Opinion ID: 1478878
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Workmen Engaged in Quarrying and Hauling Rock for the Construction of the Dike

Text: The dike itself was not an instrumentality of interstate commerce. The dike was constructed to confine the waters on lands acquired by the United States and prevent the inundation of the oil field. The government could have condemned the oil field, or otherwise acquired the title, and permitted the waters to inundate the field. It chose to construct the dike and prevent inundation of the oil field. The government constructed the dike to confine the waters within the area where it had the lawful right to impound them. That was the primary purpose for constructing the dike. The instant case, in my opinion, is distinguishable from watchmen or firemen employed to protect factories or manufacturing plants engaged in the production of goods for commerce. See Armour & Co. v. Wantock, 323 U.S. 126, 65 S.Ct. 165; Kirschbaum Co. v. Walling, 316 U.S. 517, 62 S.Ct. 1116, 86 L.Ed. 1638; Mid-Continent Pipe Line Co. v. Hargrave, 10 Cir., 129 F.2d 655. In those cases, the workmen were employed primarily to protect the manufacturing establishments engaged in the production of goods for commerce. Here, the workmen were employed primarily to construct a dike to confine the waters within an area which the United States had the right to submerge. The oil producer had no relationship, contractual or otherwise, with the United States, the contractors who constructed the dike, or such contractors' employees. In solving the problem what is required is a practical judgment as to whether the particular employer actually operates the work as part of an integrated effort for the production of goods, [8] and as was said by the court in 10 East 40th Street Bldg., Inc., v. Callus, 325 U.S. 578, 582, 65 S.Ct. 1227, 1229, We cannot `be unmindful that Congress in enacting this statute plainly indicated its purpose to leave local business to the protection of the states.' We must be alert, therefore, not to absorb by adjudication essentially local activities that Congress did not see fit to take over by legislation. It is true that the dike will protect the oil field from inundation. But, inundation would have resulted not from any condition present in the oil field, any natural condition surrounding the field, nor any factor incident to the production of oil, but solely because of the construction of the dam and reservoir. Therefore, it seems to me the work in constructing the dike was not a part of an integrated effort for the production of oil. It is my opinion that the work of the employees in quarrying the rock and hauling it to the dike did not have such a close and immediate tie with the process of production for commerce in the oil field as to be regarded as necessary to such production within the meaning of § 3 of the Act. Accordingly, I concur in the reversal in No. 3176 and would affirm in No. 3178.