Opinion ID: 594405
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Summary Judgment of Hamilton's Section 301 Claims.

Text: 50 The Hamilton plaintiffs base their § 301 claims on alleged agreements made between the union and Grocers in April of 1987. They contend that about April 2, 1987, Mr. Ed Fox, Grocers' operation manager, offered to permit the return of the striking employees, if they immediately agreed to cease their strike. They further contend that this offer and acceptance constituted an employment contract between the company and the union, the breach of which is actionable under Section 301 of the LMRA, 29 U.S.C. § 185(a). Hamilton also asserts that a letter from Mr. R.S. Bambace to Mr. A.W. Parker agreeing to recall strikers as provided by Laidlaw Corporation v. NLRB, 414 F.2d 99 (7th Cir.1969), cert. denied, 397 U.S. 920, 90 S.Ct. 928, 25 L.Ed.2d 100 (1970), also constituted an offer which was breached. The district court held that neither the oral agreement nor the letter constituted a contract for labor giving rise to a § 301 action, and granted Grocers' motion for summary judgment. We affirm. 51 Under the L.M.R.A. § 301, 29 U.S.C. 185, a federal court has jurisdiction over breach-of-contract actions between an employer and a labor organization. The fact that an alleged contract was based on an oral agreement during negotiations does not make it unenforceable under § 185. Smith v. Kerrville Bus Co., 709 F.2d 914, 920 (5th Cir.1983). 52 The evidence presented by Hamilton in support of the contract demonstrates that this promise was never considered a binding contract arrangement. A.E. Parker, the union negotiator to whom the alleged statements were made, did not regard the statement as an offer of a binding contract, nor does he show that the Union accepted such an offer. In fact, the strikers agreed to return to work unconditionally after the supposed agreement was made. The district court correctly dismissed the § 301 claim, because no evidence existed from which a jury could find that a contract existed between the strikers and the company. 53 Hamilton's argument that the company breached the written recall agreement must also fail. This claim is barred by Hamilton's failure to pursue the appropriate arbitration remedies. Where a contract provides for binding arbitration, an employee may not sue his employer under § 301 unless he has exhausted those remedies. Allis-Chalmers Corp. v. Lueck, 471 U.S. 202, 105 S.Ct. 1904, 85 L.Ed.2d 206 (1985). Hamilton does not dispute the existence of the arbitration provision or the failure to invoke it. Hamilton instead argues that, because Grocers repudiated the remedial procedures specified in the contract, Rabalais v. Dresser Industries, Inc., 566 F.2d 518, 519 (5th Cir.1978), requires that there was no need to exhaust the arbitration rights. We disagree. Grocers alleged misconduct is insufficient to invoke the repudiation exception. 13 We affirm the holding of the district court. 54