Amore v. Beaver County Building & Construction Trade Council

6 Pa. D. & C.2d 647, 1956 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 446
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Beaver County
DecidedAugust 20, 1956
Docketno. 3
StatusPublished

This text of 6 Pa. D. & C.2d 647 (Amore v. Beaver County Building & Construction Trade Council) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Beaver County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Amore v. Beaver County Building & Construction Trade Council, 6 Pa. D. & C.2d 647, 1956 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 446 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1956).

Opinion

McCreary, P. J.,

On August 1, 1956, plaintiffs above named filed a complaint in equity against defendants above named, asking for a preliminary injunction, ex parte, upon the filing of injunction affidavits and a bond in an amount to be fixed by the court. After a short argument, the court refused to grant a preliminary injunction, ex parte, but did direct that a rule issue requiring defendants to show cause why such an injunction should not issue, the rule returnable August 6, 1956, on which day a hearing was to be had.

[648]*648On the day of the return of the rule a hearing was had at which all parties were present in person and were represented by counsel. At the close of the testimony, on the afternoon of August 7, 1956, the court, made up of two hearing judges, McCreary and Sohn, made an order in language as follows:

“Now, August 7, 1956, after hearing the witnesses for the plaintiffs and defendants, the rule issued requiring the defendants to show cause why a preliminary injunction should not issue as prayed for in Plaintiffs’ complaint, is discharged at this time; it appearing to the Court that the plaintiffs have not sustained the burden of showing that the acknowledged peaceful picketing on the project in question is being carried on in any illegal manner, or for any illegal purpose; and having failed to sustain, by the fair weight and preponderance of the evidence, the existence of a situation which convinces the Court that the object of the picketing is unlawful, and therefore enjoinable, in that it has failed to convince the Court that its purpose is to coerce the employers to compel or require their employees to join the union. ,
“The Court retains jurisdiction of the Bill for the purpose of determining, after final hearing, whether or not the defendants, or any of them, should be enjoined as prayed for in the complaint.
“It is further ordered that the motion made by the defendants’ counsel that the Bill be dismissed as to all parties defendant except the Beaver County Building & Construction Trade Council, and its officers, be refused at this time. Further consideration of said motion to be given after final hearing.”

On August 9, 1956, an appeal was taken to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and on August 10,1956, pursuant to rule 43, hearing judges were notified to file of record at least a brief statement, in the form of an opinion, of the reasons for the order made. This [649]*649opinion is filed in obedience to the mandate of rule 43, although the copy of the notice served on the members of the court does not specify the matter about which appellant complains.

The complaint, in substance, avers that plaintiffs are engaged in building houses on a recorded plan of lots called “North View” in the Township of Brighton, Beaver County, that in building houses on said plan of lots, plaintiffs employ three men directly, and have let out various phases of the work of building to subcontractors who also employ men to do the subcontracted work, that defendants are an association of labor unions and their officers, and a labor union and its various officers and agents.

They further allege that on or about April 24, 1956, defendants began to picket the said plan of lots with the purpose in view of compelling plaintiffs to coerce all their employes, their subcontractors and their employes either to join the appropriate one of the various unions comprising defendant Building & Construction Trade Council, which includes the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 712, or be discharged.

Plaintiffs further allege that, by reason of defendants’ coercion, picketing and display of signs, various suppliers of materials and equipment and their truck drivers have refused to cross picket lines to deliver supplies, materials and equipment to said plan of lots in accordance with their contracts with plaintiffs, and further that Duquesne Light Company’s employes, because of said picketing, have refused to connect the electric power lines to the houses on said plan of lots.

There is no allegation, nor was there any proof, of any violence on the two man picket line, and no attempt to show that the pickets at any time even talked to any supplier of materials or any of his drivers or employes. There is neither allegation nor testimony [650]*650indicating that any of defendants, or their two pickets, ever attempted to shut down the job or to interfere with either plaintiffs, their employes, the subcontractors or their employes or any supplier of materials from peaceably prosecuting their various pursuits on the job. From about April 16 to the middle of July there was only one picket on the job, he being seated in an automobile near the entrance to the project, the automobile having a sign on it bearing the legend: “This job is not being built 100% A. F. L. building trades.” This is the truth; it is not being so built.

At the hearing plaintiffs called, as for cross-examination, Michael Namadan, the business agent for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 712, A. F. L., he being also a delegate from his local to the Beaver County Building & Construction Trade Council, and asked him about the meeting of the trade council at which the council decided to picket plaintiffs’ project. He answered that it was decided at the meeting to picket the job for the purpose of persuading nonunion employes of plaintiffs and their subcontractors’ employes to join the union. The minutes of the meeting were produced and they corroborated Mr. Namadan. There was no evidence produced by plaintiffs which convinced the court that the picketing was for any other purpose. It is true that many of the suppliers of materials, who have contracted to furnish building materials and electric current to the project, have union drivers who refuse to cross the picket line, but that affords the court no ground for granting injunctive relief. Neither does it throw any light on the question of whether the picketing is being carried on by defendants for the purpose of coercing the employes to join the union.

As a matter of fact, the testimony shows that neither defendants nor any of its agents ever entered on the building site to converse with any of the artisans or [651]*651workmen after plaintiffs erected signs on the premises reading “No Trespassing under penalty of $100.00 fine”. Before these signs were erected some of the business agents of the building trade council entered on the premises to talk with the workmen to persuade them to join the union. The workmen replied that they had nothing against the union, but that it was up to “Amore”. When the agents went to talk with Amore about the matter he answered that he had no objection to the men joining the union, but that it was up to the men. Thereafter the “No Trespassing” signs were ■erected by plaintiffs and no further conversation was had with the workmen.

As far as the Duquesne Light Company workmen are concerned, they belong to a union and refused to cross the picket line to connect the electric power lines with the houses on the project. However, there are pickets on duty only between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30. p.m., five days a week. When the first house on the project of 25 houses was completed, plaintiffs and the purchaser of no. 1 house experienced no difficulty in getting the Duquesne Light workmen to hook on to the power lines and connect them with the house.

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Bluebook (online)
6 Pa. D. & C.2d 647, 1956 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 446, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/amore-v-beaver-county-building-construction-trade-council-pactcomplbeaver-1956.