Opinion ID: 735395
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Law Regarding Section 8(f) Agreements

Text: 16 A section 8(f) agreement is a labor contract negotiated between a construction employer and a union [that] does not represent a majority [of the employees] at the time of contract execution. Plumbers and Pipefitters Local Union 72 v. John Payne Co., Inc., 850 F.2d 1535, 1538 (11th Cir.1988), quoting Construction Erectors, Inc. v. NLRB, 661 F.2d 801, 804 (9th Cir.1981). If a union does not achieve majority representative status among a company's employees, the employer/union agreement can only be viewed as a pre-hire agreement, as contemplated by section 8(f) of the LMRA and not as a fully enforceable collective bargaining agreement. See John Payne, 850 F.2d at 1538. 17 In U.S. Mosaic Tile Co., Inc. v. NLRB, 935 F.2d 1249 (11th Cir.1991), cert. denied, 502 U.S. 1031, 112 S.Ct. 871, 116 L.Ed.2d 776 (1992), we provided a thorough explanation of the difference between section 8(f) and section 9(a) agreements and the bargaining protections that flow from each type of agreement. 18 Section 8(f) of the Act provides an exception to other bargaining provisions of the Act for the construction industry. Generally, a collective bargaining representative (union) outside the construction industry must be designated or selected by a majority of the employees in a given unit before that representative can have the exclusive right to represent the employees in bargaining with the employer. Once a representative achieves this status under § 9(a), it receives various bargaining protections provided by § 8(a) and (b) of the Act. The union also receives a presumption of majority status for a reasonable time, including during the period immediately after the end of a prior agreement when the parties are bargaining for a new contract.... Congress, recognizing the uniquely fluctuant nature of the construction industry, enacted § 8(f), which enables a representative of employees in the construction industry to enter a collective bargaining agreement with an employer without first having achieved majority status. The agreements are known as pre-hire agreements.... Prior to Deklewa the Board interpreted § 8(f) to permit either party to terminate the bargaining agreement at will, so long as the union had not achieved majority status. R.J. Smith Construction, 191 N.L.R.B. 693, enf. denied sub nom. Operating Engineers Local 150 v. NLRB, 480 F.2d 1186 (D.C.Cir.1973). The Board also determined, however, that if the union achieved majority status during the period of the agreement, it would receive the same protections as a § 9(a) union, including the presumption of majority status upon the expiration of the bargaining agreement.... The Board, realizing the confusion and difficulty created by its own interpretation, decided to overhaul its view of § 8(f) agreements. Thus, in Deklewa, the Board decided that pre-hire agreements were no longer terminable at will, but were valid for the entire term. Additionally, the Board stated that the union would no longer receive the presumption of majority status upon expiration of the agreement, and thus would not retain the right to exclusive bargaining at that point. The union could, however, achieve majority status through the traditional methods for becoming a § 9(a) representative: Board certified election or voluntary recognition by the employer. 843 F.2d at 778.... Several circuits have now approved of Deklewa, often relying on the reasoning used by the Third Circuit when it enforced Deklewa in International Assoc. of Iron Workers v. NLRB.... 19 Mosaic Tile, 935 F.2d at 1253 n. 2 (citations omitted). In Mosaic Tile, we refrained from speaking to the viability of Deklewa in this circuit because the employer's attempt to argue Deklewa was untimely. Id. at 1253. 20 We again decline to speak to the viability of Deklewa because we must strictly follow the prior panel rule. See United States v. Woodard, 938 F.2d 1255, 1258 (11th Cir.1991), cert. denied, 502 U.S. 1109, 112 S.Ct. 1210, 117 L.Ed.2d 449 (1992) (holding that [t]he law in this circuit is emphatic that 'only a decision by this court sitting en banc or the United States Supreme Court can overrule a prior panel decision,'  quoting U.S. v. Machado, 804 F.2d 1537, 1543 (11th Cir.1986)). The prior panel decision rule is applied in this circuit to such an extent that where there is a conflict between panel decisions within this circuit, the earlier decision is binding until the court decides the issue en banc. Clark v. Housing Authority of City of Alma, 971 F.2d 723, 726 n. 4 (11th Cir.1992). The law of this circuit regarding the ability to repudiate section 8(f) agreements is found in Plumbers and Pipefitters Local Union 72 v. John Payne Co., Inc., and Local 92, Int'l Assoc. of Bridge, Structural and Ornamental Ironworkers v. B & B Steel Erectors, Inc., 850 F.2d 1551 (11th Cir.1988). 2 21 In John Payne, a post-Deklewa decision, this circuit cited with approval Jim McNeff, Inc. v. Todd, 461 U.S. 260, 271-72, 103 S.Ct. 1753, 1759, 75 L.Ed.2d 830 (1983), which held that under section 301 actions to recover money allegedly owed to a union fund, a section 8(f) pre-hire agreement is subject to repudiation until the union establishes majority status in a section 9(a) election. John Payne, 850 F.2d at 1540. In John Payne, the union did not claim to have ever achieved majority representative status among the company's employees. Id. at 1538. Thus, the pre-hire agreement was not a fully enforceable collective bargaining agreement. Id. This circuit followed McNeff regarding section 8(f) agreements and then proceeded to determine whether the employer had made an effective repudiation. Id. at 1540. 22 In Local 92, also a post-Deklewa decision, we stated, [i]t is well settled law that 'a pre-hire agreement is voidable by the employer and that such an agreement does not become a collective bargaining contract unless the union actually represents a majority of the employees in the relevant unit and is recognized by the employer.'  Local 92, 850 F.2d at 1554, quoting Painters Local Union No. 164 v. Epley, 764 F.2d 1509, 1514 (11th Cir.1985), cert. denied, 475 U.S. 1120, 106 S.Ct. 1636, 90 L.Ed.2d 182 (1986). The panel agreed with the district court which held that because a section 8(f) pre-hire agreement is voidable by repudiation until the union establishes majority support and because it was undisputed that the union had never achieved majority status in B & B's work force, the district court concluded that B & B had the right to repudiate the pre-hire agreement. Local 92, 850 F.2d at 1554. 23 In the case sub judice, it is undisputed that the Union did not establish majority support of the workforce at Pappas or at P & M. Under John Payne and Local 92, Pappas could repudiate the 1988-1991 section 8(f) agreement at any time prior to the Union establishing majority support of the work force. If Pappas made an effective repudiation, Pappas would be bound by neither the 1988-1991 agreement nor by the successor agreement, the 1991-1994 agreement. Following the prior panel decision rule and controlling Eleventh Circuit precedent, we affirm the decision of the district court. We decline to reach the issue of whether Luterbach and Deklewa are viable in this circuit.