. Gunning v. Cooley, 281 U.S. 90, 94, 50 S.Ct. 231, 233, 74 L.Ed. 720. Here we think that the evidence is so overwhelmingly to the effect that respondents did not refuse to bargain, as to leave no room to doubt that fact, and that a reasonable mind would not accept the evidence of the mere fact of submitting a proposal as adequate to support a conclusion that respondents refused to bargain. None of the cases relied on by the Board are in point. In all of them, the employer in negotiating, negotiated with the union as the representative of its members only. Such is not the case here.