Opinion ID: 393291
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Adoption of the Handlery Contract.

Text: 32 A successor employer is not required to observe the terms of its predecessor's contract. A successor may choose to accept its predecessor's agreement. Burns International Security Services, Inc., 406 U.S. at 291, 92 S.Ct. at 1584; Kallmann, 640 F.2d at 1103. See also Audit Services, Inc. v. Rolfson, 641 F.2d 757, 763 (9th Cir. 1981). 33 In determining whether parties agreed to a contract, the Board is not bound by technical questions of traditional contract interpretation. The Board is free to use general contract principles adapted to the collective bargaining context to determine whether the two sides have reached an agreement. NLRB v. Electra-Food Machinery, Inc., 621 F.2d 956, 958 (9th Cir. 1980); NLRB v. Donkin's Inn, Inc., 532 F.2d 138, 141-42 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 895, 97 S.Ct. 257, 50 L.Ed.2d 179 (1976). We review the Board's finding as to the existence of an agreement as a question of fact, governed by the substantial evidence standard of review. 34 In this case, the ALJ credited the testimony of the Union witnesses that Cerullo spoke in terms which would lead a reasonable person to conclude that agreement had been reached. The ALJ also relied upon WEI's subsequent actions. It apparently acquiesced in Brown's statement that he and Rose had reached agreement on contract terms. WEI brushed aside Brown's questions about the wages the engineers were receiving. It failed to indicate an inability to reach an agreement for over two months. The ALJ found this inconsistent with the belief that only negotiations were underway. The ALJ interpreted the discussions regarding the non-discrimination clause as a gratuitous, post-agreement concession by Brown to Rose, rather than an indication that WEI had not bound itself to the Handlery contract. 35 WEI does not contend that a clear preponderance of the evidence requires reversal of the ALJ's credibility determinations. Those determinations, along with WEI's post-agreement conduct, constitute substantial evidence supporting the finding that WEI adopted Handlery's contract. By failing to implement the terms of that contract, WEI violated sections 8(a)(5) and (1) of the Act.